46 Alleged Latin Kings Face Drug Charges

BrocktonPost
BROCKTON--Forty-six alleged leaders, members and associates and drug suppliers of the Latin Kings gang operating in New Bedford were charged today on federal and state drug offenses.
The charges stem from a long-term investigation into narcotics sales in the area, according to a prepared statement from the U.S Attorney's Office in Boston.
Officials said the mass round-up and charges are a continuation of law enforcement efforts beginning in 2006 to reduce the amount of violence and drug crimes in northern New Bedford centered around the Latin Kings' operations.
In 2010, law enforcement began to see an increase in street level drug sales and violence in areas of the city known to be occupied by the Latin Kings after an investigation in 2006 resulted in arrests and prosecutions at the local and federal levels of 37 Latin Kings members.
It is alleged that during the current investigation, recorded undercover purchases revealed over the last 18 months, the individuals arrested Friday, June 8 sold narcotics in New Bedford to cooperating witnesses and undercover officers.
Three individuals have also been charged with drug trafficking offenses.
The following individuals were arrested this morning and have been charged with federal narcotics violations:
1) Jouseph Caraballo, 38, of New Bedford;
2) Juan Serrano, 43, of New Bedford;
3) Terrill McKissack, 24, of New Bedford;
4) Raphael Pineda, 23, of New Bedford;
5) Gabriel Vaszquez, 25, of New Bedford;
6) Ezequiel Quinones, 39, of New Bedford (fugitive);
7) Javier Natal, 22, of New Bedford;
8) Luis Guerra, 31, of New Bedford;
9) Giovanni Vale-Valentin, 22, of New Bedford;
10) Manuel Torres, 20, of New Bedford;
11) Jesus Carrasquillo, 22, of New Bedford;
12) Pedro Figueroa, 27, of New Bedford;
13) Ramon Sanchez, 20, of New Bedford;
14) Enoe Carrasquillo, 26, of Puerto Rico;
15) Jesmeil Ortiz, 21, of Puerto Rico (fugitive);
16) Mari Gomez, 43, of New Bedford

The following individuals have been charged by federal complaint:
17) Jordan Jorge, 20, of New Bedford;
18) Felicia Timoteo, 20, of New Bedford

The following individuals were arrested this morning and have been charged with state narcotics violations:
Superior Court Indictments:
1) Jose Vale, 53, of New Bedford;
2) Tyrone Singleton, 39, of New Bedford;
3) Carl Robinson, 47, of New Bedford;
4) Irvin Olivero, 24, of New Bedford;
5) Michael Santos, 32, of New Bedford;
6) Diane Raposo, 33, of New Bedford;
7) Matthew Wilson, 26, of New Bedford;
8) Jason Chumack, 40, of New Bedford;
9) Sandra Torres, 39, of New Bedford

District Court Charges:
1) Juvenile, 16, of New Bedford;
2) Michael Waldron, 34, of New Bedford;
3) Shane Valez, 23, of New Bedford;
4) Lizette Brown, 44, of New Bedford;
5) April Rose, 43, of New Bedford;
6) Evandro Martins, 25, of New Bedford;
7) Sunilda Ruiz, 46, of New Bedford;
8) Beinbenido Baez, 20, of New Bedford;
9) Y oneel Pagan, 19, of New Bedford;
10) Tavon Thomas, 21, of New Bedford;
11) Robert Woodard, 35, of New Bedford;
12) Anthony Douglas, 28, of New Bedford;
13) Meagan Cordeiro, 26, of New Bedford;
14) Curtis Britto, 23, of New Bedford;
15) Ronald Gonzalezstone, 32, of New Bedford;
16) Tanairy Ruiz, 24, of New Bedford;
17) William Figueroa, 30, of New Bedford;
18) Jerry Morales-Perez, 29, of New Bedford;
19) Luis Lopez, 27, of New Bedford.

