News Releases and Statements
News Releases and Statements
After a two-week jury trial, a Manhattan jury found Mahabubuz Zaman guilty on Nov. 12, 2014, of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, conspiracy to commit identification document fraud, and use of a false passport.
Dinu Horvat, 28, was convicted on four counts of a superseding indictment – conspiracy to commit bank fraud, aggravated identity theft, conspiracy to possess 15 or more counterfeit access devices, and conspiracy to possess access device-making equipment – following a one-week trial before U.S. District Judge William J. Martini in Newark federal court. The jury deliberated about two hours before returning the verdict.
The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) today named Banca Privada d'Andorra (BPA) as a foreign financial institution of primary money laundering concern pursuant to Section 311 of the USA PATRIOT Act (Section 311) and issued a related Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM). This finding and NPRM are based on information indicating that, for several years, high-level managers at BPA have knowingly facilitated transactions on behalf of third-party money launderers acting on behalf of transnational criminal organizations.
Since 2005, HSI and the DIAN have worked closely in conducting trade-based money laundering and customs fraud investigations. HSI is the only U.S. law enforcement agency to exchange trade data with Colombia to investigate these types of crimes.
Stanley Dan Reczko III, 50, who resided in the Koreatown District of Los Angeles, was found guilty of the charge by U.S. District Judge George H. King, who issued his ruling Tuesday afternoon from the bench. The charges are the result of a probe by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
The officers received training on the Child Protection System, a software program used by law enforcement around the globe to assist with the identification of individuals trading child pornography online.
Daniel Chase Harris, 31, of Virginia Beach, was indicted by a federal grand jury on a superseding indictment Sept. 17. He was originally arrested by the Bedford County Sheriff’s Office in November 2013.
The operation, dubbed “Cross Check,” began Sunday, March 1, and ended Thursday, March 5. Hundreds of ERO officers participated in the operation that focused on the arrests of public safety threats. Those arrested are from 94 countries and have a wide array of criminal convictions.
HSI special agents arrested Melvin Gomera-Rodriguez, 23, of San Juan, for allegedly downloading sexually explicit images depicting child pornography from a peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing network, a method of communication available to Internet users in which computers linked together form a decentralized network that allows for the sharing of digital files between users of the network.
Special agents arrested Milton Contreras, 19, aka “Diabolico,” in Kansas City, Kansas, where he was arraigned.
At trial, the government presented evidence that law enforcement had identified Richard Dale Brooks, 55, of Cocoa, while investigating individuals sharing child pornography via a peer-to-peer file-sharing program in May 2012. Law enforcement obtained a search warrant for Brooks' Jacksonville residence and discovered several computers containing child pornography.
As a police officer for 14 years before joining ICE, Pandolfi has been a part of his share of rescue efforts. It is because of his experience and preparation that he never wavered that afternoon on the side of the road in Vermont.
Andrew Nicholas Evich, 67, of Everett, made his initial appearance in federal court Friday on charges of possession and distribution of child pornography. According to the complaint, Evich was sharing images of child rape and molestation through a peer-to-peer file sharing program while posing as a 13-year-old boy. Evich’s profile caught the attention of HSI special agents investigating Internet child exploitation crimes. HSI special agents are still determining the origin of hundreds of sexually explicit images and videos obtained from Evich.
On Thursday, March 5, CNBC aired an episode of American Greed, highlighting the story of Jordan Belfort, the former stock broker and inspiration behind the 2013 film “The Wolf of Wall Street.”
According to the testimony presented at trial, a new tenant moving into a condo recently vacated by Brian Robert Harling in July 2013found three thumb drives after they fell from molding inside of a closet. Harling, 58, was found guilty by a federal jury Dec. 3, 2014.
Alain Painchaud, 46, of Sasseville, Québec, was repatriated to Canada via ground transportation from Chicago and turned over to the custody of Canadian authorities at the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel.
“Former Korean President Chun violated the trust of the people of Korea,” said Director Saldaña. “The results in this case reflect the outstanding international cooperation that exists between U.S. law enforcement and the government of Korea.”
Michaels, who has been with HSI for over 12 years, was honored for his outstanding work in investigating child exploitation-related crimes. One of the highlights of his efforts included his leadership in re-establishing the South Carolina Upstate Internet Crimes against Children Task Force.
Joseph Rajkumar, 44, formerly of Farmington, pleaded guilty Nov. 18, 2013 in Hartford federal court to one count of attempted receipt of child pornography. The charge stems from Rajkumar‘s sexual relationship with a student while he was a teacher at Miss Porter’s School in Farmington.
Alejandro Carrillo, 38, of El Paso, Texas, was arrested April 23, 2014, after a search by U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Border Patrol agents during a routine traffic stop on Interstate 25 in Doña Ana County, New Mexico revealed that Carrillo had concealed bundles of methamphetamine in his tractor-trailer.
Jesus Javier Garza Jr., 30, of Mission, Texas, was arrested and charged Feb. 27, 2014 for receiving child pornography. During the hearing March 3, Garza admitted he was the mariachi director at La Joya High School.
Todd Fleming, from McKinney, Texas, pleaded guilty Oct. 2, 2014 to sexually exploiting children and was sentenced March 3 to 240 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Michael H. Schneider. Fleming will be required to register as a sex offender and serve a life term of supervised release upon his release from federal prison.
Mosquera was arrested in Colombia and subsequently extradited to the United States. He pleaded guilty Nov. 25.
As part of Project iGuardian, HSI special agents in St. Thomas organized the largest Internet safety outreach in the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI) for 8- to 16-year-old kids to provide them with the necessary tools to make smart decisions when navigating the Internet. The event was part of the 2015 USVI Youth Summit sponsored by the USVI Police Department and the local Department of Education.
BEST units in the United States gather officers from more than 100 different law enforcement agencies under one roof, ith the objective of identifying, investigating, disrupting and dismantling transnational organizations posing the greatest threat to border security, public safety and national security, by employing the full range of federal, state, local, tribal and international law enforcement resources.
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