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Federal Crimes Blog

Federal white-collar and drug crimes.
By McNabb Associates

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Last Entry: May 23, 2008 at 09:42:00

D.C. Police Officer Convicted on Tax Evasion Charges

Posted on May 23, 2008
Authorities have recently announced that Michael C. Irving, a homicide detective and 18-year veteran of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), was recently convicted of two counts of felony tax evasion.[1] The jury was unable to reach a verdict on four counts of tax evasion, resulting in the court declaring a mistrial on those counts...

D.C. Police Officer Convicted on Tax Evasion Charges

Posted on May 20, 2008
Authorities have recently announced that Michael C. Irving, a homicide detective and 18-year veteran of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), was recently convicted of two counts of felony tax evasion.[1] The jury was unable to reach a verdict on four counts of tax evasion, resulting in the court declaring a mistrial on those counts...

Co-defendant in Sex Trafficking Case Pleads Guilty

Posted on May 12, 2008
Authorities have announced that Pablo Bonifacio pleaded guilty in federal court in Los Angeles, to conspiracy to commit sex trafficking and transporting illegal aliens in the pending case of United States v. Vasquez-Valenzuela. Another eight defendants are scheduled for trial on Sept...

Lopez, Mondragon Sentenced in Houston Human Smuggling Case

Posted on April 28, 2008
Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division Grace C. Becker and U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas Don DeGabrielle have announced that Victor Omar Lopez and Oscar Mondragon, two brothers, have been sentenced for their participation in a scheme to smuggle Central American women and girls into the United States and force them to work in bars and cantinas in the Houston area...

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Alleged Ex-Mob Boss Pleads Guilty to False Statements, Obstruction of Justice

Posted on April 19, 2008
An alleged ex-member of the New England mob has recently pleaded guilty to federal charges in a plea deal that could allow for his release from federal prison after nine months.[1]Francis Salemme, also known as Cadillac Frank, is thought to be the man who led the New England mob during the early 1990s...

French Corporation Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Illegally Export Goods

Posted on April 13, 2008
According to authorities, Cryostar SAS, a French corporation, headquartered in Hesingue, France, has pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy, illegal export, and attempted illegal export of cryogenic submersible pumps to Iran.[1]CRYOSTAR pled guilty before the U...

Governor of Puerto Rico Accused of Public Corruption

Posted on March 27, 2008
The Governor of Puerto Rico, Anibal Acevedo Vila, and a number of associates in the Puerto Rico, Washington D.C., and Philadelphia areas have been charged in an indictment that was recently unsealed in San Juan, Puerto Rico.[1]The charges upon which the indictment was issued include conspiracy, false statements, wire fraud, and federal program fraud and tax crimes related to campaign financing for the governor?s 1999-2000 and 2001-2002 campaign for Resident Commissioner of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and subsequent 2004 gubernatorial campaign...

Man Convicted of Money Laundering Sentenced to 17-1/2 Years Imprisonment

Posted on March 22, 2008
A man arrested at an airport in northeast Georgia with $1.3 million in cash has been convicted of money laundering and sentenced to 17-1/2 years in prison.[1]60-year-old Kevin Felts was sentenced by U.S. District Judge William C. O'Kelley to the prison term after a federal jury convicted Felts of money laundering and weapon charges following a weeklong trial in December...

Las Vegas Couple Accused of Bank Fraud, Money Laundering

Posted on March 16, 2008
A real estate broker in Las Vegas and her husband are alleged to have made millions of dollars devising a mortgage fraud scheme.[1]According to Gregory Bower, U.S. Attorney for Nevada, Eve Mazzarella and her husband, Steven Grimm, were indicted Wednesday on bank fraud, money laundering and aiding and abetting charges...

Businessman Pleads Guilty to Illegal Exportation of Computer Parts

Posted on March 10, 2008
According to recently released court records, a U.S. businessman has pleaded guilty to installing a restricted U.S. satellite system on an Iranian government oil tanker and smuggling computer equipment to the Iranian ballistic missile program.[1]The businessman, Mohammad Farahbakhsh, was also an Iranian national and naturalized U...

Investigation into Roger Clemens Testimony Underway

Posted on March 03, 2008
According to law enforcement officials, the FBI has begun an investigation into whether Roger Clemens lied before Congress regarding performance enhancing drug use in Major League Baseball.[1]Officials are not currently able to predict how long the investigation will last, nor could they say whether criminal charges would be brought against Clemens...

Alleged Gang Members Accused of RICO Conspiracy

Posted on February 27, 2008
A federal grand jury has indicted a number of defendants accused of conspiring to participate in a racketeering enterprise. The individuals, alleged to be members of the Tree Top Piru Bloods gang (TTP Bloods), are also accused of a conspiracy to distribute drugs and a number of gun violations...