13 Face Deportation After Boston Area Raid

BrocktonPost
BROCKTON--During a two-day targeted enforcement operation in the Lawrence and Methuen area, officers with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's or ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations arrested 13 convicted criminal aliens with 11 originally from the Dominican Republic.
The U.S. Attorney's Office in Boston said in a prepared statement released Tuesday "Operation Threats Against the Community" began on April 26 and culminated in the 13 arrests.
All 13 taken into custody had prior criminal convictions. Additionally, 11 had multiple criminal convictions. Many of the criminal aliens taken into custody had prior convictions for serious or violent offenses including: possession of an illegal firearm, assault, assault and battery on a police officer, possessing and selling dangerous drugs, and drunk driving.
"When we focus on the arrest and removal of convicted criminal aliens we get an immediate payback in our communities. Because of the tireless efforts and teamwork of ICE officers--along with our state and local law enforcement partners— there are 13 fewer criminal aliens in our neighborhoods in Massachusetts," said Vincent Archibeque, deputy field office director of ERO Boston.
The arrests took place in Lawrence and Methuen and included members of the police departments in those communities.
Members of the State Police, Essex County Sheriff's Office, Massachusetts Probation Service and ICE's Homeland Security Investigations assisted over 25 ERO officers with the operation.
Of those arrested, all 13 were men and nationals of the following countries: one from Guatemala, one from Peru and eleven from the Dominican Republic. All were between 23 and 51 years old.
All 13 were arrested administratively for being in violation of immigration law, and all are being held in ICE custody pending immigration removal proceedings or removal from the U.S.
Some of those arrested during this operation include:
A national of Guatemala who was convicted of two separate convictions for DUI; assault and battery on a police officer; and disorderly conduct and resisting arrest.
A national of the Dominican Republic has been convicted of possession and distribution of cocaine and possession and distribution of marijuana.
Another Dominican native had been convicted of DUI, possession and distribution of heroin, possession of cocaine, and assault.
Another Dominican had been convicted of a firearm offense, possession and distribution of cocaine, and possession and distribution of marijuana.
This enforcement action was spearheaded by ICE's National Criminal Alien Program, which is responsible for locating, arresting and removing at-large criminal aliens. The officers who conducted the operation received substantial assistance from ICE's Law Enforcement Support Center located in Williston, Vermont.
ICE is focused on smart, effective immigration enforcement that targets serious criminal aliens who present the greatest risk to the security of our communities, such as those charged with or convicted of homicide, rape, robbery, kidnapping, major drug offenses and threats to national security.
ICE also prioritizes the arrest and removal of those who game the immigration system including immigration fugitives or those criminal aliens who have been previously deported and have illegally re-entered the country.
Largely as a result of these initiatives, for 3 years in a row, ICE has removed more aliens than were removed in fiscal year 2008.
Overall, in FY 2011 ICE removed 396,906 individuals nationwide — the largest number in the agency's history.
Of these, nearly 55 percent or 216,698 of the people removed were convicted of felonies or misdemeanors — an 89 percent increase in the removal of criminals since FY 2008.
This includes 1,119 aliens convicted of homicide; 5,848 aliens convicted of sexual offenses; 44,653 aliens convicted of drug related crimes; and 35,927 aliens convicted of driving under the influence.
CE achieved similar results with regard to other categories prioritized for removal.
Ninety percent of all ICE's removals fell into a priority category and more than two-thirds of the other removals in 2011 were either recent border crossers or repeat immigration violators.

$200,000+ Bail For Walmart Shooting Suspects

Lisa E. Crowley
BrocktonPost
BROCKTON--Four suspects in a shooting at the Walmart in Avon were held on more than $200,000 bail and police are still seeking a fifth person involved in what prosecutors described as a drug deal gone bad.
Keenen M. Hart, 18, of Main Street, Brockton, who was shot in the head during Tuesday afternoon's melee, was charged with carrying a firearm without a license and disorderly conduct, during separate arraignments of each suspect in Stoughton District Court.
Bail for Hart was posted at $250,000, but was revoked because he has a pending case with Department of Youth Services for possession of a firearm and with Brockton District Court for drug distribution and possession.
Three other suspects were held on $250,000 cash bail.
Those suspects are: Ashley Weiner, 20, of Homes St., Norton. She faces charges of carrying a firearm without a license and conspiracy to violate drug law. She was held on $200,000 bail.
Keshawne M. Murphy, 21, of Father Kenny Way, Brockton was charged with carrying a firearm without a license, discharging a firearm near a highway, disorderly conduct, assault with a dangerous weapon and conspiracy to violate drug law. He was held on $250,000 bail.
Joshua Z. Pierre-Louis, 23, of Hyde Park Ave, was charged with armed assault to rob, carrying a firearm without a license, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, and conspiracy to violate drug laws.
He was held on $250,000 bail.
According to Assistant District Attorney Danielle Eng, Murphy called an identified friend to buy marijuana. Eng said Weiner drove a car carrying Murphy and Hart to the Walmart parking lot to make the exchange, but the deal didn't go down as planned.
Instead, Eng said, the trio met a separate vehicle with 3 others in it, including Pierre-Louis.
Eng said Murphy told prosecutors he hopped into the other car and when the deal went bad he placed a gun on the console of the car.
Eng said Pierre-Louis hit the gas and sped away with Murphy falling out of the car. She said at that point "all parties" indicated shots were fired.
Weiner and Murphy drove Hart to the hospital after he was hit by one of the bullets.
Weiner and Murphy were arrested at the hospital.
Pierre-Louis was arrested in Mattapan.
The fifth suspect, Jean Valbrun of Hyde Park, is still being sought by police.
The four arraigned Wednesday are scheduled to return to court April 25.

Victim, 2 Others Face Charges in Walmart Shooting

By Lisa E. Crowley
BrocktonPost
BROCKTON--As shoppers pulled into either entrance of the Walmart in Avon, many were surprised to find several things.
Topping the list for some was that police and the flashing blue lights of their cruisers were everywhere and a large part of the parking lot was blocked off by tell-tale yellow and black crime scene tape. The next surprising thing was that the store was still open.
"I saw all the cops and I said I think I'm going to have to go somewhere else," said Javon Costa, 34, of Brockton, who circled the parking lot where police did not have it blocked and pulled into a parking space.
Costa, like carloads of others who pulled into the Route 28 shopping center late Tuesday afternoon were shocked to learn a man had been shot in the parking lot and police were searching the area for suspects.
They were also surprised they could still shop in the store, and noted the building was eerily quiet.
"It feels weird--shopping and knowing someone may have been killed out front," said Colleen Coughlin, 56, of Brockton.
She was relieved to learn the victim was expected to pull through.
"That's at least a blessing," she said.
At about 4 p.m. Tuesday, Avon, Brockton and State police responded to a call about shots fired at the Walmart near the Avon-Brockton border.
Police officials at the scene said one male was taken to Good Samaritan Medical Center with an injury that is not expected to be life threatening. The same man, police said, was placed under arrest for unlawful possession of a firearm.
A second person was taken into custody. 
Police said at least one suspect fled the area and police had located a black vehicle involved in the shooting near Blue Hill Avenue in Mattapan.
Police said one person associated with the Mattapan vehicle was taken into custody and along with the other suspect from the Walmart parking lot is expected in Stoughton District Court Wednesday morning for arraignment.
Police did not say what the charges would be.
The injured male, police said, would appear in court Wednesday if he is medically able.
Police said the incident may have been the result of drug activity.
(Correction: The original version of this story wrongly stated police had detained two people associated with the Mattapan vehicle)

