News Releases and Statements

The lead defendant in a federal RICO indictment that was brought as part of the nation's largest-ever gang sweep was sentenced Monday to 30 years in federal prison for helping coordinate the racketeering activities of the Varrio Hawaiian Gardens street gang and distributing large quantities of narcotics.

ICE seizes 163 fake jerseys, some with questionable autographs, from two Phoenix-area sports memorabilia stores.

Two south Texas men pleaded guilty on Monday to possession with intent to distribute almost 2,000 pounds of marijuana, announced U. S. Attorney Jose Angel Moreno, Southern District of Texas.

The last of three men was sentenced here on Tuesday for attempting to smuggle 15 kilograms (33 pounds) of cocaine into the United States by ship. This joint investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), with assistance provided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)...

You'll find them sweeping the ocean floor, clinging to boats and searching bodies of water to protect precious cargo. Members of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Miami Tactical Dive Team have been swimming their way through Florida's waterways for the past seven years, braving alligators, fallen trees and manmade trash.

A south Texas couple on Monday was sentenced for conspiring to harbor aliens, announced U.S. Attorney Jose Angel Moreno, Southern District of Texas.

A Mexican national was sentenced Friday in federal court in the Western District of Missouri for possessing methamphetamine with the intent to distribute, and for illegally possessing a firearm.

Robert Fred Mejia, 29, of Germantown, Md., was sentenced to eight years in prison, for conspiring to impersonate a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer and to transport money obtained by fraud across state lines; transporting money obtained by fraud, in connection with a fraudulent scheme to provide immigration services...

In federal court today, a Ukrainian man was convicted and sentenced for conspiring to violate smuggling laws by importing sperm whale ivory into the United States from Ukraine.

Two Japanese nationals made their initial appearance in federal court here Monday following their arrest late last week at Los Angeles International Airport for allegedly bringing approximately 55 live turtles and tortoises into the United States concealed inside snack food boxes discovered in a suitcase.

A former leader of La Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13, pleaded guilty in federal court here Monday to racketeering (RICO) conspiracy, conspiracy to commit murder in aid of racketeering, and the use or possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, charges stemming from Operation Devil Horns.

A 33-year-old citizen of the Dominican Republic who resides in Caguas, Puerto Rico, was arrested Sunday, following a routine traffic stop by the USVI Police Department that led to the discovery of 202 bricks of cocaine with an estimated street value of more than $6 million.

A local businessman was sentenced on Monday to five years in federal prison for conspiring to smuggle more than 10,000 rounds of ammunition into Mexico.

On Jan. 7, 2011, the Mesa Police Department arrested Brandon K. Jones in connection with numerous child sexual misconduct crimes, including sexual conduct with a minor and sexual exploitation of a minor.

Stephen Jabbour, 57, pleaded guilty Jan. 7 to possessing and receiving child pornography via the Internet during a hearing before Senior U.S. Judge Hayden Head. Jabbour admitted he had possessed and received child pornography via newsgroups on the Internet in 2008.

Roger Wesley Farris II, 41, of Waynesboro, Va., was sentenced in federal court to 44 months in prison and 15 years of supervised release on his conviction related to attempting to arrange for sex with a minor child.

The former owner of a local Chinese restaurant was sentenced in federal court Friday to three years in prison for concealing illegal aliens and mail fraud. The sentence resulted from an investigation conducted by U.S. ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).Zhi Jian Jiang, 40, of Sacramento, Calif., was sentenced Jan. 7...

Richard Garcia, a former loan officer at Wachovia Bank, was sentenced to three years in prison, followed by 30 months of home confinement for his participation in a 12 million dollar bank fraud conspiracy, following an investigation led by U.S. ICE's Homeland Security Investigations.

A 36-year-old Lake Forest, Calif., woman was taken into custody here Friday by investigators with the Orange County Sheriff's Department (OCSD) on suspicion of child molestation and rape of a 13-year-old Maryland boy. Agents with U.S. ICE'S Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) provided substantial assistance in the investigation and arrest...

Authorities announced Friday that the number felony prosecutions in the Eastern District of California in fiscal year 2010 for illegal re-entry after deportation hit their highest level in at least 12 years.

A lengthy joint investigation into a local cocaine distribution operation ended last month with the arrests of the nine subjects who face state felony narcotics charges.

The arms smugglers allegedly purchased a variety of firearms through fraudulent means and attempted to export them to Mexico.

Two Mexican nationals, who had previously been deported from the United States, each pleaded guilty in unrelated cases on Jan. 5 in federal court to illegally reentering the country. Both convictions stem from police traffic stops, and both investigations were jointly conducted with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

In April 2007, a federal grand jury in Dallas returned a one-count indictment against Tommy Dale Daniel, 62, of Farmers Branch, Texas, charging him with possessing child pornography.