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Former Treasurer of International Fraternity Sentenced in Connection with Bank Fraud
WASHINGTON—Terry Davis, 43, the former elected National Treasurer of Phi Beta Sigma, an international fraternal organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., has been sentenced to time served of 31 months in prison for committing bank fraud stemming from his theft of more than $50,000 from the fraternity’s bank accounts, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. and James W. McJunkin, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office. Davis, formerly of Memphis, Tenn. and Herndon, Va., was sentenced on March 14, 2011 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia by the Honorable Reggie B. Walton. In addition to the sentence of 31 months, Judge Walton ordered that the defendant pay restitution of $50,000 to Phi Beta Sigma and be placed on five years of supervised release. The parties had agreed upon the period of incarceration and restitution amount as part of the plea agreement, which Judge Walton accepted as part of the sentence. A federal jury sitting in the District of Columbia had convicted Davis of bank fraud and other charges on May 3, 2007. The District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals reversed those convictions on February 26, 2010. Davis had been imprisoned as part of the earlier convictions from May 3, 2007 through December 5, 2009. On November 30, 2010, Davis pled guilty to a one-count Information charging bank fraud. As part of an Agreed Statement of Offense filed in connection with the plea agreement, Davis admitted that between January 2001 and June 2003, while he was the elected, National Treasurer of Phi Beta Sigma, he stole money from the fraternity’s bank accounts by writing checks to cash, which he would then negotiate by means of his personal bank account. In order to circumvent the requirement of a second signature of another fraternity officer on the checks, Davis presented checks containing the forged signature of the fraternity’s National President or simply negotiated the checks without the required second signature. As part of the scheme to defraud, Davis admitted that he falsely represented on the memo line of some of the checks and to responsible officials at the fraternity that the checks to cash were written to fund legitimate fraternity activities, whereas, as Davis well knew, the checks were used for his own personal benefit. Davis admitted that he used at least $50,000 of the proceeds obtained through the scheme for his personal benefit. In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen and Assistant Director McJunkin praised the investigative efforts of agents of the FBI’s Washington Field Office. They also commended those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Tasha Harris, Legal Assistant Jared Forney, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Vasu B. Muthyala and Michael K. Atkinson, who prosecuted the case.
Texas Man Sentenced for Assault with a Dangerous Weapon Bobby Wayne Thomas
PIERRE, SD—United States Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a Jewett, Texas, man charged with Assault with a Dangerous Weapon was sentenced on March 14, 2011, by United States District Judge Roberto A. Lange. Bobby Wayne Thomas, age 27, was sentenced to 18 months in custody, two years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment to the Victim Assistance Fund. Thomas was indicted for Assault with a Dangerous Weapon by a federal grand jury on November 17, 2010. The charge relates to Thomas assaulting another male with a knife at Upper Swift Bear Housing Community in Mellette County on November 15, 2010. He pled guilty to the charge on December 20, 2010. This case was investigated by the FBI and Rosebud Law Enforcement Services. Assistant United States Attorney Meghan N. Dilges prosecuted the case. Thomas was immediately turned over to the custody of the United States Marshal.
Indictment Unsealed Charging Additional Member of al Qaeda Plot
A superseding indictment was unsealed in Brooklyn federal court yesterday charging Ferid Imam, also known as "Yousef," with providing and conspiring to provide material support to al Qaeda, aiding and abetting the terrorist training of Najibullah Zazi, Zarein Ahmedzay, and Adis Medunjanin, and using a destructive device in furtherance of crimes of violence.1 The indictment was unsealed in coordination with Canadian authorities, who earlier today announced terrorism charges against Imam, who is a Canadian citizen. According to the Eastern District indictment, Imam aided and abetted Zazi, Ahmedzay, and Medunjanin's receipt of military-type training from al Qaeda when the three men traveled to Pakistan in 2008. Zazi, Ahmedzay, and Medunjanin subsequently returned to the United States to carry out a plot to detonate improvised explosive devices on behalf of al Qaeda. This plot was uncovered and disrupted by law enforcement authorities in September 2009. Zazi pleaded guilty to his role in the plot on February 22, 2010; Ahmedzay similarly pleaded guilty on April 23, 2010. If convicted of the crimes in the indictment, Imam faces between 30 years' and life imprisonment. The charges were announced by Loretta E. Lynch, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Janice K. Fedarcyk, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office, and Raymond W. Kelly, Commissioner, New York City Police Department. "As today's charges demonstrate, we will not rest in our pursuit of those responsible for plotting terrorist attacks," stated United States Attorney Lynch. Ms. Lynch expressed her gratitude to the law enforcement personnel, both American and Canadian, who took part in the investigation. "The three men already charged with conspiring to set off bombs in New York were also charged with receiving overseas training to accomplish that nefarious goal. Among other alleged acts of terrorism, Ferid Imam helped them get that training. Today's charges are an important step in bringing to justice all the conspirators," said FBI New York Assistant Director-in-Charge Fedarcyk. NYPD Commissioner Kelly stated, "Today's charges against Ferid Imam are a result of the successful partnerships forged between police, prosecutors, and intelligence agencies in our efforts to keep the threat of terrorism at bay." The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York, with assistance from the Counterterrorism Section of the Justice Department's National Security Division. The Defendant: FERID IMAM Alias: "Yousef" Age: 30 1 The charges contained in the superseding indictment are merely allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Justice Department Settles with Hertford County, N.C., Involving Pregnancy Discrimination