Guns, Drugs Get Brockton Man 20 Years

BrocktonPost
BROCKTON--A Brockton man was sentenced Monday in U.S. District Court in Boston for illegally possessing a sawed-off shotgun and selling cocaine.
Hector Acevedo, 35, who also used the aliases Hector Garcia and Cuba, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Joseph L. Tauro to 20 years in prison, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Boston.
The term of imprisonment will be followed by 6 years of supervised release.
Acevedo was convicted by a jury during trial of being a felon-in-possession of a firearm and ammunition, of illegally possessing a sawed-off shotgun and of possessing with intent to distribute cocaine on December 8, 2011.
Evidence presented during trial showed that detectives from the Brockton Police Department executed a search warrant in June 2006 at Acevedo’s apartment at 202 Summer Street in Brockton.
Acevedo was found in bed with an unregistered sawed-off shotgun and a bag containing approximately 52 grams of cocaine that Acevedo had hidden in a stereo speaker in the bedroom was also recovered.
At Monday's sentencing, prosecutors emphasized that Acevedo, while awaiting trial, had engaged in numerous disciplinary incidents at the Wyatt Detention Facility and elsewhere.
According to prosecutors, Acevedo had attacked and threatened correctional officers, stabbed another detainee, was found in possession of various homemade weapons, and had been caught planning escapes.
Prosecutors also described Acevedo’s prior criminal record, which included several prior convictions for violent offenses.
The case was referred for federal prosecution by Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz’s Office under the auspices of the Project Safe Neighborhoods Initiative which makes prosecution of firearms cases a top priority.
The Project Safe Neighborhood’s Initiative provides a comprehensive, strategic approach to reducing gun violence in America.
Since 2002, when the U.S. Attorney’s Office implemented the Project Safe Neighborhoods Initiative, 11 cities across the state, including Brockton, have joined the program.

Woman Gets Prison, Restitution For Bilking Social Security

BrocktonPost
BOSTON--A Hyannis woman was sentenced last week to federal prison for stealing from the Social Security Administration.
U.S. District Judge Joseph L. Tauro sentenced Sylvia Taylor, 51, of Hyannis, to 15 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office.
In October 2011, Taylor pleaded guilty to three counts of theft of government property for taking $74,643 in disability benefits.
Along with more than one year in prison, Taylor has been ordered to pay restitution to the SSA.
Between 1992 and 2010, Taylor had relationships with two different men who were entitled to Social Security disability payments.
From these relationships, Taylor had three children who were determined by the SSA to be eligible for auxiliary disability benefits through their fathers.
Because the children were minors, Taylor became their representative payee and received the payments on their behalf.
Soon after the benefits started, each of the three children began living with others, making Taylor no longer eligible to be their representative payee.
Taylor never notified the SSA, and for several years, she continued to receive the benefits and use them for her own purposes.

It Doesn't Pay To Discover For Braintree Man

BrocktonPost
BROCKTON--A Braintree man was indicted last week in federal court for allegedly stealing Discover credit cards from the mail and then using the cards to obtain money.
Gerald K. Acholonu, 31, of Braintree, was March 7 charged with credit card fraud, obstruction of United States mail, and of aggravated identity theft, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Boston.
Officials said Acholonu has been detained since his arrest on December 22, 2011.
The charges allege that between August 2010 and May 2011, credit cards issued by Discover Financial Services destined for the Northeast were stolen.
The cards were stolen at some point between Utah and reaching their expected processing at U.S. Postal Service mail-processing facilities in the Northeast.
According to the affidavit, Acholonu worked during this period at a company that sorted the mail by ZIP code between the mail’s unloading at Logan Airport and its transportation around New England by the Postal Service.
In late April 2011, Acholonu was spotted leaving his employer’s restroom with a tray of U.S. mail.
Investigators searched the trash from his residence and found stolen Discover credit cards and other evidence that Acholonu was using or planning to use the Discover customers’ identities by setting up telephone accounts in their names.
Investigators also obtained surveillance photographs from ATMs indicating that Acholonu had used some of the cards to withdraw money.
If convicted, Acholonu faces up to 17 years of in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, restitution, forfeiture, and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gain or loss, whichever is highest.

