News Releases and Statements

Brandon Brothers of Houtzdale, Pa. pleaded guilty to a federal charge of possession of child pornography, following an investigation by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Brothers admitted that he possessed videos and images as computer graphic files containing images of child pornography.

Lawrence De Jean was sentenced Wednesday to five years of probation, one year of home confinement, 100 hours of community service and a $3,000 fine after pleading guilty to criminal infringement of a copyright. The case was investigated by special agents with ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Jerry Louis Tintsman, 69, of San Diego, was sentenced Monday in federal court by U.S. District Court Judge Roger T. Benitez. At the hearing, Judge Benitez told Tintsman, "This is one of the longest sentences I have ever imposed, and you sir, are deserving of it."

Two San Antonio men have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in a firearms straw purchasing and trafficking operation.

Eleven individuals appeared in court Wednesday for their roles in a drug trafficking operation that stretched from Texas to Florida, after an investigation led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Eight individuals with ties to a drug trafficking organization were arrested in central Florida yesterday after a multi-agency investigation which included ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). The suspects acted in a conspiracy that transported thousands of pounds of marijuana from McAllen, Texas, to northern and central Florida.

Scott Smallwood pleaded guilty earlier today to two counts of producing child pornography following an investigation led by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Smallwood inadvertently left a microSD card containing sexually explicit videos on the counter of a 7-11 store located in Clinton, Md., which was found and provided to police.

A Bay Area couple who operated local elder care facilities, and two area real estate agents have pleaded guilty to federal charges stemming from a multi-agency investigation involving a large-scale multi-million dollar mortgage fraud scheme. The defendants have agree to pay more than $8 million in restitution.

Jovana Samaniego Deas, a special agent assigned to ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) office in Nogales, Ariz., has pleaded guilty to all 21 counts of a federal indictment charging her with obstruction and other corruption violations.

As part of the agency's ongoing detention reform and other enforcement-related initiatives, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) today announced its first Public Advocate, ICE Senior Advisor Andrew Lorenzen-Strait.

Eleven members of a drug trafficking ring in the Naco, Ariz., area face state criminal charges in connection with a multi-agency probe that has resulted in the seizure of more than 15 tons of marijuana and a small amount of cocaine in the last year.

Okey Belcher, a plain-clothed loss prevention officer formerly employed at a Columbus-area Walmart, pleaded guilty to one count of receipt of child pornography. Belcher was initially arrested in December 2011 by Grove City Police Department officers after he allegedly recorded cellphone video of a child in a Walmart restroom.

An immigration judge in Batavia, N.Y. earlier today ordered removed from the United States the former leader of the Liberian Peace Council (LPC) for his role in human rights abuses committed during the Liberian civil war in the 1990s.

A federal grand jury found Lavell Dashan Brown guilty Friday of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana. The conviction resulted from an investigation by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Metropolitan Bureau of Investigation.

Nearly $1.2 million of counterfeit goods, including purses, wallets, scarves and perfumes, were seized by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agents Wednesday from Jin Zheng. Zheng was previously arrested and indicted for trafficking in these counterfeit goods.

A Virginia man was sentenced Friday to 108 months in prison for his participation in a highly sophisticated and violent fraudulent document trafficking organization, following an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

A 25-year-old Mexican national linked to the killing of a Texas teen five years ago is facing deportation following his arrest Friday by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers.

A Mexican national, Joel Hugo Robles-Perez, pleaded guilty in federal court on Friday to possessing nearly 600 pounds of marijuana intended for distribution. The investigation was conducted by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) Border Patrol (BP).

A Mexican national was sentenced on Friday to 348 months imprisonment for possessing with intent to distribute about 72 kilograms of cocaine, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson, Southern District of Texas.

Juan Contreras-Arballo, a previously deported Mexican national with an aggravated felony conviction was arrested Wednesday after special agents with ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) conducted an employment verification audit of the local business where he worked.

Yonjo Quiroa, 28, of Comstock Park, Mich., was arrested yesterday and operated nine of the 16 websites that were seized. The arrest and website seizures coincide with Operation Fake Sweep, which was announced earlier today in Indianapolis.

Special agents with ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) arrested Naveed Sheikh Tuesday on charges of illegally reproducing and distributing more than 100 copyrighted commercial software programs. Sheikh, who had fled to Pakistan, was arrested by HSI at Dulles International Airport attempting to enter the United States.

Speaking at an NFL news conference on Thursday, ICE Director John Morton, CBP Director of Field Operations in Chicago David Murphy and NFL Vice President for Legal Affairs Anastasia Danias announced the record-breaking results of a nationwide enforcement operation.

Five Los Angeles-area residents have been indicted for operating a human smuggling scheme that relied largely on non-Spanish speaking African-Americans, in a calculated attempt to try to reduce the risk of detection and prosecution, to transport loads of illegal aliens from the U.S.-Mexico border to the Los Angeles area.

A Pasadena, Texas man, Roberto Bahena-Garcia, was charged Jan. 25 with federal firearms and drug trafficking violations in an investigation being conducted by ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Liberty County Sheriff's Office (LCSO) and Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS).