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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
June 18, 2010
INDICTMENT: MEN SCHEMED TO SELL iPHONES AT A PROFIT BY USING FALSE IDENTITIES TO BUY THEM CHEAP
KANSAS CITY, KAN. – Paul Alfredo Jiminez, 20, and Juan G. Pichardo-Lopez, 25, are charged with two counts of wire fraud and one count each of aggravated identity theft. The crimes are alleged to have occurred March 19, 2010, in Johnson County, Kan.
The two men initially were charged in a criminal complaint filed June 15, 2010, in U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Kan. The complaint alleges Jiminez and Pichardo-Lopez were arrested March 19, 2010, when Overland Park Police officers were called to a report of a suspicious vehicle parked near a jewelry store in the 6600 block of West 135th Street. When officers talked to Pichardo-Lopez, he told them he was waiting on a friend who was in the AT&T store not far away. While officers were talking to him, they noticed several cell phones sitting on the passenger seat of his car.
Investigators subsequently learned that Pichardo-Lopez and Jiminez had devised a scheme to purchase Apple phones from AT&T at reduced prices by using false identities to sign up for two years of phone service. Then they would take the phones to New York City and sell them at a profit.
If convicted, they face a maximum penalty of 20 years and a fine up to $250,000 on each wire fraud count and a mandatory two years consecutive to other sentences and a fine up to $250,000 on each identity theft count. The Overland Park Police Department investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Oakley is prosecuting.
OTHER INDICTMENTS
A federal grand jury meeting in Kansas City, Kan., also returned the following indictments:
Jeffrey Phillips, 40, is charged with eight counts of willful failure to collect or pay federal taxes. The crimes are alleged to have occurred during 2001 through 2006.
The indictment alleges Phillips was in the business of providing employees and management services to nursing homes through various entities he owned including JP Holdings, LLC; Citadel Holdings, LLC; Citadel Partners, LLC; Rainmakers, LLC; L.C.-ES, Inc.; LOCO, LLC; Baden Foods, LLC; Lush Farms, LLC; Vaccaria Home Health; LLC, Elf Support Services LLC; Midwest Nursing Home Investors, LLC; and Jewel Healthcare, LLC. From 2001 through 2005, Phillips’ companies withheld tax payments from employees’ paycheck but failed to forward more than $4.7 million due to the Internal Revenue Service.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on each count. The Internal Revenue Service investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Rask is prosecuting.
Gary F. Wells, 65, and Arlie M. Wells, 64, are charged with five counts of bank fraud. In addition, Allie Wells is charged with three counts of money laundering. The crimes are alleged to have occurred from Aug. 2, 2005, through June 5, 2006, in Leavenworth County, Kan.
The indictment alleges the Wellses submitted false documentation to Mutual Savings Association in order to obtain a $2 million loan for their company Best Development Company. Allie Wells initiated three electronic transfers with the money fraudulently obtained from the loan.
If convicted, they face a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison and a fine up to $1 million on each count of bank fraud, and a maximum penalty of 10 years and a fine up to $250,000 on each count of money laundering. The U.S. Secret Service investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Marietta Parker is prosecuting
Patrick Porter, 39, Overland Park, Kan., is charged with one count of possession of child pornography, one count of attempting to coerce a minor to engage in sex, one count of transporting a minor across state lines to engage in sex and two counts of producing child pornography. The crimes are alleged to have occurred in 2004 and 2010 in Johnson County, Kan.
Porter initially was charged in a criminal complaint filed June 7, 2010, in U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Kan.
If convicted, Porter faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and fine up to $250,000 on the charge of possessing child pornography, not less than 10 years and not more than life and a fine up to $250,000 on the charge of attempting to entice a minor, not less than 10 years and not more than life on unlawfully transporting a minor over state lines, and a penalty of not less than 15 years and not more than 30 years and a fine up to $250,000 on each count of producing child pornography.
The Overland Park Police Department investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kim Martin is prosecuting.
Barbara Porter, 44, Overland Park, Kan., is charged with one count of aiding and abetting the transportation of a minor across state lines to engage in sex, one count of obstruction of justice and one count of harboring a fugitive. The crimes are alleged to have occurred June 8, 2010, in Johnson County, Kan.
Porter initially was charged in a criminal complaint filed June 9, 2010, in U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Kan.
If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of not less than 10 years and not more than life and a fine up to $250,000 on the transportation charge, a maximum penalty and a fine up to $250,000 on the obstruction charge, and a maximum penalty of five years and a fine up to $250,000 on the harboring charge.
The Overland Park Police Department investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kim Martin is prosecuting.
Pierre D. Callosa, 21, Bryan Canad., 24, Deleah E. Jenkins, 20, and Timothy Mark Jenkins, 22, are charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and possess counterfeit checks, eight counts of possessing counterfeit checks and six counts of wire fraud. The crimes are alleged to have occurred in 2008 and 2009 in Wyandotte and Johnson counties.