Mass. Man Faces Charges In Sex, Alleged Photos Of 14-Year-Old

BrocktonPost
BROCKTON--A Shrewsbury, Mass., man has been charged in federal court with engaging in sex with a minor in the Dominican Republic.
Conrad Gallant, 61, previously of Winchendon, Mass., and most recently of Shrewsbury, was charged in a criminal complaint March 7 with engaging in illicit sexual conduct in foreign places, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Boston.
The complaint alleges that on several occasions between February 2011 and February 2012, Gallant traveled to the Dominican Republic and engaged in sexual acts with a minor.
According to court documents, Gallant engaged in a sexual relationship with a then 14-year-old girl, promised and paid her money, and took photographs of her.
Also, according to the same court documents, Gallant asked the minor victim to bring him other female minors with whom he could have sex.
Gallant was arrested in the Dominican Republic March 4, 2012.
He arrived in the United States late March 6, and appeared in U.S. District Court in Miami March 7.
If convicted, Gallant faces up to 30 years in prison, a lifetime of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.
Law enforcement's ongoing efforts to target suspects involved in child exploitation offenses are part of Operation Predator, a nationwide initiative to protect children from sexual predators, including those who travel overseas for sex with minors, Internet child pornographers, criminal alien sex offenders and child sex traffickers.
The U.S. Department of Justice encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or by completing its online tip form.
Both are staffed around the clock by investigators.
Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, at 1-800-843-5678 or http://www.cybertipline.com.

Former W. Bridgewater Teacher Faces 10 Years in Child Porn Conviction

13 Years In Prison For New Bedford Drug Dealer

BrocktonPost

BOSTON--A New Bedford man with a long criminal history was sentenced Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Brockton for multiple counts of distributing crack cocaine and retaliating against a government informant.

 Daniel Smith, 48, of New Bedford, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Richard G. Stearns to 13 years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Boston.   

Smith pleaded guilty to two counts of distribution of cocaine base, one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine base, and one count of retaliating against a government witness.

 Had the case proceeded to trial prosecutors said evidence would have proven that Smith sold two “8-balls” of crack cocaine to an individual cooperating with the government in May, 2008.  

These sales were controlled, monitored, and recorded by federal agents.  

In June 2008, law enforcement agents seized 21 bags of crack cocaine when they executed a search warrant at Smith’s apartment.  

Later, Smith learned that the person to whom he had sold crack to in May was cooperating with the government.  

In September 2008, he left that individual a threatening message in which Smith said, among other things, that he was “gonna bust [the individual’s] f—ing face in . . . .”  

After he was arrested, Smith admitted that he had been dealing drugs in New Bedford for years and that he had threatened the cooperating witness because he was “pissed that he was a f—ing rat.”    

       

45 Criminal Illegal Aliens Arrested in Conn., Mass.

BrocktonPost

HARTFORD--During a four-day targeted enforcement operation in Connecticut and Massachusetts that ended Monday, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers arrested 44 convicted criminal aliens. 

Operation Threats Against the Community began Feb. 24 and targeted 44 illegal immigrants, 18 who had multiple criminal convictions and 24 who had felony convictions, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Boston.

An additional individual was arrested who had two outstanding arrest warrants in New York and Texas. 

Of the 45 arrested, 40 were arrested in Connecticut and five were arrested in Massachusetts.

Many of these criminal aliens had prior convictions for serious or violent crimes, such as indecent assault and battery of a child, sexual assault, possessing and selling dangerous drugs, drunken driving and larceny charges.

The 45 arrests took place in the following locations:

Connecticut:

• Bridgeport
• Danbury
• Darien
• Derby
• East Hartford
• Hamden
• Hartford
• Meriden
• Naugatuck
• New Britain
• New Haven
• New London
• Shelton
• Stamford
• Stratford
• Trumbull
• Waterbury
• Willimantic

Massachusetts:

• Holyoke
• Longmeadow
• Pittsfield
• Springfield

Numerous federal, state and local law enforcement agencies throughout Connecticut and Massachusetts assisted with these arrests.

Of those arrested, there were 38 men and seven women who are nationals of the following countries: one from Bosnia, two from Brazil, one from Canada, one from Colombia, five from the Dominican Republic, one from El Salvador, one from England, one from Guatemala, one from Guyana, one from Haiti, one from Honduras, 17 from Jamaica, two from Mexico, one from Montserrat, two from Peru, one from the Philippines, three from Poland, one from Portugal, one from Russia and one from Tanzania. 

They range in ages from 21 to 57.

Forty-four of the 45 individuals were arrested administratively for being in violation of immigration law, and all are being held in custody pending immigration removal proceedings. 

The individual with an outstanding warrant for arrest will be turned over to the New York State Police via the extradition process.

Some of those arrested during this operation include:

• A national of the Dominican Republic who was convicted of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, gaming, smuggling of U.S. currency, knowingly receiving stolen property and malicious destruction of property.

• A national of El Salvador who was convicted of assault and battery of a minor and failing to register as a sex offender.

• A national of Jamaica who was convicted of carrying a weapon without a permit, risk of injury to a minor, eight counts of the illegal discharge of a firearm and three counts of assault on a police officer.

• A national of Haiti who was convicted of assault in the second degree, two convictions for assault in the third degree, sale of illegal narcotics and resisting arrest.

• A national of Canada who was convicted of indecent assault and battery of a minor.

• A national of Jamaica who was convicted of assault, sale and possession of controlled substances.

In November 2011, ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations conducted a similar enforcement operation that yielded 53 arrests of convicted criminal aliens in Massachusetts.

This enforcement action was spearheaded by ERO's Criminal Alien Program, which is responsible for locating, arresting and removing at-large criminal aliens. The officers who conducted the operation received substantial assistance from ERO's Law Enforcement Support Center (LESC) located in Williston, Vermont.

