skip to main |
skip to sidebar
A
Dutch citizen and resident of Canada pleaded guilty Friday, December 28, 2012,
to several tax and mortgage fraud charges, following an investigation by the
Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) Criminal Investigations, U.S. Immigration and
Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the FBI.
Rudolf
Straat, 49, of Sarnia, Ontario,
Canada, pleaded guilty to
mail fraud, conspiracy to commit mail fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States,
failure to file a tax return and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
In
March, a federal grand jury in Tallahassee, Fla., returned an eight-count indictment against Straat
and his wife and co-conspirator, Maria Gudelis, 45, of Sarnia, Ontario, Canada. Both were accused of
falsely obtaining mortgage loans in excess of $8.8 million to purchase homes in
Sandestin, Fla. Straat claimed he was a U.S. citizen, but he is a citizen of
the Netherlands. He claimed that he was single, even though he married Gudelis
in May 2000. He also misrepresented his employment status.
Additionally,
Straat and Gudelis both lived in Sandestin from at least October 2005 through
July 2007. While living in Sandestin, Straat did not file 2005 and 2006 income
tax returns. As a result, he failed to report more than $1 million to the IRS
during those years. Straat used a portion of his unreported capital gains to
fraudulently obtain additional properties.
Straat
faces up to 20 years in prison for conspiracy to commit mail fraud, conspiracy
to commit money laundering and mail fraud. He faces up to five years in prison
for conspiracy to defraud the United
States and up to one year in prison for
failing to file tax returns. He is scheduled to be sentenced March 12.
Gudelis,
a Canadian citizen, is charged with the same crimes included in the indictment
against her husband. She turned herself in to authorities Thursday, December 27,
2012, and pleaded not guilty at her arraignment Friday, December 28, 2012. Her
trial is scheduled to commence Feb. 4.
A
Guatemalan man in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)
passed away early Sunday, December 23, 2012, at St. Joseph's Hospital, where he
had been undergoing treatment for diabetes complications.
Manuel
Cota-Domingo, 34, a detainee at the Eloy
Detention Center,
was rushed to Florence Anthem Hospital
in Florence Thursday,
December 20, 2012, after complaining of chest pains and labored breathing.
Physicians at the hospital determined Cota-Domingo was suffering from diabetic
ketoacidosis, an emergency condition caused by untreated hyperglycemia.
On Saturday,
December 22, 2012, Cota-Domingo was transferred by air ambulance to St. Joseph's Hospital in Phoenix, where he was placed in the intensive
care unit. Hospital staff notified ICE officials that Cota-Domingo passed away Sunday,
December 23, 2012, just before 1 a.m.
Cota-Domingo,
who had recently crossed the border unlawfully, originally came into ICE
custody after he was encountered Dec. 8 by U.S. Border Patrol near Sasabe. He
had been detained at the Eloy Detention Center
since Dec. 12, pending his removal to Guatemala, which was scheduled for
Dec. 26. While at Eloy, Cota-Domingo received two routine medical screenings,
but he did not disclose his health condition to medical staff until he became
ill.
ICE
advised the Guatemalan consulate that Cota-Domingo had been admitted to the
hospital and provided consular officials with regular updates regarding his
condition. Consular officials notified Cota-Domingo's next of kin in Guatemala
of his death.
Cota-Domingo
is the first detainee to pass away in ICE custody in fiscal year 2013.
The
U.S. Embassy in Baghdad
hosted a delegation of nine American subject matter experts in the fields of
federal law enforcement, justice and cultural heritage protection including
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security
Investigations (HSI) special agents, from Dec. 17 to 20 at a training
conference on "Countering Antiquities Trafficking." The four-day
training, sponsored by HSI in collaboration with the U.S. Department of State,
was provided to the Iraqi Ministry of Interior police investigators
representing 15 provinces on methods of identifying Iraqi cultural heritage
sites, and preventing and investigating looting and illegal trafficking within
and beyond Iraq's borders.
Assistant
Chief of Mission Ambassador James Knight opened the conference stating that,
"Perhaps the most important reason for organizing a meeting such as this
is Iraq's
unparalleled cultural heritage. Preserving that heritage is to preserve some of
mankind's greatest treasures. Not only are they a precious window into the
past, they are tangible reminders to future generations of Iraqis of a glorious
history."
"The
countering antiquities trafficking conference in Baghdad
marked a new beginning in HSI's efforts in assisting Iraqi Antiquities Police
in their fight against the illegal trafficking of Iraq's
cultural property," said Assistant Special Agent in Charge Ransom Avilla,
HSI liaison in Baghdad.
"We are hopeful that this training conference will provide the tools
necessary for Iraqi Ministry of Interior police to detect, investigate and
protect their national heritage."
Other
law enforcement agencies that participated in the training conference included
U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Department of Justice, Interpol and
the U.S. National Park Service.