WASHINGTON – The Justice Department announced today that it has resolved a lawsuit alleging that Kimberly Sathoff was subjected to pregnancy discrimination by the Hertford County, N.C., Public Health Authority, in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The complaint, which was filed along with a consent Decree in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, alleges that the health authority discriminated against Ms. Sathoff on the basis of her sex by when the authority’s former health director rescinded an offer of employment and failed to hire Ms. Sathoff for a position with the health authority once the health director found out she was pregnant. Under the terms of the consent decree, the health authority will implement policies and procedures that prohibit sex discrimination, including pregnancy discrimination, and provide training to all health authority employees with hiring responsibilities and all supervisors on the law of equal employment opportunity, including discrimination based on sex. Additionally, the health authority will pay Ms. Sathoff a $20,000 monetary award. “A woman should not be regarded as unable to perform a job simply by virtue of her pregnancy. The Department of Justice is committed to protecting the employment rights of women,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division
Latin Kings Member Convicted in Maryland of Racketeering Conspiracy, Murder, Robbery and Firearms Offenses
Last of 19 Charged Gang Members to Be Convicted; Murdered a Hyattsville, Md., Man and Participated in Armed Robbery
WASHINGTON - A federal jury convicted Chinua Shepperson, aka “Nu,” “NuNu” and “King Nu,” 28, of Washington, D.C., late yesterday of conspiracy to participate in a racketeering enterprise known as the Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation (Latin Kings), murder in aid of racketeering, robbery, using a gun during a crime of violence and murder resulting from the use of a gun during a crime of violence. The conviction was announced by Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Theresa R. Stoop of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) - Baltimore Field Division; Chief J. Thomas Manger of the Montgomery County Police Department; Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy; Interim Chief Mark Magaw of the Prince George’s County Police Department; and Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Angela Alsobrooks. “The Latin Kings is a brutal gang that uses violence to achieve its ends,” said Assistant Attorney General Breuer. “With Mr. Shepperson’s conviction, all 19 defendants charged in this investigation have been held to account. Our deliberate approach to prosecuting the Latin Kings and other gangs is taking violent offenders off our streets, and working to make our communities safer.” “Chinua Shepperson robbed and murdered a Hyattsville man, and participated in an armed robbery in order to further his position in the Latin Kings,” said U.S. Attorney Rosenstein. “The strategy of combining the resources and intelligence of local, state and federal law enforcement agencies to pursue federal racketeering charges against criminal gangs is proving effective in removing violent offenders from the streets and making our neighborhoods more safe.” “The ATF RAGE Task Force built a strong case against the Latin Kings through tireless police work documenting the criminal acts of the defendants and the RICO enterprise,” said ATF Special Agent in Charge Stoop. “The jury heard the facts of the investigation, including the violence perpetrated by Shepperson and the Latin Kings. The success of this investigation shows the effectiveness of the criminal justice system, and how hard ATF works to combat gang violence.” According to court documents, the Latin Kings is a violent street gang with thousands of members across the country and overseas. The Latin Kings have a detailed and uniform organizational structure, which is outlined – along with various “prayers,” codes of behavior and rituals – in a written “manifesto” widely distributed to members throughout the country. Members of the Latin Kings are also traditionally given “King Names” or “Queen Names,” which are names other than their legal names by which they are known to members of the gang and to others on the street. At the local level, groups of Latin Kings are organized into “tribes,” including, the Royal Lion Tribe, MOG, Sun Tribe and UTL. According to evidence presented during the two-week trial, Shepperson conspired with other Latin Kings members to engage in gang activities from a date unknown until November 2009. Specifically, evidence presented at trial showed that on Dec. 14, 2007, Shepperson and other gang members participated in the armed robbery of a prostitute at a motel in Laurel, Md. In addition, evidence showed that on April 25, 2008, Shepperson conspired with other gang members to rob John Realpe Montoya of cocaine, and fatally shot him behind the Marylander Condominiums in Langley Park, Md. All of Shepperson’s 18 co-defendants previously pleaded guilty to the racketeering conspiracy. Shepperson faces a maximum sentence of life in prison. U.S. District Judge Alexander Williams scheduled sentencing for June 17, 2011, at 9:30 a.m. The ATF-led Regional Anti-Gang Enforcement (RAGE) Task Force, which includes the Gaithersburg, Md., Police Department; the Montgomery County Department of Police; the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office; the Prince George’s County Police Department; the Prince George’s County State’s Attorney’s Office; the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office; the Maryland National Capital Park Police - Prince George’s County Division; and the Maryland State Police; as well as the New York City Police Department , the U.S. Secret Service and the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation provided assistance in the investigation and prosecution. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Emily Glatfelter and David Salem, and Trial Attorney Lara M. Peirce with the Criminal Division’s Gang Unit.
Massachusetts Man Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography Charges
WASHINGTON – George H. Lunt, 26, formerly of Plymouth, Mass., pleaded guilty today to two counts of transportation of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division , U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts Carmen M. Ortiz and Richard DesLauriers, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Boston Field Office. Lunt pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge George A. O’Toole Jr. in Boston. Lunt was indicted on May 26, 2010. In pleading guilty, Lunt admitted to possessing thousands of images and videos of child pornography that included depictions of prepubescent children and toddlers, and sadistic conduct. Lunt admitted to distributing child pornography through online peer-to-peer file-sharing software. This case arose from an FBI investigation of individuals sharing and trading child pornography over the Internet. Lunt is scheduled to be sentenced on June 21, 2011. Lunt faces a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison, a fine of $250,000 and restitution if appropriate. This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov. The case against Lunt was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael I. Yoon of the District of Massachusetts and CEOS Trial Attorney Bonnie L. Kane of the Criminal Division. The case was investigated by the FBI. |