ERO is focused on smart, effective immigration enforcement that targets serious criminal aliens who present the greatest risk to the security of our communities, such as those charged with or convicted of homicide, rape, robbery, kidnapping, major drug offenses and threats to national security. 

ERO also prioritizes the arrest and removal of those who game the immigration system including immigration fugitives or those criminal aliens who have been previously deported and illegally re-entered the country.

Largely as a result of these initiatives, for three years in a row, ERO has removed more aliens than were removed in fiscal year 2008. 

Overall, in FY 2011 ERO removed 396,906 individuals nationwide — the largest number in the agency's history. 

Of these, nearly 55 percent or 216,698 of the people removed, were convicted of felonies or misdemeanors — an 89 percent increase in the removal of criminals since FY 2008. 

This includes 1,119 aliens convicted of homicide; 5,848 aliens convicted of sexual offenses; 44,653 aliens convicted of drug related crimes; and 35,927 aliens convicted of driving under the influence. 

ERO achieved similar results with regard to other categories prioritized for removal. 

Ninety percent of all ERO's removals fell into a priority category and more than two-thirds of the other removals in 2011 were either recent border crossers or repeat immigration violators.

S. Dartmouth Man Guilty In Widower Loan Scam

BrocktonPost
BOSTON - A South Dartmouth man was convicted by a federal jury Wednesday of trying to bilk an elderly widower out of part of his retirement savings and all of an $85,000 loan falsely taken to buy land in Maine.
Richard Souza, 46, of South Dartmouth, was convicted Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Boston and is scheduled for sentencing May 23, according to a state from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Boston.
The money used in the crime originally came from the retirement savings of an elderly widower whom Souza had befriended.
Souza persuaded the man to use approximately a quarter of his retirement savings to purchase a property in Maine, as well as to take out a loan of over $85,000 by using the property as collateral.
Souza took the loan proceeds for himself and removed the majority of the proceeds from his account to avoid reporting rules that require banks to report cash transactions of over $10,000.
In 2006, Souza withdrew the majority of the proceeds of the Maine property loan in six separate cash
withdrawals of $9,000 each from five different Sovereign Bank branches in the New Bedford area during a two hour period.
Souza faces up to five years in federal prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.

Illegal Catch Gets Conn. Fisherman $10,000 Fine

BrocktonPost
BOSTON--A Connecticut man was sentenced Thursday in federal court in Boston for trafficking in and making false records for 12,140 pounds of illegally harvested Atlantic striped bass.
Daniel B. Birkbeck, 47, of North Stonington, Conn., was sentenced to serve one year of probation and pay a $10,000 fine as part of a plea agreement, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Boston.
Birkbeck agreed to forfeit $5,000 in lieu of forfeiting the boat and truck that he used to commit the fishery crimes.
In November 2011, Birkbeck pleaded guilty to a felony charge of transporting and selling 12,140 pounds of striped bass in interstate commerce from Rhode Island to Massachusetts and knowing that the bass were harvested illegally.
Birkbeck, who is licensed as a commercial fisherman in both Rhode Island and Massachusetts, harvested striped bass in Rhode Island waters after the Rhode Island commercial fishing season had closed and transported those fish to Massachusetts for sale.
Birkbeck falsely reported to the Massachusetts Division of MarineFisheries that he had legally harvested the striped bass in Massachusetts waters.
The Lacey Act makes it a crime for a person to knowingly transport and sell fish in interstate commerce when the fish was taken or possessed in violation of state law.
Furthermore, the act also makes it a crime for a person to knowingly make or submit a false record, account, or label for fish which has been transported in interstate commerce.
Commercial fishing for striped bass in Massachusetts and Rhode Island is governed by a quota system overseen by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission.
The quota system was enacted in response to declining striped bass populations.
Since 2003, Massachusetts' commercial striped bass quota is about five times that of Rhode Island, and thus, the commercial striped bass season is open longer in Massachusetts than in Rhode Island.