In
July 2011, ICE repatriated to the government of Iraq
a collection of objects illegally imported into the United
States from Iraq. The objects included Saddam
Hussein-era paintings and two AK-47 rifles, and a Western Asiatic necklace
(circa 3rd-2nd millennium B.C.). These objects were discovered as part of four
separate investigations by HSI special agents in Tampa,
Fla.; Newark, N.J.; El Paso, Texas, and Little
Rock, Ark. In
February 2010, ICE repatriated six objects to Iraq ranging from its ancient past
to its recent political history. The collection that was returned included a
stone tablet with ancient writing, a Babylonian clay statue, a Roman coin,
ancient gold earrings and a chrome-plated AK-47 inscribed with a picture of
Saddam Hussein.
In 2008, ICE returned 1,046 artifacts that were seized in four
separate investigations dating back to 2001. The items included terra cotta
cones inscribed in Cuneiform text, a praying god figurine that was once
imbedded in a Sumerian temple and coins bearing the likenesses of ancient
emperors. Remnants of ancient Cuneiform tablets, which were seized by the
Customs Service in 2001, were recovered from beneath the ruins of the World Trade
Center. The ancient
tablets were subsequently restored and returned to the government of Iraq.
These repatriations are the latest in a series that ICE has returned to the
people of Iraq
since the agency was created in 2003.
HSI
plays a leading role in criminal investigations that involve the illegal
importation and distribution of cultural property, including the illicit
trafficking of cultural property, especially objects that have been reported
lost or stolen. The HSI Office of International Affairs, through its 73 attaché
offices in 47 countries, works closely with foreign governments to conduct
joint investigations, when possible.
HSI
specially trained investigators, assigned to both domestic and international
offices, partner with governments, agencies and experts to protect cultural
antiquities. They also provide cultural property investigative training to law
enforcement partners for crimes involving stolen property and art, and how to
best enforce the law to recover these items when they emerge in the
marketplace.
Since
2007, more than 6,600 artifacts have been returned to 24 countries, including
paintings from France, Germany, Poland
and Austria, 15th to 18th
century manuscripts from Italy
and Peru, as well as
cultural artifacts from China,
Cambodia and Iraq.
Five
foreign nationals were sentenced to prison for their respective roles in
trafficking the identities of Puerto Rican U.S. citizens and corresponding
identity documents, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the
Justice Department's Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Rosa E. Rodríguez-Vélez
for the District of Puerto Rico; Director John Morton of U.S. Immigration and
Customs Enforcement (ICE), which oversees Homeland Security Investigations
(HSI); Chief Postal Inspector Guy J. Cottrell of the U.S. Postal Inspection
Service (USPIS); Scott P. Bultrowicz, Director of the U.S. State Department's
Diplomatic Security Service (DSS); and Internal Revenue Service-Criminal
Investigation (IRS-CI) Chief Richard Weber.
Daniel
Aparicio-Lara, 29, a Mexican national formerly of Burlington, N.C.,
was sentenced Tuesday, December 18, 2012, to 66 months in prison by U.S.
District Judge Thomas D. Schroeder in the Middle District of North Carolina. In
addition to his prison term, Aparicio-Lara was sentenced to serve three years
of supervised release and ordered to forfeit $140,800 in proceeds. On Sept. 18,
2012, Aparicio-Lara pleaded guilty in front of Judge Schroeder to one count of
conspiracy to commit identification fraud and one count of aggravated identity
theft.
Manuel
Guzman-Santos, 37, a Dominican national formerly of Worcester,
Mass., and Marco Pena, 37, a Dominican
national formerly of Dorchester,
Mass., were sentenced Monday,
December 17, 2012, by U.S. District Judge Joseph L. Tauro in the District of
Massachusetts. Both Guzman-Santos and Pena were sentenced to serve 30 months in
prison. On Aug. 2, 2012, Guzman-Santos and Pena each pleaded guilty in front of
Judge Tauro to one count of conspiracy to commit identification fraud.
Adelfo
Perez-Garcia, 36, a Mexican national formerly of Seymour,
Ind., and Alma Yesenia Garcia-Ramirez, 29, a
Mexican national formerly of Crystal
Lake, Ill., were
sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Gustavo A. Gelpí in the District of
Puerto Rico. Perez-Garcia was sentenced to serve 24 months and one day in
prison and Garcia-Ramirez was sentenced to serve 24 months in prison. Judge
Gelpí ordered the removal of both defendants from the United States after the completion
of their sentences and ordered that Garcia-Ramirez forfeit $35,900 in proceeds.
On Aug. 28, 2012, Perez-Garcia pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to
commit identification fraud in the District of Puerto Rico in front of U.S.
Magistrate Judge Silvia Carreño-Coll. On Sept. 4, 2012, Garcia-Ramirez pleaded
guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit alien smuggling for financial gain
in the District of Puerto Rico before U.S. Magistrate Judge Bruce J. McGiverin.
The
five defendants were charged in a superseding indictment returned by a federal
grand jury in Puerto Rico Mar. 22, 2012. To
date, a total of 53 individuals have been charged for their roles in the
identity trafficking scheme, and 23 defendants have pleaded guilty.