Indictment Issued Against Five Individuals for Alleged Wire Fraud

Posted on February 20, 2008
Five individuals accused of defrauding hedge fund investors of over $200 million dollars have been indicted on charges of conspiracy and wire fraud, according to recent statements by Assistant Attorney General Alice S. Fisher of the Criminal Division and U...

Individuals Convicted of Illegal Gambling Cooperating in Police Investigation

Posted on February 18, 2008
Four individuals convicted of involvement in an illegal gambling operation could have their prison sentences reduced if they continue to help in a federal investigation of more than two dozen people, including a number of former police officers.[1]The four individuals, James Otis Henderson, his brother Barron Sloan Henderson, Harold Steve Hartness and Jerry Pennington, were sentenced to prison terms varying between one and six years...

Woman Accused of Espionage Transferred to Virginia for Arraignment

Posted on February 18, 2008
A woman accused of passing national defense information to the Chinese government is being transferred to Virginia for her arraignment.[1] After making a brief appearance in a New Orleans courtroom on Wednesday, Chinese national Yu Xin Kang, was ordered by a federal magistrate to be transferred to Virginia ''as soon as possible...

Women Accused of Espionage Transferred to Virginia for Arraignment

Posted on February 15, 2008
A woman accused of passing national defense information to the Chinese government is being transferred to Virginia for her arraignment.[1] After making a brief appearance in a New Orleans courtroom on Wednesday, Chinese national Yu Xin Kang, was ordered by a federal magistrate to be transferred to Virginia ''as soon as possible...

25 Individuals in Chicago Area Arrested on Mortgage Fraud Charges

Posted on February 09, 2008
The FBI has announced that 25 people have been charged in one of the largest alleged mortgage fraud schemes to ever occur in the Chicago area. The investigation was the result of an ongoing joint effort undertaken by the FBI and the Postal Inspection Service following the 2004 arrest of 47 individuals accused of having ties with Chicago-based street gangs...

American and Italian Authorities Bring Large Scale Arrests and Sweeping Indictment on Alleged Mafia Members

Posted on February 09, 2008
Authorities from the United States and Italy came together Thursday to arrest a number of individuals in a large scale attack on an alleged Trans-Atlantic drug trafficking operation controlled by New York?s Gambino crime family.[1]In what is being referred to as operation ''Old Bridge,'' individuals with alleged ties to the Gambino, Bonnano and Genovese crime families, as well as a number of supposed Mafia members operating in Italy were arrested...

Three Plead Guilty in Email Scam; Wire and Mail Fraud

Posted on February 01, 2008
Three people have pleaded guilty to charges related to spam e-mail that promised U.S. victims millions of dollars from an estate and a lottery; in one scenario, it was asserted that the defendants sent e-mails purporting to be from an individual suffering from terminal throat cancer that needed assistance distributing approximately US$55 million to charity...

Defense Rests in Snipe Tax Fraud Case

Posted on January 28, 2008
The defense in the tax fraud and conspiracy trial of Wesley Snipes rested Monday.[1] In trial after indictments handed down which named Snipes, Eddie Ray Kahn and Douglas P. Rosile.[2] Snipes and the co-defendants allegedly stopped filing his federal tax returns in 2000, demanded some $11 million in refunds on taxes previously paid and tried to settle other U...

Texas Holds Hearing on Voter Fraud Solutions

Posted on January 27, 2008
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has prosecuted 22 cases of voting or other election fraud in nearly six years, and none would have been prevented with a law requiring photo IDs at polling stations, officials from his office told state lawmakers on Friday...

Bonds Moves to Dismiss Perjury Charges

Posted on January 24, 2008
Baseball player Barry Bonds asked a federal judge to dismiss his perjury charges, arguing that the indictment is "scattershot" and noted for its "striking inartfulness."[1]Bonds was charged in November with lying to a grand jury about his use of performance-enhancing drugs...

Former Gary Indiana Councilman Convicted for Tax Fraud

Posted on January 20, 2008
A federal jury convicted Gary, Indiana political figures Will Smith, Jr., Roosevelt Powell, and Willie Harris, in September of filing false tax returns over a combined $150,000 in fees they received in the sale of a vacant grocery store to a city redevelopment group...

New York Real Estate Agent Faces 5 Years for Child Porn

Posted on January 19, 2008
Matthias von Wrede, a New York real estate agent, faces five to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to downloading child pornography.[1]Von Wrede was a manager at Engel & Volkers Southampton which serves clients willing to plunk down millions for estates or hundreds of thousands for summer rentals...