36 Face Racketeering Charges In NY Insurance Scam

BrocktonPost
BROCKTON
Law enforcement officials in New York announced Wednesday charges against 36 defendants involved in a systematic scheme to defraud private insurance companies of more than $279 million under New York’s no-fault automobile insurance law.
The indictment includes racketeering charges against eight members and associates of a criminal organization consisting primarily of individuals of Russian descent who were the owners and controllers of fraudulent medical clinics, as well as 10 licensed doctors and three attorneys.
The alleged scheme identified Wednesday is the largest single no-fault automobile insurance fraud ever charged, and the first case of its kind to allege violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations, or RICO Act, officials said in a prepared statement.
All of the defendants were arrested this morning in connection with today’s charges.
Thirty-five were taken into custody in New York and New Jersey and were expected to be arraigned in Manhattan federal court this afternoon.
One defendant was arrested in Duluth, Minnesota and will be arraigned Friday in a Minnesota federal court.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Today’s charges expose a colossal criminal trifecta, as the fraud’s tentacles simultaneously reached into the medical system, the legal system, and the insurance system, pulling out cash to fund the defendants’ lavish lifestyles," he said in the statement.
"As alleged, the scheme relied on a cadre of corrupt doctors who essentially peddled their medical licenses like a corner fraudster might sell fake IDs, except those medical licenses allowed unlawful entry, not to a club or a bar, but to a multi-billion-dollar pool of insurance proceeds,” Bharara said.
FBI Assistant Director in Charge Janice K. Fedarcyk said: “Our investigation uncovered a pattern of lucrative fraud exploiting New York’s no-fault auto insurance system to the tune of more than a quarter-of-a-billion dollars."
The criminal enterprise, while it lasted, was obscenely profitable, Fedarcyk said, adding the scheme not only unjustly enriched the defendants and defrauded insurance companies.
NYPD Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly said: “Our undercover officers were treated like thousands of other ‘patients’ receiving therapy, tests, and medical equipment they didn’t need."
The following allegations are based on the unsealed indictment and other documents filed today in Manhattan federal court:
Under New York state law, every vehicle registered in the state is required to have no-fault automobile insurance, which enables the driver and passengers of a registered and insured vehicle to obtain benefits of up to $50,000 per person for injuries sustained in an automobile accident, regardless of fault--the “No-Fault Law”.
The No-Fault Law requires prompt payment for medical treatment, thereby obviating the need for claimants to file personal injury lawsuits in order to be reimbursed.
Under the No-Fault Law, patients can assign their right to reimbursement from an insurance company to others, including medical clinics that provide treatment for their injuries.
New York state law also requires that all medical clinics in the state be incorporated, owned, operated, and/or controlled by a licensed medical practitioner in order to be eligible for reimbursement under the No-Fault Law.
Insurance companies will not honor claims for medical treatments from a medical clinic that is not actually owned, operated, and/or controlled by a licensed medical practitioner.
From at least 2007 through 2012, the so-called No-Fault Organization--the group of arrestees--has engaged in a massive and sophisticated scheme to defraud automobile insurance companies of hundreds of millions of dollars by, among other things, creating and operating medical clinics that provided unnecessary and excessive medical treatments in order to take advantage of the No-Fault Law.
In order to mislead New York authorities and private insurers, the true owners of these medical clinics “Clinic Controllers”, almost all of whom were also members and associates of a criminal organization consisting primarily of individuals of Russian descent, paid licensed medical practitioners, including doctors, to use their licenses to incorporate the professional corporations, through which the medical clinics billed the private insurers for the bogus medical treatments.
These doctors effectively operated as “straw owners” of the clinics.
The Clinic Controllers paid thousands of dollars in kickbacks to runners who recruited automobile accident passengers to receive medically unnecessary treatments from the no-fault clinics.
They also instructed the clinic doctors/straw owners to prescribe excessive and unwarranted referrals for various “modality treatments” for every patient they saw.
The treatments included physical therapy, acupuncture, and chiropractic treatments—as many as five times per week for each—and treatments for psychology, neurology, orthopedics, and audiology.
