The Justice Department’s Antitrust Division and FBI Launch Online Portal to Enhance Department’s Capability to Bring International Antitrust Fugitives to Justice

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Today, the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division and the FBI jointly announced the launch of a new online portal for information on international fugitives who have been charged with antitrust offenses and other crimes affecting the competitive process. The Antitrust Division and FBI are committed to bringing individuals to court to face their charges, wherever they are located.

“Individuals charged with anticompetitive crimes should understand that the DOJ Antitrust Division and its law enforcement partners will take all available steps to ensure that they answer the charges in court,” said Director of Criminal Enforcement Emma Burnham of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “Defendants should understand that the charges will not go away, and the Antitrust Division urges them to contact us to discuss resolution of the charges.”

“The FBI is focused on identifying, tracking and arresting fugitives across all our threats,” said Assistant Director Chad Yarbrough of the FBI Criminal Investigative Division. “By streamlining intelligence sharing and coordination, we are better equipped than ever to ensure no criminal can evade justice by hiding across borders.”

The Antitrust Division works with the FBI and other law enforcement partners to investigate and prosecute companies and individuals whose anticompetitive conduct harms American consumers and the American economy, wherever those companies and individuals are located. After bringing criminal charges, the Antitrust Division works actively with domestic and foreign authorities to locate international fugitives and secure their extradition to the United States. The Antitrust Division and the FBI welcome information from the public about the location of international fugitives.

For more information on antitrust fugitives, go to the Antitrust Division’s Fugitive webpage. The FBI maintains a list of current antitrust fugitives whose charges are not under seal.

To report potential antitrust crimes to the Antitrust Division, contact the Complaint Center. If your complaint relates to potential antitrust crimes affecting government procurement, grant, or program funding, contact the Procurement Collusion Strike Force Tip Center.

Ohio-Based Supplier of Aircraft Parts and Three Employees Charged for Illicit Export Scheme Involving Russia

Source: United States Department of Justice

Flighttime Enterprises Inc., an American subsidiary of a Russian aircraft parts supplier, along with three of its current and former employees, have been charged federally with crimes related to a scheme to illegally export aircraft parts and components from the United States to Russia and Russian airline companies without the required licenses from the Department of Commerce.

The three individuals charged include Daniela Friery, 43, a naturalized U.S. citizen residing in Loveland, Ohio; Pavil Iglin, 46, a citizen of Russia who currently resides in Florida pursuant to a non-immigrant visa; and Marat Aysin, 39, a legal permanent resident of the United States who currently resides in Florida.

According to the 11-count indictment unsealed today, the three defendants worked for Flighttime Enterprises Inc., an aircraft equipment supplier with office locations near West Chester, Ohio, and Miami.

As alleged in the indictment, following Russia’s further invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Flighttime and the individual defendants knowingly and willfully violated and evaded the export restrictions imposed on Russia to ship aviation parts to Russia and Russian end users, including airlines subject to Department of Commerce Temporary Denial Orders, by mislabeling shipments, providing false certifications, and using intermediary companies and countries to obscure the true end destination and end users. The indictment details four specific export transactions totaling more than $2 million.

For example, in June 2022, Flighttime employees allegedly negotiated the purchase of an auxiliary power unit from an American supplier for $395,000. The U.S. supplier initially expressed hesitation about the transaction due to the company’s connections to Russia. In connection with the purchase, Aysin falsely told the American supplier that the part would be used to replenish stock in West Chester. Through Aysin, Iglin allegedly signed and dated a Russia end-user certificate with the supplier falsely certifying that the part would not be exported to Russia. The part was thereafter illegally exported to Russia for a Russian aviation company without the required license.

The company and three defendants are each charged with one count of conspiring to violate the Export Control Reform Act (ECRA), and multiple counts of violating the ECRA, which are federal crimes punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

They are also charged with conspiracy to commit smuggling, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, and multiple counts of smuggling, which carry maximum penalties of 10 years in prison. Finally, they are each charged with one count of conspiring to launder monetary instruments, a federal crime punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

Sue J. Bai, head of the Justice Department’s National Security Division; U.S. Attorney Kenneth L. Parker for the Southern District of Ohio; Special Agent in Charge Elena Iatarola of the FBI Cincinnati Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey Levine of the Office of Export Enforcement, Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) announced the case.

The FBI and BIS are investigating the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy S. Mangan for the Southern District of Ohio is prosecuting the case with assistance from Trial Attorneys Maria Fedor and Menno Goedman of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.

An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

INTERPOL WASHINGTON AND CANADA SIGN HISTORIC PARTNERSHIP TO COMBAT TREN DE ARAGUA

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Lyon, France — INTERPOL Washington Director Jeffrey A. Grimming and National Central Bureau Ottawa Director Marie-Josee Homsy have signed a historic Memorandum of Cooperation (MOC) to strengthen cross-border law enforcement collaboration against Tren de Aragua (TdA), one of the world’s most dangerous transnational criminal organizations. Exploiting recent migration patterns, TdA has expanded its presence in North America and is now in cities and communities across both countries. This landmark agreement enhances the ability of INTERPOL Washington and NCB Ottawa to combat TdA through robust information sharing, coordinated law enforcement support, and strengthened border security efforts.