Bittenbender Indicted for Theft of Trade Secrets and Wire Fraud

Posted on January 10, 2008
A federal grand jury has indicted a Matthew Bittenbender in an alleged scheme to rig federal aircraft fuel bids.[1] Bittenbender is charged in U.S. District Court of Maryland with conspiracy to defraud the U.S. Department of Defense, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to steal trade secrets...

"Smiling Bob" Enhancement Company Set for Fraud Trial

Posted on January 09, 2008
Executives of a company known for the "Smiling Bob" ads that promote "natural male enhancement" are set to go on trial in an 111-count indictment that accuses them of defrauding consumers out of over $100 million.[1]Government lawyers have assert that they expect to call about 90 witnesses in a trial anticipated to take about a month in which company president Steven Warshak, his mother and four other employees of Berkeley Premium Nutraceuticals are accused of conspiracy to commit money laundering plus mail, wire and bank fraud...

U.S. Judge Allows Wiretap Evidence Against Alderman McGee

Posted on January 07, 2008
Milwaukee Alderman Mike McGee Jr. suffered a major setback in court on Wednesday when the federal judge ruled that the federal wire taps obtained can be used against him during his trial.[1] The politician accused of being involved in a vote buying scheme and other crimes...

David Brooks Indicted for Securities Fraud, Tax Fraud

Posted on January 04, 2008
David Brooks, a former chief executive of body armor maker DHB Industries Inc, faces criminal securities fraud charges; he was released on $400 million bail on Thursday, Jan 3.[1]DHB Industries is now known as Point Blank Solutions Inc PBSO.PK and has new management...

Encinias Charged with Bank Fraud and Identity Theft

Posted on December 30, 2007
Lori Lloyd Encinias was recently charged with 43 counts of bank fraud, aggravated identity theft, access device fraud and mail fraud; she accepted a plea deal Tuesday, December 18.[1]Encinias appeared in U.S. District Court to plead guilty to two counts of access device fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft, after a federal grand jury indicted Encinias last September, accusing her of using stolen Social Security numbers to open at least three bank accounts and take out several credit cards...

Hollywood Private Eye Loses Suppression Motion

Posted on December 29, 2007
U.S. District Judge Dale S. Fischer issued six separate rulings on Friday that went against private eye Anthony Pellicano and five co-defendants, the Los Angeles Times reported Saturday; he also refused to suppress evidence in a government case that accused a Hollywood private investigator of illegally wiretapping Hollywood stars...

Stokes Gets 10 Years for Healthcare Fraud

Posted on December 28, 2007
Dr. Robert Stokes was sentenced to 10 years in prison for medical fraud, yet at the same time the federal judge raised questions about the seriousness of the health risk allegedly facing thousands of the dermatologists' former patients.[1]U.S. District Judge Gordon Quist said Thursday that, while the Grand Rapids doctor abused his authority and targeted vulnerable patients, he did not consciously or recklessly risk their health through recycled sutures and unsanitary equipment -- allegations prosecutors hoped would lengthen Stokes' sentence...

Federal Honest Services Fraud Crackdown Yields More Arrests

Posted on December 23, 2007
Roberto Ruiz, former managing director for the Bear Stearns Dallas office, and Christopher Chol-Su Pak, former vice president of the Bear Stearns Dallas office, pleaded guilty to charges related to an ongoing federal public corruption scandal in El Paso County...

Vick Sentenced to 23 Months

Posted on December 18, 2007
Michael Vick was sentenced to 23 months in prison Monday for running a "cruel and inhumane" dogfighting ring and lying about it. The suspended Atlanta Falcons quarterback could have been sentenced up to five years by U.S. District Judge Henry E. Hudson...

Radler Sentenced for Fraud

Posted on December 18, 2007
U.S. District Judge Amy St. Eve sentenced former Chicago Sun-Times publisher F. David Radler to 29 months in prison for taking millions of dollars in unauthorized payments from the tabloid's parent company.[1]St. Eve accepted the plea agreement between Radler and federal prosecutors that gave him a reduced sentence in exchange for pleading guilty and cooperating with government's investigation of a mail fraud scheme at Hollinger International Inc; in addition e was fined $250,000...

Bonds Indicted for Perjury, Obstruction of Justice

Posted on November 16, 2007
Major League Baseball's career home run leader, Barry Bonds, has been indicted on five felony charges in connection with his testimony before a U.S. federal grand jury in 2003 that he never used anabolic steroids or human growth hormone.[1] The indictment tops off a four-year federal investigation into steroid use by elite athletes, of which Bonds has long been considered the primary target...

Kansas Prosecutor Gets New Trial Date: Extortion

Posted on November 14, 2007
A new trial date has been set for a Kansas prosecutor who is facing federal charges related to favors and money he is accused of receiving at a Galena strip club.[1] Cherokee County Attorney Michael Goodrich, who has resigned effective Dec. 1, was supposed to go to trial on Nov...