Clinic doctors also prescribed unnecessary MRI’s, x-rays, orthopedics, and medical supplies. The Clinic Controllers received thousands of dollars in kickbacks for patient referrals from the owners of the modality clinics (“Modality Controllers”), who were members and associates of the same criminal organization to which the members of the No-Fault Organization and Clinic Controllers belonged.
The Clinic Controllers also referred patients to personal injury lawyers who filed bogus lawsuits on behalf of the patients and coached them on what injuries to claim in order to get as many treatments as possible. The personal injury lawyers also paid the Clinic Controllers thousands of dollars in kickbacks for these referrals.
In order to conceal and disguise the millions of dollars in claims paid by the automobile insurance companies, the members of the No-Fault Organization laundered the money through shell companies and corrupt check-cashing services.
Often, checks would be written from the No-Fault or Modality Clinics with the payee line left blank, and in amounts less than $10,000 in order to avoid potential financial institution reporting requirements and other scrutiny.
The checks were then cashed through check-cashers who made the checks payable to shell companies they controlled in order to conceal the true nature and purpose of the checks. The cash was then returned to members of the No-Fault Organization to fund kickbacks and for their personal use.
At other times, the members and associates of the No-Fault Organization paid themselves through their own shell companies and then used the criminal proceeds to fund expensive vacations and to purchase luxury goods.
A chart identifying each defendant, the charges, and the maximum penalties, is below. The case is assigned to U.S. District Judge J. Paul Oetken.
Count Charge Maximum Penalty
Count one RICO conspiracy (mail fraud and money laundering) 20 years
Count two Conspiracy to commit health care fraud 10 years
Count three Conspiracy to commit mail fraud 20 years
Count four Conspiracy to commit money laundering 20 years
Defendant Age/Residence Alleged Role in the Scheme Charges Maximum Penalty
Mikhail Zemlyansky 35/Hewlett, NY Clinic/modality controller Counts one, two, three, four 70 years
Michael Danilovich 38/Brooklyn, NY Clinic/modality controller Counts one, two, three, four 70 years
Yuriy Zayonts 40/Staten Island, NY Clinic/modality controller Counts one, two, three, four 70 years
Mikhail Kremerman 41/Staten Island, NY Clinic/modality controller Counts one, two, three, four 70 years
Matthew Conroy 42/Melville, NY Attorney Counts one, two, three, four 70 years
Michael Barukhin 32/Brooklyn, NY Clinic/modality controller Counts one, two, three, four 70 years
Mikhail Ostrumsky 42/Brooklyn/NY Clinic controller Counts one, two, three, four 70 years
Boris Treysler 42/Brooklyn/NY Clinic controller Counts one, two, three, four 70 years
Andrey Anikeyev 37/Fort Lee, NJ Modality controller Counts two, three, four 50 years
Vladimir Grinberg 35/Staten Island, NY Modality controller Counts two, three, four 50 years
Vladislav Zaretskiy 40/Staten Island, NY Clinic/modality controller Counts two, three, four 50 years
Yevgeniy Shuman 33/Brooklyn, NY Clinic manager Counts two, three, four 50 years
Dmitry Slobodyansky 41/Brooklyn, NY Modality controller Counts two, three, four 50 years
Alexander Sandler 57/East Brunswick, NJ Clinic controller Counts two, three 30 years
Gregory Mikhalov 56/Brooklyn, NY Modality controller Counts two, three 30 years
Michael Morgan 33/Port Washington, NY Modality controller Counts two, three 30 years
Mark Danilovich 60/Brooklyn, NY Modality controller Counts two, three 30 years
Jeffrey Lereah 56/Suffern, NY Modality manager Counts two, three 30 years
Dmitry Lipis 44/Brooklyn, NY Clinic manager Counts two, three 30 years
Lynda Tadder 34/Brooklyn, NY Clinic manager Counts two, three 30 years
Maria Diglio 47/Garden City, NY Attorney Counts two, three 30 years
Sol Naimark 53/Flushing, NY Attorney Counts two, three 30 years
Sergey Gabinsky 54/Brooklyn, NY Doctor Counts two, three 30 years
Tatyana Gabinskaya 57/Brooklyn, NY Doctor Counts two, three 30 years
Joseph Vitoulis 42/Valley Stream, NY Doctor Counts two, three 30 years
Lauretta Grzegorczyk 64/Staten Island, NY Doctor Counts two, three 30 years
Eva Gateva 48/Bronx, NY Doctor Counts two, three 30 years
Zuheir Said 64/Bronx, NY Doctor Counts two, three 30 years
David Thomas 42/Hopewell Junction/NY Doctor Counts two, three 30 years
Billy Geris 53/Morganville, NJ Doctor Counts two, three 30 years
Mark Shapiro 46/Brooklyn, NY Doctor Counts two, three 30 years
Robert Della Badia 72/South Salem, NY Doctor Counts two, three 30 years
Michelle Glick 33/Duluth, MN Acupuncture practitioner Counts two, three 30 years
Pavel Poznansky 52/Brooklyn, NY Acupuncture practitioner Counts two, three 30 years
Chad Greenshner 45/Flushing, NY Chiropractic practitioner Counts two, three 30 years
Constantine Voytenko 40/Brooklyn, NY Chiropractic practitioner Counts two, three 30 years