The indictment alleges Christopher E. Summers devised a plan to defraud Walmart stores in the Kansas City metro area by printing counterfeit payroll checks that conspirators took to Walmart to cash. Callosa was an associate of Summers who cashed counterfeit checks at Walmart. Canad., Deleah Jenkins and Timothy Mark Jenkins were associates of Summers who cashed counterfeit checks and recruited other individuals to cash counterfeit checks.
Summers is serving a 51-month sentence in federal prison for his role in the conspiracy.
If convicted, they face a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on the conspiracy count, a maximum penalty of 10 years and a fine up to $250,000 on each count of possessing counterfeit checks, and a maximum penalty of 20 years and a fine up to $250,000 on each count of wire fraud. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Oakley is prosecuting.
John Grant Shore, 23, Johnson City, Kan., Kristina Pauline Lashmet, 22, Johnson City, Kan., and Ryan Wesley Swisher, 28, Johnson City, Kan., are charged with one count of armed robbery and one count of discharging a firearm during a Feb. 15, 2010, robbery at Loves Country Store, 208 E. Highway 50 in Syracuse, Kan.
They initially were charged in a criminal complaint filed June 4, 2010, in U.S. District court in Wichita.
If convicted, the defendants face a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on the robbery charge, and a maximum penalty of life and a fine up to $250,000 on the firearms charge. Investigating agencies include the Greeley County Sheriff’s Office, the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, the Stanton County Sheriff’s Office, the Seward County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matt Treaster is prosecuting.
Michael Harris, 45, Kansas City, Kan., is charged with one count of possession with intent to distribute heroin and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking. The crimes are alleged to have occurred Nov. 4, 2009, in Wyandotte County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years and a fine up to $1 million on the possession charge, and a penalty of not less than 10 years and not more than life on the firearms charge. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sheri McCracken is prosecuting.
Jeffrey Lichtenberger, 27, Kansas City, Kan., Ashlee Pier, 26, Kansas City, Kan., are charged with maintaining a residence in the 2100 block of North 44th Street in Kansas City, Kan., for the purpose of processing and distributing crack cocaine. In addition, Litchenberger is charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine, one count of possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine, and one count of distributing crack cocaine. The crimes are alleged to have occurred from May 1, 2010, to June 3, 2010, in Kansas City, Kan.
Upon conviction, the crimes carry the following penalties:
Conspiracy: Not less than 10 years and not more than life in federal prison and a fine up to $2 million.
Possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine: A maximum penalty of 30 years and a fine up to $1 million .
Distributing crack cocaine: A maximum penalty of 30 years and a fine up to $1 million .
Maintaining a residence in furtherance of drug trafficking: A maximum penalty of 20 years and a fine up to $500,000.
The Drug Enforcement Administration investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sheri McCracken is prosecuting.
Hester L. McMurphy, 65, Hutchinson, Kan., is charged with one count of failing to disclose information about her living arrangements with her husband that would have made her ineligible for Supplemental Security Income benefits. The crime is alleged to have occurred from February 1999 through May 2010 in Reno County, Kan.
If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison without parole and a fine up to $250,000. The Social Security Administration investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.
Margarito Ortiz-Lorenzo, 35, a citizen of Guatemala, is charged with unlawfully re-entering the United States after being deported. He was found May 21, 2010, in Seward County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison without parole and a fine up to $250,000. Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.
Jose Manuel Uribe-Segura, 26, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with one count of unlawfully re-entering the United States after being convicted of a felony and deported. He was found June 4, 2010, in Saline County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison without parole and a fine up to $250,000. Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.
Tyler L. Salazar, 21, Dodge City, Kan., is charged with unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction. The crime is alleged to have occurred March 15, 2010, in Ford County, 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 Matt Treaster is prosecuting.
Jose Fidencio Tejada-Santos, 36, 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 May 12, 2010, in Emporia, 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 investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Marietta Parker is prosecuting.
Tilford D. Smith, Jr., 26, Kansas City, Kan., is charged with one count of unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction, one count of unlawful possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, and one count of possession with intent to distribute marijuana. The crimes are alleged to have occurred May 21, 2010, in Kansas City, Kan.
If convicted, he faces a penalty of not less than five years and not more than life on the charge of unlawful possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, a maximum penalty of 10 years and a fine up to $250,000 on the charge on unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction, and a maximum penalty of five years and a fine up to $250,000 on the marijuana charge. The Kansas City, Kan., Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Terra Morehead is prosecuting.
Jajuan C. Jackson, 34, Kansas City, Kan., is charged with unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction. The crime is alleged to have occurred May 30, 2010, in Wyandotte County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. The Kansas City, Kan., Police Department, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Terra Morehead is prosecuting.
Mylon B. Williams, 33, Leavenworth, Kan., is charged with escaping from custody at the Grossman Community Corrections Center in Leavenworth, Kan. The crime is alleged to have occurred June 6, 2010.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of five years and a fine up to $250,000. The U.S. Marshals Service investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Terra Morehead is prosecuting.
In all cases, defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. The indictments merely contain allegations of criminal conduct.
