Dec. 2, 2010

FEDERAL FIREARMS CHARGES FILED IN INCIDENT WHEN THREE CHILDREN WERE SHOT

KANSAS CITY, KAN. – Two men involved in an incident during which three children were wounded by gunfire have been charged with federal firearms violations, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said today.

A federal grand jury Wednesday returned an indictment charging Fabian Dunbar, 25, Kansas City, Kan., and Edward Carvin, 26, Kansas City, Kan., with one count each of unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction.

Dunbar and Carvin initially were charged in a criminal complaint filed Nov. 2, 2010, in U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Kan.. The complaint alleged that on Oct. 20, 2010, officers of the Kansas City, Kan., Police Department answered a call at 2425 Stewart Avenue, where they found four victims who had been shot, including a 18-month-old boy, a two-year-old boy, a six-year-old girl and an adult male.

The indictment alleges that during the incident, Carvin unlawfully possessed a .223 caliber Bushmaster pistol, Carbon 15 model, and Dunbar unlawfully possessed a .40 caliber Astra Model A-100 pistol. Carvin and Dunbar were prohibited by federal law from possessing firearms because they had prior felony convictions.

If convicted, they face a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. The Kansas City, Kan., Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Terra Morehead is prosecuting.

OTHER INDICTMENTS

A federal grand jury meeting in Kansas City, Kan., also returned the following indictments:

Sergio Rocha-Ontiveros, 37, who is not a citizen of the United States, is charged with one count of possessing forged Permanent Resident cards and two counts of transferring false Social Security cards and Permanent Resident cards. The crimes are alleged to have occurred Sept. 15, 2010 in Johnson County, Kan.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on each count of possessing forged documents, and a maximum penalty of 15 years and a fine up to $250,000 on each count of transferring false documents. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Office of Homeland Security Investigations investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Oakley is prosecuting.

Omar Giles, 30, Overland Park, Kan., and Blanca Patricia Lopez-Artrisco, 30, Overland Park, Kan., are charged with immigration crimes. Giles is charged with five counts of possessing counterfeit Permanent Resident and Social Security cards, and four counts of transferring false documents. Lopez-Artrisco is charged with one count of possessing a counterfeit Permanent Resident card, Social Security card and driver’s license. The crimes are alleged to have occurred in March, April, July, September and November 2010 in Wyandotte and Johnson counties.

If convicted, they face a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on each count of possessing forged documents, and a maximum penalty of 15 years and a fine up to $250,000 on each count of transferring false documents. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Office of Homeland Security Investigations investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney David Zabel is prosecuting.

Michael Grace, 20, Overland Park, Kan.; Brendan Connors, 18, Overland Park, Kan.; David Batson, 20, Overland Park, Kan.; and Jaccob McWhirt, 28, Overland Park, Kan., are charged with aiding and abetting embezzlement by a bank employee.

They initially were charged in a criminal complaint filed Nov. 12, 2010, in U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Kan. The complaint alleged Grace, an employee of U.S. Bank at 10100 West 119th Street, Overland Park, Kan., was aided by Connors, Batson and McWhirt in embezzling money from the bank. Grace told investigators he had been kidnapped and forced to go to the bank to get money for a robber. In fact, Grace embezzled the funds from the bank with the assistance of the other defendants.

If convicted, they each face a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. The FBI and the Overland Park Police Department investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Rask is prosecuting.

Vajra A.J. Robinson, 26, Lawrence, Kan., and Tanna R. Hess, 30, Lawrence, Kan., are charged in a superseding indictment with one count of conspiring to manufacture more than 100 marijuana plants and one count of manufacturing more than 100 marijuana plants. The crimes are alleged to have occurred from Jan. 1, 2009, to Aug. 21, 2010, in Lawrence, Kan.

If convicted, they face a penalty of not less than five years and not more than 40 years in federal prison and a fine up to $2 million on the conspiracy charge and a penalty of not less than 10 years and not more than life and a fine up to $4 million on the manufacturing charge. The Douglas County Sheriff’s Department investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Terra Morehead is prosecuting.

Jeronimo Aragon-Aragon, 23, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with one count of knowingly transporting illegal aliens in the United States and one count of unlawfully re-entering the United States after being deported.

The indictment alleges that on Nov. 10, 2010, Aragon-Aragon was arrested while transporting nine illegal aliens from Mexico and Guatemala in a 1998 Chrysler minivan.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison without parole and a fine up to $250,000 on the charge of transporting illegal aliens and a maximum penalty of two years without parole and a fine up to $250,000 on the re-entry charge.Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Office of Homeland Security Investigations investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.

Santos Morales-Najera, 42, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with one count of unlawfully re-entering the United States after being convicted of an aggravated felony and deported, and one count of aggravated identity theft. The crimes are alleged to have occurred Nov. 10, 2010, in Sedgwick County, Kan.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison without parole and a fine up to $250,000 on the charge of aggravated re-entry, and a mandatory two years to run consecutive to other sentences on the aggravated identity theft charge. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Office of Homeland Security Investigations investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.

Jose Manuel Ortiz-Del Rio, 22, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with falsely representing himself to be a U.S. citizen. He was found Nov. 17, 2010, in Sedgwick County, Kan.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of three years in federal prison without parole and a fine up to $250,00. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Office of Homeland Security Investigations investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.

Darrell C. Smith, 35, Leavenworth, Kan., is charged with unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction. The crime is alleged to have occurred Aug. 16, 2010, in Leavenworth, Kan.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Terra Morehead is prosecuting.

Guadalupe Jimenez-Alcaran, 48, who is not a citizen of the United States, is charged with unlawfully re-entering the United States after being convicted of an aggravated felony and deported. He was found Nov. 17, 2010, in Johnson County, Kan.

If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Office of Homeland Security Investigations investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Rask is prosecuting.

Jose Medrano-Perez, 30, who is not a citizen of the United States, is charged with unlawfully re-entering the United States after being convicted of an aggravated felony and deported. He was found April 9, 2010, in Osage County, Kan.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Office of Homeland Security Investigations investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Rask is prosecuting.

In all cases, defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. The indictments merely contain allegations of criminal conduct.