News from 2023


Armed Drug Trafficker With Prior Federal Conviction Is Sentenced To 25 Years In Prison

News Release: CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Lance Richardson Pagan, 52, of Gastonia, N.C., was sentenced to 25 years in prison today, followed by six years of supervised release for drug and gun offenses, announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.


Florida Resorts Agree to Pay $325,000 to Settle False Claims Act Allegations Relating to False Certifications on a Paycheck Protection Program Loan Forgiveness Application

News Release: Florida companies Kingwood Orlando Reunion Resort LLC (Orlando Reunion) and Kingwood Crystal River Resort Corp. (Crystal River) have agreed to settle allegations that they violated the False Claims Act (FCA) and the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act (FIRREA) by knowingly providing false information in support of a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan forgiveness application submitted by Crystal River.


Otsego County Woman Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Distributing Child Pornography

News Release: SYRACUSE, NEW YORK - Shelby Ortiz, age 30, of Maryland, New York was sentenced today to serve 15 years in prison and a 20-year term of supervised release to begin after imprisonment for distributing child pornography. Ortiz also will be required to register as a sex offender upon her release from prison.


Leader Of Multi-Kilogram Cocaine Conspiracy Sentenced To 15 Years In Federal Prison

News Release: Orlando, Florida - U.S. District Judge Roy B. Dalton, Jr. today sentenced James Mirabal (46, St. Cloud) to 15 years in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute cocaine. The court also ordered Mirabal to forfeit $124,598, traceable proceeds of the offense. Mirabal had pleaded guilty on Dec. 27...


California Man Charged with Conspiring to Make Death Threats Against Brooklyn-Based Journalist

News Release: Nicholas Welker, also known as “King ov Wrath," was arrested today in San Jose, California based on a complaint filed in Brooklyn federal court charging him with conspiring to make threatening statements. The complaint charges that Welker, the one-time leader of Feuerkrieg Division (FKD), an international...


Huntington Man Sentenced to Prison for Fentanyl Crime

News Release: HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - Eddie Guy Jewell, 49, of Huntington, was sentenced today to five years in prison, to be followed by four years of supervised release, for possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl.


Two Men Sentenced for Role in Aggravated Assault

News Release: SIOUX FALLS - United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that U.S. District Judge Charles B. Kornmann has sentenced two South Dakota men convicted of Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury. The sentencing took place on March 14, 2023, in Aberdeen, South Dakota.


United States Seeks Preliminary Injunction Against Denka Performance Elastomer to Immediately Reduce Chloroprene Emissions

News Release: Today, the Department of Justice, on behalf of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), filed a motion for preliminary injunction under the Clean Air Act (CAA) requesting that the court order Denka Performance Elastomer LLC (Denka) to require significant pollution controls to reduce chloroprene emissions...


Athens, Georgia, Pain Medicine Owner, Practice Manager Agree to $5 Million Settlement Resolving Violations Under the False Claims Act

News Release: ATHENS, Ga. -A $5,000,000 civil settlement has been reached with Mark A. Ellis, M.D., and his practice, Ellis Pain Center (EPC), a pain management practice in the Athens area. Part of the civil settlement includes EPC’s practice manager, Patsy Allen.


Felon With Firearm and Extended Magazine Sentenced to Federal Prison

News Release: An Onawa, Iowa man, was sentenced March 14, to more than 4 years in federal prison.


Florissant Woman Sentenced to a Year in Prison, Must Repay $101,000 for Pandemic Loan Fraud

News Release: ST. LOUIS -A woman from Florissant, Missouri was sentenced to a year in prison for fraudulently obtaining two pandemic-era loans totaling more than $101,000.


Green Bay Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Manufacturing and Trafficking 3D-Printed Ghost Guns

News Release: United States Attorney Gregory J. Haanstad of the Eastern District of Wisconsin announced that on March 20, 2023, Senior United States District Judge William C. Griesbach sentenced Mitchell J. Guerrero (age: 30) to a total sentence of 46 months’ imprisonment and three years’ supervised release for manufacturing and trafficking 3D-printed firearms, commonly referred to as “ghost guns" because they lack serial numbers and thus are untraceable.


Atlanta man sentenced to federal prison in connection with a multimillion-dollar international cyber and fraud scheme

News Release: ATLANTA - Christian Akhatsegbe has been sentenced for wire and computer fraud conspiracy, access device fraud, and aggravated identity theft related to a multi-million-dollar cyber-fraud scheme perpetrated through email phishing, credential harvesting, and invoice fraud. His brother, Emmanuel Aiye Akhatsegbe, who is believed to be residing in Nigeria, was also charged in the scheme and remains a fugitive.


Elizabethtown Woman Pleads Guilty to CARES Act Fraud in the Amount of $1,318,955

News Release: Louisville, KY - Kelly Woods, 43, of Elizabethtown, Kentucky, pleaded guilty in federal court today to three counts of wire fraud related to a CARES Act financial assistance program.


Career Offender Sentenced to 14 Years in Federal Prison for Selling Fentanyl

News Release: Tampa, Florida - U.S. District Judge Steven D. Merryday has sentenced Demetrius Haynes (37, Tampa) to 14 years in federal prison for conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute fentanyl and cocaine, and possession with the intent to distribute fentanyl and cocaine. Because of Haynes’s lengthy ...


Denver Man Sentenced to 17 Years in Prison for Violent Armed Robberies

News Release: DENVER - The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado announces the Dionte Jelks, age 22, of Denver, was sentenced to 17 years in federal prison for armed robbery and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence.


Jordan, Comer, Steil Demand Communications, Documents, and Testimony from Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg

News Release: WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH), House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY), and House Administration Committee Chairman Bryan Steil (R-WI) sent a letter to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg demanding communications, documents, and testimony relating to Bragg's unprecedented abuse of prosecutorial authority and the potential indictment of former President Donald Trump.


KC Man Pleads Guilty to Illegally Possessing Machine Gun Used in Fatal Shooting of KC Fireman

News Release: KANSAS CITY, Mo. - A Kansas City, Mo., man pleaded guilty in federal court today to illegally possessing the firearm used in the fatal shooting of an Independence, Mo., firefighter during an altercation in a liquor store parking lot.


Former Federal Prison Warden Sentenced for Sexual Abuse Of Three Female Inmates

News Release: A former prison warden was sentenced today in the Northern District of California to 70 months in prison, 15 years of supervised release and $15,000 in restitution for sexually abusive conduct against three female victims who were serving prison sentences and one count of making false statements to government agents.


Man Pleads Guilty to $1.9 Million Baby Formula Fraud Scheme

News Release: A New York man pleaded guilty today to defrauding insurance plans and medical suppliers by fraudulently procuring specialty baby formula.