News Releases and Statements

Juan Morales-Boyzo, 40, was escorted to the Juarez Lincoln Port in Laredo, Texas, and turned over to Mexican law enforcement authorities (Procuraduría General de la República) Oct. 3.

These counterfeit parts usually bear the trademark of a legitimate and trusted brand, but they were produced by another party and are not made to the specifications of the original equipment manufacturer. They're often produced illegally and sold at a profit to fund other criminal activities.

Karsten Puschmann, 51, of Kiel, Germany, appeared in federal court Friday. In addition to the 189-month jail term, Puschmann will be subject to a lifetime of supervision following his release from prison. He will also be required to register as a sex offender.

Jorge Zavala-Yanes, 43, was arrested outside his place of employment in Aurora, Colorado, where he worked as a security guard. Zavala illegally possessed a loaded Glock 27 .40-caliber handgun at the time of his arrest.

The GTO, which will go into effect Oct. 9, was sought by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California, which is working with HSI and the IRS Criminal Investigation division to fight money laundering schemes designed to allow international drug cartels in Central America and South America to reach drug proceeds generated in the U.S.

Tyler Coons, 23, of Springfield, Missouri, was charged in a two-count indictment returned under seal by a federal grand jury in Springfield on Tuesday.

Victor Samuel Vargas Giron, 20, and Wilson Adalid Beltran, 24, allegedly raped and killed Escolasticos Bustillo Landero. According to local police, the homicide occurred in June outside of a local bar in Cifuentes. It's alleged that Vargas Giron and Adalid Beltran used a bicycle chain to choke Landero.

Todd Fleming, 54, from McKinney, Texas, pleaded guilty Oct. 2 to sexually exploiting children before U.S. Magistrate Judge K. Nicole Mitchell.

The division will be a part of the Attorney General's Multicounty Grand Jury Unit, and it will provide Oklahoma with the first comprehensive, statewide focus on combating criminal money laundering activities.

Abdul Masood Qayumi, 25, of Surrey, B.C., and his brother Abdul Masih Qayumi, 26, marketed and sold more than $33,000 worth of counterfeit Honda, BMW and Toyota airbags on eBay for about one year, according to court records. HSI special agents began their investigation after American Honda Motor Corporation alerted investigators of the brothers' online sales scheme.

The three defendants – including Victor Flores, 23, of Petaluma; Benjamin Campos-Gonzalez, 24, of San Mateo; and Armando Acosta, 29, of South San Francisco – were convicted of racketeering conspiracy.

Alper Calik, 38, of Ankara, Turkey, was arrested upon his entry into the United States Sept. 13 and charged with two counts of mail fraud for submitting fraudulent contracts to the DoD claiming to produce items in the United States that were actually manufactured in Turkey. Calik also faces one count of violating the Arms Export Control Act for downloading thousands of military technical drawings while outside the United States without prior approval from the U.S. Department of State.

This investigation resulted in the seizure of more than $3.9 million from a residence in suburban Park Ridge in April 2013, as well as dozens of kilograms of cocaine, heroin and marijuana.

Christopher Steele, aka Mike Dozer, 33, was convicted for use of an interstate commerce facility to entice a minor to engage in sexual conduct, interstate travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a minor, and receipt of child pornography.

According to court documents, Nina Renee Calderon, 23, became involved in a conspiracy to produce child pornography when she was contacted by co-conspirator Robert Harold Scott Jr. under his online identity of "Mike Pyro."

Damion St. Patrick Baston, 37, of New York, was convicted July 3 on three counts of sex trafficking – both in the U.S. and Australia – five counts of transporting multiple individuals for prostitution, one count of importation of an alien for prostitution, one count of using a passport secured by false statement, one count of aggravated identity theft and nine counts of money laundering. Baston was also found guilty of illegally reentering the United States after being previously removed.

Alvaro Garcia-Medina, 38, was flown to Honduras Sept. 29 onboard a charter flight coordinated by ICE’s Air Operations (IAO) Unit. Upon arrival, Garcia-Medina was turned over to Honduran officials.

The training focused on methods of open source investigative techniques designed to assist in the identification and apprehension of child predators.

David Phillip Ryan, 50, of Miami, and Carlos Quirola-Ordonez, aka 'Julio Antonio Gonzalez,' aka 'Manny,' 57, of New Milford, New Jersey, each face 1 count of conspiring to transport stolen firearms.

Cassandra Camacho, 25, of Mission, Texas; and Juan Ivan Rodriguez, 34, and Nestor Leal-Cedillo, 24, of Reynoso, Mexico, were sentenced by U.S. District Judge Micaela Alvarez. Camacho was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison; Rodriguez and Leal-Cedillo received respective sentences of 37 and 60 months. All three had pleaded guilty to the charges; Leal-Cedillo pleaded guilty June 12, and Camacho and Rodriguez July 1.

Koyode Lawrence, aka “papa,” 45, of Lagos, Nigeria, was sentenced to 300 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Nancy F. Atlas. At the hearing, additional testimony was presented showing the extent of Lawrence’s operation, including the fact that a pregnant minor ingested pellets of heroin to assist him in his trafficking. In handing down the sentence, Judge Atlas noted that Lawrence was the leader of extensive criminal activity. Lawrence pleaded guilty to the charges April 23.

Steven Thompson's accomplice in these crimes Tierra Waters was sentenced to eight years for conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking of a minor.

Travis Lamont Foote, aka "Cash," 31, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion and was sentenced by U.S. District Judge James K. Bredar to 12 years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release. He will also be required to register as a sex offender.

Agustin Lopez-Guzman and Alonso Lopez-Guzman, both of Maryland Heights, Missouri, were sentenced Sept. 30 to five years and two years in federal prison, respectively.

The three-day event gave attendees the opportunity to learn about and discuss operational best practices to combat transnational organized intellectual property (IP) crime through plenary sessions, operational workshops, interactive round tables and specialized IP crime learning sessions.