News Releases and Statements

Joseph Schesso, 36, who has already served three years in state prison for attempted child molestation, was arrested in 2011 after he came to the attention of law enforcement in Germany.

The following five men from Michoacan, Mexico, who pleaded guilty just one month after their March arrests,were convicted of conspiring to harbor and transport illegal aliens and using a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence: Jose Aviles-Villa, 32; Antonio Barruquet-Hildeberta, 46; Jonathan Solorzano-Tavila, 30; Jose Cesmas-Borja, 26; and Eugenio Sesmas-Borja, 20.

Gregory Boone, 30, of Pittston, Pennsylvania, admitted to conspiring with others to recruit, harbor and transport minor females to engage in commercial sex acts for money during the summer of 2013 in Luzerne and Dauphin counties.

Gerald W. Jones, 42, was sentenced Sept. 4 to 20 years in federal prison without parole. Jones had previously pleaded guilty May 12 to leading a conspiracy to distribute at least one kilogram of PCP.

Ian Holman, 33, of Jasper County, Missouri, pleaded guilty to the charge contained in an Oct. 1, 2013, federal indictment.

Tony Lasiter, 32, of Duenweg, Missouri, pleaded guilty to the charge contained in an Oct. 1, 2013, federal indictment.

Zexiong Chen, 28, and Haotian Chen, 26, who are unrelated, were charged with trafficking in counterfeit goods. It is alleged that in February 2013, the defendants incorporated Max Wireless Group, Inc. as a vehicle for importing and reselling cellphone cases, many of which were counterfeit.

Court documents filed in the case reveal that on Aug.19, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers at the Otay Mesa port of entry discovered cocaine in a hidden compartment in the floor of a trailer that was being driven by Eslava-Corral.

William Edward Osman, 34, of Orlando, was also ordered to serve a life term of supervised release and to register as a sex offender upon completion of his custodial sentence. He pleaded guilty Feb. 28.

Eduardo Santiago-Rivera, 45, pleaded guilty Jan. 13, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Velez-Rive in the District of Puerto Rico to nine counts of sexual exploitation of children and one count of possession of child pornography. He was charged by superseding indictment May 13.

A seizure warrant issued by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania was unsealed Wednesday, announcing the seizure of approximately $500,000 in assets traceable to corruption proceeds accumulated by Chun Doo Hwan, the former president of the Republic of Korea. This seizure brings the total value of seized corruption proceeds of President Chun to more than $1.2 million.

Carlos Edgar Sandoval-Uriel, 31, of Mexico, was arrested as part of an extensive investigation by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) that has resulted in the conviction of 12 defendants on marijuana trafficking and money laundering charges. This OCDETF investigation was led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Charlotte-Mecklenburg, Huntersville and Cornelius police departments.

Frances Salas, 27, a U.S. citizen and resident of Phoenix, and Jesus Millan-Rodriguez, 31, a Mexican national, were booked into the Maricopa County Jail, each charged with kidnapping and possession of marijuana for sale.

Christopher Briseno, 45, of Grand Prairie, Texas, was sentenced to 108 months in federal prison on one count of pandering of child pornography. Briseno previously pleaded guilty in May 2014.

Jorge Gamez-Nieto, 41, of Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge William M. Conley to a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison for possessing with intent to distribute more than 500 grams of cocaine and possessing a loaded handgun in furtherance of that offense. Gamez-Nieto pleaded guilty to these charges May 15.

Montoya-Merino, who had been previously returned to Mexico in 2013, illegally reentered the country and was subsequently arrested Nov. 19, 2013, with the assistance of the Bradley Beach Police Department and the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office.

Charles Marquez, 54, was sentenced Sept. 3 as the result of an investigation conducted by the FBI, together with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), as part of Operation Cross-Country, a nationwide initiative that focuses on child prostitution.

Todd Balo, 48, pleaded guilty before Chief United States District Judge James C. Dever, III, after a federal grand jury returned a criminal indictment against him Nov. 23, 2013.

If convicted, Byron Lopez, aka Viruz, 23, will face mandatory life imprisonment. Lopez was arrested Thursday and presented for arraignment at the United States Courthouse in Brooklyn.

ICE's top 5 news stories for the week ending Aug. 29, 2014

Robert Dale Schrader, 34, of Littlerock, California, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gary A. Feess, who also ordered that Schrader remain under supervision for the rest of his life following his release from prison.

Jonathan Tyler Prive, 26, of West Melbourne, faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years, up to life in federal prison, as well as a potential life term of supervised release. He was indicted Feb. 19; a sentencing date has not yet been set.

John C. Vastis, aka "Pete," 51, of Lakemoor, Illinois, which straddles Lake and McHenry counties, was arrested at his home Aug. 28 by agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) at the same time they executed a federal search warrant.

Greek national Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos is believed to have run the human smuggling ring.

"Long Island residents deserve safe communities, free of dangerous drugs and the violence that comes with them, and HSI will continue to partner with local law enforcement to achieve these goals."