“Today, we have taken a great leap forward in our fight to eradicate TdA in the United States,” said Director Grimming. “By bringing our combined law enforcement resources to bear, the United States and Canada have ensured that TdA will find no safe harbor in either of our nations. Together, as partners, we will work in lockstep to disrupt and dismantle TdA and remove their violent criminal operatives from our communities.”

“Tackling Transnational Criminal Organizations like TdA requires transnational cooperation,” said Director Homsy. “These groups threaten security and stability across the Americas. This signing is an example of the strong collaboration that takes place between Canadian and American authorities every day – as well as the power and reach of INTERPOL capabilities. By working together, we can dismantle criminal networks, protect our communities, and reaffirm our commitment to the rule of law.”

According to the MOC, both countries have agreed to take concrete actions within the INTERPOL framework to improve police coordination, information sharing, and operational support against TdA in the United States and Canada. This includes enhancing the timely and secure exchange of criminal intelligence, operational data, and best practices regarding efforts against TdA; coordinating joint investigations and activities targeting TdA; and strengthening mechanisms to detect, prevent, and respond to illicit cross-border TdA activities.

This agreement was signed during Director Grimming’s participation in the INTERPOL Heads of National Central Bureaus Conference in Lyon, France. In addition to the signing, INTERPOL Washington engaged in high-level bilateral and multilateral meetings with key partners in the fight against TdA. Director Grimming also delivered a keynote presentation on U.S. efforts to dismantle TdA, sharing strategies and best practices with law enforcement leaders from over 140 countries.

Two Estonian Nationals Plead Guilty in $577M Cryptocurrency Fraud Scheme

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Scheme Victimized Hundreds of Thousands of People in United States and Abroad 

Two Estonian nationals pleaded guilty yesterday for their operation of a massive, multi-faceted cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme that victimized hundreds of thousands of people from across the world, including in the United States. As part of the defendants’ guilty pleas, they agreed to forfeit assets valued over $400 million obtained during the conspiracy.

According to court documents, Sergei Potapenko and Ivan Turõgin, both 40, sold contracts to customers entitling them to a share of cryptocurrency mined by the defendants’ purported cryptocurrency mining service, HashFlare. Cryptocurrency mining is the process of using computers to generate cryptocurrency, such as Bitcoin, for profit.

Between 2015 and 2019, Hashflare’s sales totaled more than $577 million, but HashFlare did not possess the requisite computing capacity to perform the vast majority of the mining the defendants told HashFlare customers it performed. HashFlare’s web-based dashboard, which purported to show customers their mining profits, instead reflected falsified data. Potapenko and Turõgin used the proceeds of the fraud conspiracy to purchase real estate and luxury vehicles and maintained investment and cryptocurrency accounts. Potapenko and Turõgin have agreed to forfeit assets worth, as of the date of the plea, more than $400 million. The forfeited assets will be available for a remission process to compensate victims of the crime. Details about the remission process will be announced at a later date.

Potapenko and Turõgin each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. They are scheduled to be sentenced on May 8 and each face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The Justice Department thanks the Cybercrime Bureau of the Estonian Police and Border Guard for its support with this investigation. The Estonian Prosecutor General and Ministry of Justice and Digital Affairs provided substantial assistance with the extradition. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs provided extensive assistance to the investigation and the extradition of the defendants.

Supervisory Official Antoinette T. Bacon of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller for the Western District of Washington, Assistant Director Chad Yarbrough of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division, and Special Agent in Charge W. Mike Herrington of the FBI Seattle Field Office made the announcement.

The FBI Seattle Field Office investigated the case.

Trial Attorneys Adrienne E. Rosen and David Ginensky of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrew Friedman and Sok Jiang for the Western District of Washington are prosecuting the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jehiel Baer for the Western District of Washington is handling asset forfeiture aspects of the case.

Individuals who believe they may have been a victim in this case should visit www.fbi.gov/hashflare.

Justice Department Announces Successful Conclusion of Agreement with Evangeline Parish Sheriff’s Office to Ensure Constitutional Policing

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

The Justice Department announced on Monday the successful conclusion of the United States’ agreement with the Evangeline Parish Sheriff’s Office (EPSO) in Louisiana to end its pattern or practice of conducting arrests in violation of the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. After a thorough investigation, the United States found reasonable cause to believe that EPSO had unconstitutionally arrested and held people in jail without obtaining a warrant and without probable cause to believe the detained persons had committed a crime.

Under the 2018 agreement, EPSO made specific reforms to address the constitutional violations. EPSO developed policies, provided training, and improved adequate supervision to deputies to end the pattern or practice of unlawful seizures. EPSO also increased transparency by collecting and reporting data on its Fourth Amendment activities. Because EPSO has demonstrated full compliance with the agreement, the agreement is now terminated and the United States’ investigation is closed. The United States appreciates and acknowledges the effort and industry that EPSO committed to improve policing practices in Evangeline Parish.

The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 prohibits state and local governments from engaging in a pattern or practice of conduct by law enforcement officers that deprives individuals of federally-protected rights. The Act also allows the Justice Department to remedy such misconduct through civil litigation.

To read the original press release announcing the findings of the investigation, click here. To read the report of the investigation, click here. To read the original EPSO Settlement Agreement, click here. Additional information about the Civil Rights Division is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt.