News Releases and Statements

This indictment was announced by U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox, for the Northern District of Texas and Special Agent in Charge Eric Jackson of the FBI Dallas Field Office.

Raul Ramos-Guido, 32, was a convicted criminal alien illegally residing in the U.S. and had previously been deported to El Salvador in January 2014.

ICE deportation officers and special agents arrested 212 individuals for violating federal immigration laws and served 122 notices of inspection (NOIs) to businesses in the Los Angeles area of responsibility (AOR) during a five-day targeted operation that ended Thursday. Eighty-eight percent of those arrested were convicted criminals.

Bilal Ahmed Khaleeq, 47, will remain on supervised release pending sentencing, which is set for June 4.  Co-defendant Amna Cheema, 37, a Pakistani national, previously pleaded guilty to her role in the scheme and was sentenced to time served.

Jose Salvador Gonzalez-Campos, 27, a citizen of El Salvador, was found in the company of other known MS-13 gang member associates in the Columbus, Ohio, area.

Matthew Stoney Olson, from Circle, Montana, was previously convicted at trial of receiving and possessing child pornography.  In early 2015, Olson routinely received child pornography by downloading it via a peer-to-peer sharing network.  During that time, HSI special agents became aware of these downloads and obtained a search warrant for Olson’s home. 

A New Mexico man was sentenced Thursday to five years in federal prison for methamphetamine trafficking, following an investigation by special agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

On Feb. 14, following a three-day jury trial, Conrado Depaz Arellano, 48, illegally residing in Carthage, Texas, was found guilty of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine.  Additionally, on Feb. 12, 2018, Arellano pleaded guilty to being illegally in the United States after having been deported.

As the national spotlight on opioids continues to increase, education about the epidemic is essential.

Christian Clews, who owned and operated his horse ranch in an affluent suburban north San Diego community, pleaded guilty to two counts of child pornography in July but remained free on bond. He was immediately taken into custody by U.S. Marshal’s at the conclusion of the hearing.

David Brimage, 46, of Boston, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Leo T. Sorokin to eight months in prison and two years of supervised release. In October 2017, Brimage and co-conspirators Evelyn Medina, 56; Annette Gracia, 37, both of Boston; Kimberly Jordan, 33, of Randolph; and Bivian Yohanny Brea, 41, of Boston, agreed to plead guilty to one count of producing without lawful authority an identification document or a false identification document.

Leaford George Cameron, 65, of Burlington, New Jersey, was convicted of one count of mail fraud, two counts of wire fraud, and three counts of making false statements.

This week’s episode: “Crossroads” highlights HSI’s efforts to gather information about third country nationals and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and their activities before they reach the United States.

In October 2017, Spanish authorities arrested four of the following defendants on arrest warrants based on a 20-count indictment returned Aug. 23, 2017, in the Southern District of Texas:  Luis Carlos De Leon Perez (De Leon), 41, Nervis Gerardo Villalobos Cardenas (Villalobos), 50, Cesar David Rincon Godoy (Cesar Rincon), 50, and Rafael Ernesto Reiter Muñoz (Reiter), 39.

Following the return of a nine-count superseding indictment by a Las Vegas, Nevada, grand jury alleging racketeering conspiracy and other crimes, federal, state, local, and international law enforcement authorities arrested 13 defendants from the United States and six countries: Australia, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Kosovo and Serbia.

HSI Acting Special Agent in Charge, Michael Shea, along with United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling, whose office prosecuted the case, announced that Cleber Rene Rizerio Rocha, 28, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Leo T. Sorokin to 33 months in prison and one year of supervised release. In October 2017, Rocha pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to commit money laundering and one count of money laundering.

ICE HSI arrested Catalino Esteban Valiente Alonzo, 77, of Fontana, who was previously the chief of the National Police in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala, after Valiente was charged in a one-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury.

Zachary Steven Blizzard, 27, from Kingport, Tennessee, was sentenced Feb. 8 by U.S. District Judge Hilda G. Tagle to 48 months in federal prison and to three years of supervised release.  Blizzard pleaded guilty to the human smuggling charges Sept. 5, 2017.

According to the criminal complaint, Manuel Orrego-Zavala, aka Manuel Orrego-Savala, 37, was arrested Feb. 4, 2018, by law enforcement in Indianapolis for being involved in a fatal accident on Interstate Highway 70.

HSI special agents arrested Alfredo Maysonet-Galarza, 57, of Toa Alta, after a joint ICE HSI and DHS OIG investigation revealed that during 2015, Maysonet-Galarza used a well-known peer-to-peer file sharing program to advertise for sharing certain videos and images depicting prepubescent minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct.

Rabobank National Association (Rabobank), a California subsidiary of the Netherlands-based Cooperatieve Rabobank U.A., pleaded guilty to a felony conspiracy charge and agreed to pay $368,701,259 – the largest financial penalty in the Southern District of California – as part of a plea agreement to settle allegations that it hid deficiencies in its anti-money laundering program.

The subjects targeted are estimated to be supplying as much as two-thirds of the heroin in the Tulsa area.

Michael Lee Lira, 53, of Billings, Montana, was sentenced Feb. 7 to 150 months in prison, five years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment. U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided over the hearing.