Homeless Man Arrested for Theft of Trade Secrets

Posted on November 13, 2007
Reynold Sare Chapin, a homeless man, is being charged with theft of trade secrets. Chapin apparently found advance copies of a Nike 2008 catalog in a dumpster, and he was arrested by FBI agents this week at Portland International Airport and charged under the Economic Espionage Act of 1996...

Federal Indictment Issued for Members of Black Mafia Family

Posted on November 08, 2007
A federal indictment has been issued against a group known as the Black Mafia Family, accusing its members of transporting drugs around the country.[1] This is the fifth indictment in the last few years against members of the Atlanta based group.[2]The Black Mafia Family grew into a national, multimillion dollar operation with much of this money coming from hip-hop music...

Haas Sentenced for Tax Fraud

Posted on November 06, 2007
Gene Francis Haas, the owner of an Oxnard machine-tool company, was sentenced to two years in prison for trying to avoid more than $34 million in income taxes by padding the books with false expenses.[1]Haas owns Haas Automation, Inc. which is believed to be the nation's largest computerized machine tool maker...

Kansas City Couple Await Jury Verdict on Mortgage Fraud Case

Posted on November 05, 2007
Executive Katheryn Shields and her husband, Philip Cardarella, are on trial along with Monty Kinman and Rick Peterson in connection with the proposed $1.2 million sale of Sheilds? house last year.[1] The house had been on the market for about $700,000...

Idaho Couple Sentenced for Cigarette Trafficking

Posted on October 25, 2007
Peter Mahoney and Peggy Mahoney are an Idaho couple who federal prosecutors say were the ringleaders of a cigarette trafficking scheme that cost the state of Washington millions of dollars in uncollected taxes.[1] The two have been sentenced in federal court...

Medina Pleads Guilty to Tax Fraud

Posted on October 23, 2007
Renato Medina, a casino owner in Colma, CA, is at the heart of a federal public corruption probe in California that has led to several arrests.[1] Medina has admitted to cheating on his taxes and illegally deducting $2.6 million in personal expenses.[2] Medina's niece and nephew, who were also arrested, have pleaded not guilty to helping Medina set up sham companies to help funnel casino revenue into Medina's personal holdings...

FBI Moves into New Palm Beach Office to Fight Public Corruption

Posted on October 22, 2007
The FBI has shifted six agents and one supervisory position from Miami to West Palm Beach to help investigate public corruption cases which is now the office's top priority.[1] The West Palm Beach office now has 16 agents focused on white-collar crime, including corruption, cyber crime and health care fraud, said Timothy Delaney, assistant FBI special agent in charge of white-collar crime from Key West to Vero Beach...

Denton Man Pleads Guilty to Securities Fraud

Posted on October 21, 2007
Vincent J. Bazemore pleaded guilty October 19 to securities fraud in relation to a Securities and Exchange Commission civil action against Dallas-based Amerifirst Funding Inc. and its sister companies.[1]Bazemore sold investments under the Capital First Financial brand from his offices in Florida...

Woman Arrested for Selling Fake Art on Ebay

Posted on October 18, 2007
Angela Hamblin, a Massachusetts woman, was arrested Oct. 10 on charges she sold fake works of art on the Internet.[1] She was charged with one count of mail fraud, and was arrested in Boston on a criminal complaint brought in U.S. District Court in Manhattan...

Car Dealers Convicted of Money Laundering

Posted on October 16, 2007
Amir Hosseini and Hossein Obai were convicted in February of laundering millions of dollars for the Gangster Disciples and other big Chicago gangs.[1] The two men were Chicago area auto dealers and were convicted of swapping Jaguars, BMWs and Cadillacs for millions of dollars in drug money...

Men Plead Guilty to $80 Million Conspiracy

Posted on October 13, 2007
The Justice Department announced, on Oct 11, that eight individuals have been charged in connection with an $80 million conspiracy to commit fraud against the Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank). [1]The scheme involved the fraudulent sale and shipment of U...

Louisiana Judges Charged with Public Corruption and RICO crimes

Posted on October 11, 2007
A federal grand jury has charged two Caddo Parish, Louisiana judges with taking bribes to give light sentences.[1] District Judges Michael Walker and Vernon Claville, along with bondsmen Robert Bradford and Larry Williams, all of Shreveport, were indicted on multiple RICO violations...

U.S. Post Office to Crack Down on International Email Fraud

Posted on October 10, 2007
The e-mails arrive from Nigeria, Russia, Holland or other countries. They assert inheritances, political strife, long lost loves, and some have resorted to death threats. The common theme, however, is that they all need to get money out of whatever country they are in and if you help, they promise to let you share the bounty...

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