News Releases and Statements

The operation targeted three rival drug trafficking networks headed by Andres Hernandez-Diaz, 46, Julian Mirambeaux-Olivarez, 46, and Manuel Castillo-Concepcion, 37, all of Plainfield, N.J.

Douglas Alexander Herrera-Hernandez, aka “Terror,” a 20-year-old El Salvadoran national illegally present in the United States, was one the 10 Most Wanted Fugitives in Texas. He is wanted in connection with two murders in the Houston area.

Jeremy David Mount, 41, of Hutchinson, Minnesota, pleaded guilty Feb. 9, 2017, to one count of receiving and one count of producing child pornography.  He was sentenced to 262 months in prison on July 27 before U.S. District Judge Susan Richard Nelson.  He was also sentenced to 20 years of supervised release.

German Reyes-Benitez, 22, is wanted for attempted aggravated homicide, in El Salvador. On Nov. 29, 2016, Reyes Benitez was ordered removed from the United States by a federal immigration judge.

Jonathan Andrew Hydro, 59, of Abilene, was also ordered by U.S. District Judge Reed C. O’Connor to pay $5,000 in restitution.  He has been in custody since his arrest in February 2017.  Hydro pleaded guilty in April 2017 to one count of receiving visual depictions of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct.

The aim of Operation SaveREP is to target, intercept, and seize rhino horns, elephant ivory, and pangolin scales and other Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) goods and to apprehend and arrest offenders in a concerted national, regional, and international effort.

The defendants, Jose Emanuel Garcia Sota, aka Juan Manuel Maldonado Amezcua, aka Zafado, 36, of San Luis Potosi, Mexico, and Jesus Ivan Quezada Piña, aka Loco, 29, of Matamoros, Mexico, are among seven Mexican nationals extradited to the U.S. on federal charges in this case.

Stefan Dumitru, 29, of Queens, New York, and Florian Calin Crainic, 47, of Des Plaines, Illinois, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud.

Benjamin Donald Brunni, 19, of Greensburg, Indiana, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Brian R. Martinotti in Trenton federal court to one count of transporting and selling firearms without a license.

William Ali, 38, has been in federal custody since his arrest April 11, 2016, by HSI special agents. At Thursday’s sentencing, U.S. District Judge Thomas S. Zilly said, “You knew that if you did it you could go to jail and you proceeded to do it…you laughed and you were undeterred in your decision to come here.”

Ilija Josipovic, 59, was removed to Bosnia via commercial airline under escort by deportation officers with ICE ERO without incident. In May, Josipovic pled guilty to two counts of possession of immigration documents procured by fraud. In the first count, Josipovic admitted that on Feb. 1, 2012, he used his Permanent Resident Card to obtain an Ohio driver’s license, knowing that the card was fraudulently obtained.

Ben Culbertson, 56, of Nevada, Missouri, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Beth Phillips to 262 months in federal prison without parole. Culbertson had been detained in federal custody since his arrest in October 2016.  Culbertson pleaded guilty to receiving and distributing child pornography via the internet on March 22, 2017.

Alexander Vinnik, 37, served as the owner and operator of a business known as BTC-e and was also the primary owner of BTC-e’s managing shell company, Canton Business Corporation. According to court documents, numerous withdrawals from BTC-e accounts went directly to Vinnik’s personal bank accounts. The indictment further alleges that proceeds from well-known hacks and thefts from bitcoin exchanges were funded through a BTC-e administrator account associated with Vinnik. He was arrested in Greece July 25. 

SUMCO Phoenix Corporation recently signed an agreement to participate in IMAGE (ICE Mutual Agreement between Government and Employers), a voluntary program in which ICE partners with businesses to reduce unauthorized employment and the use of fraudulent identity documents. SUMCO received its certificate earlier this month formally marking the firm’s entry into the program.

Of those arrested during the enforcement action which ended Saturday, 82 had criminal histories, including prior convictions for sex crimes, drug offenses, and fraud. 15 have pending criminal charges including assault, larceny and sexual exploitation of a minor. 37 individuals have final orders of removal. Nine of those arrested were released from local custody on an active detainer.

Samir Wadi, (44), of Sedona, was sentenced July 19, by an Arizona Superior Court Judge following a bench trial who handed a guilty verdict of 12 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor under the age of 15, making each charged count a class two felony.

Rosario La Marca, 54, a resident of Naples, Italy, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Kevin McNulty to count one of an indictment charging him with conspiracy to traffic in counterfeit goods, to smuggle goods into the United States, and to structure financial transactions, and count two, charging him with trafficking in counterfeit goods.

During the July 10-19 operation, ERO officers made arrests in the following Central and South Texas cities:  Austin (13), Waco (3), Harlingen (44), Laredo (27) and San Antonio (36).  Of those arrested, 115 were men; eight were women.

ERO’s 400th foreign fugitive arrest of the year was Rafael Alberto-Burgos, a 43-year-old national of the Dominican Republic and citizen of Spain, wanted by Spanish authorities for homicide. Alberto-Burgos is suspected to have participated in the 1997 murder of his ex-girlfriend, whose remains were found on a Barcelona highway.