Sex Offender Faces 10 Years For Non-Registration in Mass.

BrocktonPost
Boston--A Kentucky man convicted of a sex offense in 1996 was charged and arrested Thursday, Feb. 23 in federal court with failure to register as a sex offender.
Robert Lee Bowdre, 41, of Louisville, Kentucky., and recently of New Bedford, Mass., was
charged in a criminal complaint with failure to register as a sex offender, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The criminal complaint alleges that between June 17, 2011 and Feb. 8, 2012, Bowdre, who allegedly was required to register as a sex offender, traveled from state-to-state for business, and knowingly failed to register and update his registration.
According to court documents, Bowdre was convicted in 1996 of 1st degree rape and 1st degree sodomy in Kentucky.
If convicted on these charges, Bowdre faces up to 10 years in prison, to be followed by
up to a lifetime supervised release and a $250,000 fine.
Bowdre remains in custody on the federal charge and is scheduled for a detention hearing March 1 in U.S. District Court in Boston.

U.S. Seeks 50 In Puerto Rico On Identity Theft Charges

BrocktonPost WASHINGTON — Fifty individuals from the Savarona area of Puerto Rico to points all across the U.S., including Dorchester, Lawrence, Worcester and Salem are being sought for arrest and face charges in an alleged identity fraud ring to sell Social Security Cards and birth certificates of Puerto Rican U.S. citizens to buyers in the U.S. who fraudulently obtain driver’s licenses, credit cards, passports, and visas. A coalition of federal, state, and local law enforcement officials and agencies led by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, announced today in a prepared statement that 50 men and women were charged in an indictment unsealed in Puerto Rico. "The alleged conspiracy stretched across the United States and Puerto Rico, using suppliers, identity brokers and mail and money runners to fill and deliver orders for the personal identifying information and government-issued identity documents of Puerto Rican U.S. citizens,” said Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department's Criminal Division—one of the agencies involved in the investigation leading up to today’s indictment. “Those willing to buy and sell personal identifying information and documents should take notice of today's actions. The department and our law enforcement partners will not allow this kind of illegal activity to continue," Breuer said in the prepared statement. The indictment alleges that various identity brokers were operating in Rockford, Ill.; Indianapolis; DeKalb, Ill.; Columbus and Seymour, Ind.; Aurora, Ill.; Hartford, Conn.; Clewiston, Fla.; Lilburn and Norcross, Ga.; Salisbury, Md.; Columbus, Ohio; Fairfield, Ohio; Dorchester, Mass.; Lawrence, Mass.; Salem, Mass.; Worcester, Mass.; Grand Rapids, Mich.; Nebraska City, Neb.; Elizabeth, N.J.; Burlington, N.C.; Hickory, N.C.; Hazelton, Pa.; Philadelphia; Houston; and Abingdon, Va. The one-count indictment was returned by a federal grand jury on Dec. 29, 2011, and unsealed today. Defendants were arrested today in multiple districts throughout the United States and Puerto Rico and will make initial appearances in federal court in the districts in which they were arrested. In addition, law enforcement agents executed searches as part of an ongoing investigation. The suspects are being charged with conspiracy to commit identification fraud in connection with their alleged roles in a scheme to traffic the identities of Puerto Rican U.S. citizens and corresponding identity documents. The charges are the result of an extensive investigation led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), in partnership with other federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. If convicted, each defendant faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, as well as forfeiture. According to the indictment, from at least April 2009 to December 2011, conspirators in 15 states and Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory, trafficked the identities of Puerto Rican U.S. citizens, corresponding Social Security cards, Puerto Rico birth certificates and other identification documents to undocumented aliens and others residing in the United States. The indictment alleges conspirators located in the Savarona area of Caguas, Puerto Rico (Savarona suppliers) obtained the Puerto Rican identities and corresponding identity documents. Conspirators in various locations throughout the United States (identity brokers) solicited customers. The identity brokers allegedly sold Social Security cards and corresponding Puerto Rico birth certificates for prices ranging from $700 to $2,500 per set. The indictment alleges that identity brokers ordered the identity documents from Savarona suppliers, on behalf of the customers, by making coded telephone calls, including using terms such as "shirts," "uniforms" or "clothes," to refer to identity documents. Specifically, the brokers asked for "skirts" for female customers and "pants" for male customers in various "sizes," which referred to the ages of the identities sought by the customers. According to the indictment, the Savarona suppliers generally requested that customers' initial payments be sent by the identity brokers through a money transfer service to persons whose names were provided by the Savarona suppliers. Savarona suppliers allegedly retrieved the payments from the money transfer service and then sent the identity documents to the brokers using express, priority or regular U.S. mail. The indictment alleges that various conspirators sent or received money and mail parcels. The conspirators frequently confirmed sender names and addresses, money transfer control numbers and trafficked identities via text messaging. According to the indictment, once the identity brokers received the identity documents, they delivered the documents to the customers and obtained second payments. The brokers generally kept the second payments for themselves as profit. Some identity brokers allegedly assumed a Puerto Rican identity themselves, and used that identity in connection with the trafficking operation. As alleged in the indictment, the customers generally obtained the identity documents to assume the identity of Puerto Rican U.S. citizens and to obtain additional identification documents, such as legitimate state driver's licenses. Some customers allegedly obtained the documents to commit financial fraud and attempted to obtain a U.S. passport. The charges were announced by ICE Director John Morton; Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department's Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Rosa E. Rodríguez-Vélez for the District of Puerto Rico; Chief Postal Inspector Guy Cottrell of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS); Scott P. Bultrowicz, Director of the U.S. State Department's Diplomatic Security Service (DSS); and Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Acting Chief Rick Raven. "The Diplomatic Security Service is firmly committed to working with our law enforcement partners to investigate and bring to justice those who commit document trafficking and identity fraud," said Director Bultrowicz of the U.S. State Department's Diplomatic Security Service. "Fraudulently-obtained documents are frequently used to apply for U.S. passports and visas, two of the most coveted travel documents in the world," he noted. The charges announced today are the result of Operation Island Express, an ongoing, nationally-coordinated investigation led by the ICE HSI Chicago office, in partnership with USPIS, DSS and IRS-CI offices in Chicago. The investigation was also coordinated with the ICE HSI San Juan office. The Illinois Secretary of State Police; Elgin, Ill., Police Department; Seymour, Ind., Police Department; and Indiana State Police provided substantial assistance. The ICE HSI Assistant Attaché office in the Dominican Republic, National Drug Intelligence Center - Document and Media Exploitation Branch and International Organized Crime Intelligence and Operations Center (IOC-2) provided invaluable assistance as well as various ICE, USPIS, DSS and IRS CI offices around the country. The case is being prosecuted by the Criminal Division's Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section, with the assistance of the Criminal Division's Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section, and the support of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Puerto Rico. The U.S. Attorneys' Offices in the Northern District of Illinois, Southern District of Indiana and District of Connecticut provided substantial assistance. The U.S. Attorneys' Offices in the Middle District of Florida, Southern District of Florida, Northern District of Georgia, Western District of Kentucky, District of Maryland, District of Massachusetts, Western District of Michigan, District of Nebraska, District of New Jersey, Western District of North Carolina, Southern District of Ohio, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Middle District of Pennsylvania, Southern District of Texas, Eastern District of Virginia, Southern District of Illinois, Western District of Texas, Middle District of Louisiana and Western District of Virginia also provided invaluable support. A website will be established to provide information about the case to potential victims and the public. Anyone who believes their identity may have been compromised in relation to this investigation may contact the ICE toll-free hotline at 1-866-DHS-2ICE (1-866-347-2423) and its online tip form at www.ice.gov/tipline. Anyone who may have information about particular crimes in this case should also report it to the ICE tip line or website. Anyone who believes that they have been a victim of identity theft, or wants information about preventing identity theft, may obtain helpful information and complaint forms on various government websites including the Federal Trade Commission ID Theft Website, www.ftc.gov/idtheft. Additional resources regarding identity theft can be found at http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ovc/pubs/ID_theft/idtheft.html; http://www.ssa.gov/pubs/10064.html; http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/investigate/cyber/identity_theft; and http://www.irs.gov/privacy/article/0,,id=186436,00.html. An indictment is merely a formal accusation. Defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.