News Releases and Statements

Lee David Shropshire, 35, was sentenced June 24 to 170 months in prison by U.S. District Judge G. Murray Snow. In addition to the prison term, Shropshire will be subject to lifetime supervised release. Shropshire pleaded guilty March 20 to one count of distribution of child pornography.

46 year-old Mark Noyes, of Beaworthy, United Kingdom, was sentenced Wednesday to five years in a United Kingdom prison for numerous sexual offenses against children. Noyes had deliberately accessed a social networking site from his home in order to befriend and groom two vulnerable 12-year-old American girls.

U.S. and Mexican authorities shut down an incomplete cross-border drug smuggling tunnel following its discovery Tuesday during a routine, bi-national inspection of the city's main storm drain system.

Hia Soo Gan Benson and Lim Kow Seng pleaded guilty in federal court in the District of Columbia to conspiracy to violate the Arms Export Control Act by unlawful export of 55 military antennas from the United States to Singapore and Hong Kong, following an investigation by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and several law enforcement agencies in Europe, coordinated by the European Police Office (Europol), announced the seizure of 328 domain names in two related operations Wednesday. The seized domain names were associated with websites illegally selling counterfeit merchandise online.

Alfredo Guerrero Espartiro, a Filipino national who pleaded guilty last year to federal charges arising from his role in a scheme to illegally export military aircraft parts from the U.S. to Iran, was removed to the Philippines Wednesday by officers from ICE's Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO).

Jesus Ortiz-Tun, a Mexican man wanted in his native country on murder and torture charges, was turned over to Mexican law enforcement authorities at the Dennis DeConcini port of entry Friday by ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) officers.

Two Cleveland-area residents, Ryan Kralik and Ruth Eimers, were indicted Wednesday on charges of intent to distribute bath salts. The charges resulted from an investigation by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Portage County Drug Task Force and the Portage County Sheriff's Office.

"More than 300 search warrants and 150 arrest warrants were executed Wednesday in 33 states, targeting the upper echelon of designer synthetic drug trafficking organizations. ""Project Synergy"" was announced by the Drug Enforcement Administration, ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection."

Andres Ruiz-Huertas, a 60-year-old man charged with production of child pornography, pleaded guilty in federal court Monday following an investigation by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Puerto Rico Crimes Against Children Task Force (PRCACTF).

Niyaz Sainudeen of Bethlehem, Pa., was sentenced Tuesday to 151 months in federal prison for distribution, receipt and possession of child pornography. During a March 2012 search of Sainudeen's computer, HSI special agents discovered hundreds of images and dozens of videos of child pornography.

During this investigation, no firearms were permitted to be exported to Mexico.

Ramirez was unaware that the driver of the tractor-trailer was an undercover police officer.

27-year-old Benjamin Mahoney was sentenced to five years in a United Kingdom prison for enticing two minor girls residing in Maine to perform sex acts on each other in front of a web camera following a joint investigation led by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the South Wales Police.

Officers executed a search warrant at the residence and seized several plastic bags containing methamphetamine and marijuana.

ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Philippine Bureau of Customs (BOC) signed a letter of intent to establish a trade transparency unit in Manila to exchange information and promote the detection of trade-based money laundering and commercial fraud violations.

Michael J. Barndt, a Pennsylvania man who allegedly traveled to Delaware to engage in sexual relations with an individual whom Barndt believed to be a 14-year-old girl, was arrested Wednesday at a Delaware shopping mall.

Ralph Allen Jackson Jr., a Long Beach man who allegedly forced a 17-year-old girl to work as a prostitute, has been named in a federal criminal complaint that charges him with child sex trafficking.

Raul and Fidel Villarreal, two San Diego-area brothers who formerly served as US Customs and Border Protection Border Patrol agents, were sentenced Friday for orchestrating a scheme to smuggle more than 1,000 illegal immigrants into the United States in exchange for more than $1 million in bribes.

John Robert Stevens, III, knowingly downloaded child pornography in 2011 from the Internet to his personal computer, including many images of children younger than 12 years old, as well as images depicting the sadistic and violent treatment of children.

Rolin Eli Escober, 50, of Humble, Texas, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Vanessa D. Gilmore to 108 months in federal prison.

One of 30 others who have been sentenced so far for this drug smuggling conspiracy

A Baltimore man, Lorenzo Solomon, was sentenced Monday for a conspiracy to import cocaine from St. Vincent, U.S. Virgin Islands, and distribute it in Maryland, following an investigation by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the Metropolitan Area Drug Task Force.

The Department of Justice today restrained the 1909 Pablo Picasso painting ""Compotier et tasse"" in response to an official request by the government of Italy for assistance in connection with its ongoing criminal investigation and prosecution of Gabriella Amati.

In September 2012, officers with the Fort Worth Police ICAC Unit executed a search warrant at Richard D. Anderson's home and seized computers and removable storage media. A forensic exam of these seized items revealed images and videos of child pornography.