News Releases and Statements

Rene Cardenas pleaded guilty Tuesday for his role in a conspiracy to transport five kilograms or more of cocaine. Six other defendants that are part of this conspiracy are still awaiting trial.

A rare Etruscan black-figure kalpis, which has been traced back to 510 B.C., will be returned to the Italian government following a transfer ceremony Tuesday at the Toledo Museum of Art.

John Bokun was sentenced Tuesday to 31 months in federal prison on conspiracy charges related to the distribution and possession of marijuana as the result of an investigation conducted by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Donald J. Jones III, 48, was arrested by HSI special agents and the Rhode Island State Police April 8, 2011, after he traveled by bus from Philadelphia to Providence, expecting to meet with an 8-year-old girl and her father.

A Niagara Falls, N.Y., man pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara to conspiracy to possess, with the intent to distribute, 100 kilograms of marijuana. The man faces up to 40 years in prison and a $2 million fine.

Following last week's public appeal for leads in three unsolved child pornography cases, ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) announces the following updates.

Marcos Sanchez Hernandez, an illegal alien from Mexico who lived in Riverdale, Md., was sentenced Friday to 36 months in prison for transporting more than 100 women from other states to engage in commercial sex in Virginia.

Charles Wilburn Odom was sentenced Friday to seven years and three months in federal prison for possessing more than 140 videos and 79 still images of child pornography. This investigation was conducted by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Beaumont Police Department, and Jefferson County Sheriff's Office.

Dwayne Tucker, 26, of Bayville, N.J., was sentenced Friday in federal court to 22 years in prison. He previously pleaded guilty July 27, 2012, to one count of production of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography.

Joshua P. Blakenship of Solomons, Md., pleaded guilty today to producing child pornography, following an investigation led by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Blakenship admitted to forcing people under the age of 18 to send him pictures and to creating a fake profile on the Internet to gain access to pictures and videos of girls.

Just hours after federal authorities made a national announcement appealing to the public for leads in a child pornography case with ties to the Los Angeles area, the 'Jane Doe' suspect wanted in connection with that investigation was arrested outside an apartment complex in North Hills.

Jessica Shockley was sentenced Friday to 20 years in federal prison for producing child pornography. Shockley engaged in sexual activity with a 3-month-old child, took photographs of the sexual activity, and sent the images to an individual in Rock Springs, Wyoming.

ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), working jointly with other members of the Caribbean Corridor Strike Force (CCSF), arrested two Dominican Republic nationals for drug trafficking and seized 2,600 pounds of cocaine with an estimated street value of more than $29 million Wednesday off the eastern coast of Puerto Rico.

Lance Robert Fries, 43, of Tucson, was taken into custody at his attorney's North Tucson office without incident at approximately 1:45 p.m. Friday by special agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Fries faces potential federal charges of production of child pornography and is expected to make his initial appearance in federal court Monday.

One hundred twenty-three victims of child sexual exploitation were identified by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agents during an international operation aimed at rescuing victims and targeting individuals who own, trade and produce images of child pornography.

Timothy Joseph Carr, 29, of Baltimore, was sentenced Thursday to 10 years in prison followed by five years of supervised release by U.S. District Judge William D. Quarles Jr. for conspiring to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine.

Eric Prokopi pleaded guilty Dec. 27 to engaging in a scheme to illegally import into the United States numerous dinosaur fossils that had been smuggled out of their native country. This guilty plea resulted from an investigation by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

A Dutch citizen and resident of Canada, Rudolf Straat, pleaded guilty Friday to several tax and mortgage fraud charges, following an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) Criminal Investigations, ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the FBI.

Consular officials notified next of kin in Guatemala of the death.

Jorge Gonzalez-Acosta, a man from Mexico with a U.S. manslaughter conviction who is also wanted in his home country for homicide, was deported and turned over to Mexican law enforcement authorities Wednesday by officers with ICE's Enforcement Removal Operations (ERO).

Four men, including two New Jersey residents, were arrested Thursday and charged with conspiring to sell seven stolen firearms believed to have belonged to the family of Saddam Hussein, the late Iraqi president.

Joshua Paul Jordan, of Great Falls, Mont., was sentenced Thursday to 10 years in federal prison for various child pornography violations.

Anthony Maurice Cottle, 23, of Owings Mills, Md., had an initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Baltimore Dec. 20 and was temporarily detained.