Court
documents allege that individuals located in the Savarona area of Caguas, Puerto Rico,
obtained Puerto Rican identities and corresponding identity documents. Other
conspirators located in various cities throughout the United States (identity brokers) allegedly
solicited customers and sold Social Security cards and corresponding Puerto Rico birth certificates for prices ranging from
$700 to $2,500 per set. The superseding indictment alleges that identity
brokers ordered the identity documents from Savarona suppliers, on behalf of
the customers, by making coded telephone calls. The conspirators are charged
with using text messages, money transfer services and express, priority or
regular U.S.
mail to complete their illicit transactions.
Court
documents allege that some identity brokers assumed a Puerto Rican identity
themselves and used that identity in connection with the trafficking operation.
Their customers allegedly generally obtained the identity documents to assume
the identity of Puerto Rican U.S. citizens and to obtain additional
identification documents, such as legitimate state driver's licenses. Some
customers allegedly obtained the documents to commit financial fraud and
attempted to obtain a U.S.
passport.
According
to court documents, various identity brokers were operating in Rockford, Ill.;
DeKalb, Ill.; Aurora, Ill.; Seymour, Ind.; Columbus, Ind.; Indianapolis;
Hartford, Conn.; Clewiston, Fla.; Lilburn, Ga.; Norcross, Ga.; Salisbury, Md.;
Columbus, Ohio; Fairfield, Ohio; Dorchester, Mass.; Lawrence, Mass.; Salem,
Mass.; Worcester, Mass.; Grand Rapids, Mich.; Nebraska City, Neb.; Elizabeth,
N.J.; Burlington, N.C.; Hickory, N.C.; Hazelton, Pa.; Philadelphia; Houston;
Abingdon, Va.; Albertville, Ala.; and Providence, R.I.
According
to court documents, Aparicio-Lara admitted that he was an identity broker who
operated in North Carolina and Missouri; Guzman-Santos and Pena admitted that they were
identity brokers who operated in Massachusetts;
and Perez-Garcia admitted that he was an identity broker who operated in Indiana. Garcia-Ramirez
admitted to assisting an Illinois-based identity broker and transferring money
on behalf of the organization. The five defendants used either a real Texan or
Puerto Rican identity themselves to commit identification fraud and to
facilitate their identity trafficking business.
The
charges are the result of Operation Island Express, an ongoing,
nationally-coordinated investigation led by HSI Chicago and USPIS, DSS and
IRS-CI offices in Chicago,
in coordination with HSI San Juan. The Illinois Secretary of State Police (Elgin, Ill.)
Police Department; Seymour (Ind.)
Police Department; and Indiana State Police provided substantial assistance.
HSI Dominican Republic and International Organized Crime Intelligence, and Operations Center as well as various ICE, USPIS,
DSS and IRS-CI offices around the country provided invaluable assistance.
The
case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys James S. Yoon, Hope S. Olds,
Courtney B. Schaefer, and Christina Giffin of the Justice Department Criminal
Division's Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section, with the assistance
of Acting Deputy Chief Jeannette Gunderson of the Criminal Division's Asset
Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section, and the support of the U.S. Attorney's
Office for the District of Puerto Rico. The U.S. Attorney's Offices in the
Northern District of Illinois, Southern District of Indiana, District of
Connecticut, District of Massachusetts, District of Nebraska, Middle District
of North Carolina, Southern District of Ohio, District of Rhode Island,
Southern District of Texas and Western District of Virginia provided
substantial assistance.
Potential
victims and the public may obtain information about the case at: www.justice.gov/criminal/vns/caseup/beltrerj.html.
Anyone who believes their identity may have been compromised in relation to
this investigation may contact the ICE toll-free hotline at 1-866-DHS-2ICE
(1-866-347-2423) and its online tip form at www.ice.gov/tipline. Anyone who may
have information about particular crimes in this case should also report it to
the ICE tip line or website.
Anyone
who believes that they have been a victim of identity theft, or wants information
about preventing identity theft, may obtain helpful information and complaint
forms on various government websites including the Federal Trade Commission ID
Theft Website, www.ftc.gov/idtheft.
Two Fresno-area residents were arraigned Friday, December 14, 2012, on federal charges stemming from a probe by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) that allegedly revealed they operated a fraudulent document mill.
Antonio Mora-Cruz, 45, and Soledad Vargas-Herrera, 59, both of Madera, were arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Shelia K. Oberto on a 12-count indictment charging them with conspiring to produce and sell false identification documents. Mora-Cruz was also charged with being a deported alien found in the United States. The two defendants have been in custody since their arrest Dec. 4, 2012.
According to the indictment, between November and December, Mora-Cruz and Vargas-Herrera produced false identification documents at a residence in Madera they used as a fraudulent document mill. During the course of the conspiracy, customers would place orders for false documents directly with Mora-Cruz and Vargas-Herrera. The defendants took photographs and biographical information from the customers and used the information to produce fraudulent Social Security cards and alien registration cards, also known as "green cards." Mora-Cruz and Vargas-Herrera then delivered the completed false documents to customers, charging approximately $120 for a set of counterfeit cards.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Baker is prosecuting the case.
If convicted, each defendant faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
