News Releases and Statements

Bassem Afif Herz, 31, of Cedar Rapids, was sentenced to 97 months in prison following his previous guilty plea to various charges related to a scheme to illegally export hundreds of firearms to Lebanon.

The shipment of cocaine originated in Cartegena, Colombia, and was ultimately destined for South Carolina. CBP and HSI discovered the cocaine as part of its regular duties pertaining to the investigation of people and goods entering the United States.

Alejandro Gurany, 49, of El Paso, Texas, who traveled to SeaTac and met with immigrants at an airport hotel between December 2011 and March 2015, according to court documents. At least 19 victims in Washington and Ohio have been interviewed by law enforcement, some who said they paid Gurany thousands of dollars believing he would provide them legal status in the U.S.

HSI Flagstaff’s Area of Responsibility (AOR) consists of more than 66,000 square miles, covering most of Northern Arizona. Like many smaller field offices, HSI Flagstaff’s large AOR requires its agents to do hours of driving when conducting various investigations. Many of those trips are collaborative efforts with the office’s state and local partners.

The Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers (FLETC) in Glynco, Georgia, held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the official opening of the new Building 9/12 Multi-Purpose Conference Center Thursday, December 1, 2016.

San Francisco HSI special agents began investigating Trask in March 2012 after he allegedly downloaded a video of child pornography though a peer-to-peer (P2P) network using an internet protocol (IP) address that traced back to his San Francisco residence. On May 1, 2012, HSI executed a federal search warrant at Trask's residence. Within a week of the search, Trask quit his job and relocated to San Diego, advising HSI he was staying with family who resided there.

Cedrick Vaughn Perkins, age 20, of Orangeville, Pennsylvania, was sentenced to 60 months’ imprisonment on child pornography distribution charges, ordered to pay $3,000 in restitution, and to register as a sex offender.

Oswaldo Rafael Cabrera, 48, owner of Coalicion Latinoamericana Internacional (CLI), is accused of 22 criminal counts, including grand theft, attempted grand theft, attempted perjury, and conspiracy to engage in the unlawful practice of law. Charges have also been filed against his wife, Maria Marcelina Rodas, 54.

Dimas Rodriguez, 44, and Jose Gertudis Partida, 71, both appeared before U.S. Magistrate Micaela Alvarez Dec. 8 ordered Rodriguez and Partida to serve 70 and 30 months in federal prison, respectively.

Zachary Sizemore, 24, an active-duty service member of the U.S. Air Force, was arrested on the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio, where he is stationed.  Sizemore is charged with theft and sale without authority of night-vision devices and components stolen from the Air Force.

The arrests of Victor M. Rivas, 51, of Newburgh, Edward Cardona, 33, of Newburgh, Julio A. Davila, 26, of Newburgh, Victor R. Rivas, 28, of Newburgh, and Ronald L. Matias, 35, a/k/a “Ronald Louis” stem from a narcotics conspiracy to establish a retail heroin-selling organization.

Alonzo Knowles, 23, of Freeport, Bahamas, was arrested after a meeting with an HSI undercover special agent in New York. During the meeting, Knowles attempted to sell to the special agent, in exchange for $80,000, approximately 15 movies and television scripts, sexually explicit videos of celebrities and other professionals in the entertainment and media industry that he had unlawfully obtained.

The report, released Thursday by SEVP, highlights November 2016 data from the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), a web-based system that includes information about international students, exchange visitors and their dependents while they are in the United States.

If convicted of the most serious charges in the indictment, the defendants face a maximum sentence of life in prison, with a mandatory minimum prison terms of 10 years. Other charges carry maximum terms of 40 years in prison. While the least serious drug offenses have maximum prison terms of 20 years. 

Erik Leonardus Peeters, 48, of Norwalk, was sentenced Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Christina A. Snyder. In addition to the prison term of nearly 22 years, Judge Snyder ordered Peeters to pay $15,000 in restitution to his victims. 

Michael Yellowhorse, 29, of Denver, Colorado, was charged by criminal complaint Dec. 23, 2014. He was indicted by a federal grand jury in Denver Jan. 7, 2015. He pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge R. Brooke Jackson March 3, 2016; he was sentenced Dec. 7.

Adolphus Nwokedi, 48, was previously convicted on an indictment charging him with one count of conspiring with others to import 100 grams or more of heroin.

The 23 pre-Columbian artifacts were presented at the headquarters of the Ministry of Culture in Dominican Republic during an activity chaired by the United States ambassador, the Minister of Culture Pedro Vergés Cimán and the HSI Special Agent in Charge in Charge in Puerto Rico, Ricardo Mayoral.

Jose Daniel Garza-Cardona, 32, is wanted in his home country for homicide pursuant to a November 2009 warrant issued by a Honduran judge.

Brian Wall, a computer forensics analyst with HSI Knoxville, volunteers in his off-duty time with the Sevier County Rescue Squad. On Monday, Nov. 28, he received the call that all members of the squad were needed at the fire station. Wall eagerly answered that call.

Jesus Gerardo Ledezma-Cepeda, aka “Chuy” and “Juan Ramos,” 60, was convicted at trial in May 2016 on one count of interstate stalking and one count of conspiracy to commit murder for hire.