News Releases and Statements

Miguel Hernandez-Maldonado, 42, Manuel Garcia-Cabrera, 40, and Luis Diaz-Tinoco, 47, all illegal aliens from Mexico, pleaded guilty to the charges Oct. 29, 2015. All three were convicted of one count of conspiracy to transport illegal aliens and one count of illegal re-entry after deportation.

Samantha C. Elmer, 33, of Lawrence, Kansas, pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated identity theft. In her plea she admitted she forged her husband’s signature on a document giving her consent to take their two daughters to Europe.

Tiara Jade Newman, 22, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking. In her plea, she admitted that on March 21, 2015, she and her husband, co-defendant Reginald Newman, 29, took a 17-year-old girl from Topeka to Junction City, Kansas, for the purpose of prostitution.

Junaid Qadir, 33, of Karachi, Pakistan, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Denver Aug. 22, 2012. A superseding indictment was obtained June 25, 2015. He was arrested last spring after he traveled from Pakistan to Germany, which has U.S. extradition laws.

The indictment charges each of the following defendants with one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine: Isabel Soto, Veronica Sanchez Lopez, Monty Fred Humble, Martin Leonard Lomas, Michael Brent Watson, Joe Louis Lara, Cruz Lee Betancur, Richard Luke Elam, Jonathon Christopher Chapa, Christopher Ray Lovington, Erica Dominguez.

The 13 defendants, who are named in a criminal complaint filed Sunday charging them with possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute, include: Hector Raul Bernal-Lara, Ricardo Sanchez-Marquez, Daniel Aguilar, Mark Garcia, Susana Tobaldo, Kevin Tes, Josh Rubio, Alfonso Aguilar-Ballestros, Jesus Moreno-Sepulveda, Santiago Galvan-Carrillo, Paul Armenta-Bueno, Bryan Castro, Daniel Fernando-Huizar.

Jose Javier Rosas, aka Jose Javier Rosas Jimenez, 62, was sentenced Monday. The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California.

ICE ERO Newark recognized its local partners at correctional facilities in Monmouth and Hudson counties for their ongoing efforts to help identify individuals detained on serious criminal charges who fall under the ICE priorities.

Benito Alvarez-Gonzalez, 31, is accused of kidnapping two 15- and 17-year-old boys in Mexico in December 2015. He allegedly raped and shot the 17-year-old boy five times killing him; but the 15-year-old was able to escape and notify Mexican authorities.

Robert “Bob” Warden Phillips, 65, of Lake Forest, made his initial appearance in federal court Monday and pleaded not guilty to the charges. He was released on a $50,000 bond pending trial, which is slated to begin March 22.

Matthew Short, 29, of Marion, Illinois, pleaded guilty Jan. 28 in federal court to importing a controlled substance from China (anabolic steroids).

Francisco Lopez, 37, a Mexican national formerly residing in Tuscon, Arizona, was the leader of an international drug trafficking organization which brought thousands of kilograms of marijuana from Mexico and laundered millions of dollars of drug proceeds.

Joel A. Wright, 23, of Columbus, Ohio, is charged in a criminal complaint with two felony counts, including travelling with the intent to engage in a sexual act with a minor; and attempting to engage in illicit sexual conduct in a foreign country within the Southern District of California.

Arthur Budovsky, 42, founded and operated Liberty Reserve, an underworld cyber-banking system that laundered hundreds of millions of dollars in illicit proceeds for criminals around the world.

“Make no mistake about it, there are always challenges but our special agents are up to the challenge and will excel to help safeguard our country,” said Opiola.

The indictment against Deandre Bennett, 57, of San Bernardino, California, was returned Jan. 28. This is believed to be the largest-ever seizure of methamphetamine in the Corpus Christi Division.

Through the RGV CEITF, local and federal law enforcement agencies are pooling their resources to jointly investigate all crimes committed against children in the Texas Rio Grande Valley.

Kurtis William Johnson, 26, and Tara Malinda Ridley, 26, both of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, pleaded guilty before U. S. District Judge Ralph R Erickson. Johnson pleaded guilty to two counts of sex trafficking children and one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking. Ridley pleaded guilty to one count of interstate travel in aid of prostitution.

Sihai Cheng, aka Chun Hai Cheng, Alex Cheng, 35, a citizen of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), was sentenced to nine years in prison, the longest sentence ever handed down in the U.S. for export violations. In December 2015, Cheng pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiring to commit export violations and four counts of illegally exporting U.S. manufactured pressure transducers to Iran.

Ping Liu, 44, of Wichita, Kansas, pleaded guilty to one count of attempted coercion and enticement to prostitution. Liu was also ordered to serve five years’ probation.

Paul L. Sipeer, 65, of Duenweg, Missouri, was charged in a criminal complaint alleging he received child pornography via the Internet. Sipeer had his initial court appearance Jan. 27 and remains in federal custody pending a detention hearing Feb. 2.

Dontre D'Sean McHenry, aka Dontre Sean McHenry, aka Avon, and aka Rico, 26, of Minneapolis, was sentenced to 293 months in prison for recruiting and prostituting teenage girls throughout Minnesota. McHenry pleaded guilty to these charges Oct. 17, 2014.

Phillip Dwayne Lloyd, aka Marcus Strong, aka Philip Dwayne Loyd, aka Dwayne Smith, aka Alfred Woods and aka ‘PC,' 44, of Minneapolis, pleaded guilty to recruiting and sex trafficking a 17-year-old girl and for directing and producing a video of the minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Co-defendant Raquel Mone Belcher, 29, also of Minneapolis, pleaded guilty Monday to one count of conspiracy to sex traffic minors.

Cody Lee Davidson, 18, of Raytown, Missouri, was charged in a criminal complaint filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Kansas City. Davidson was arrested Jan. 26 and had his initial court appearance the following day.