March 2010 Press Releases
Mar. 31, 2010 - Lincoln and Craven
LAST TWO OF FOUR DEFENDANTS CHARGED WITH BANK ROBBERY CONVICTED
(HOUSTON) - The last two of four defendants charged with robbery of a Wachovia Bank branch in July 2009 have pleaded guilty (Read more)
Mar. 31, 2010 - Montano
FORMER CBP OFFICER SENTENCED TO PRISON FOR BRIBERY, COCAINE TRAFFICKING AND ALIEN SMUGGLING
(BROWNSVILLE, Texas) – United States District Judge Andrew S. Hanen has sentenced a former Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer to 140 months in federal prison without parole for bribery, cocaine trafficking and alien smuggling (Read more)
Mar. 31, 2010 - Gonzalez
FORMER SCHOOL TEACHER SENTENCED TO PRISON FOR POSSESSING CHILD PORNOGRAPHY
(HOUSTON) - Fernando Gonzalez, 35, a Houston resident and former school teacher, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Keith P. Ellison to prison for possession of child pornography (Read more)
Mar. 31, 2010 - Fletcher
DISTRIBUTOR OF COUNTERFEIT PHARMACEUTICALS DRUGS SENTENCED TO PRISON TERM
(HOUSTON) - Richard Fletcher, 57, of Dallas, Texas, has been sentenced to prison for conspiring to distribute counterfeit pharmaceuticals and trafficking in pharmaceuticals bearing false labeling and counterfeit trademarks (Read more)
Mar. 30, 2010 - Garza
SAN JUAN MAN SENTENCED FOR LYING AND BUYING 18 FIREARMS
(McALLEN, Texas) - Bernardo Garza, 44, of San Juan, Texas, has been sentenced to 15 months in prison for lying to buy firearms (Read more)
Mar. 30, 2010 - Clardy
HOUSTON PHYSICIAN CHARGED IN MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR SCHEME TO DEFRAUD MEDICARE
(HOUSTON) – The continuing investigation into allegations of health care fraud by persons associated with City Nursing Services of Texas Inc. has yielded a 55-count, second superseding indictment, charging Dr. Christina Clardy, a 61-year-old Houston physician, and one as yet unnamed individual with conspiracy to commit health care fraud, health care fraud and mail fraud (Read more)
Mar. 30, 2010 - Sotelo
THE LAST OF THREE CHARGED IN SCHEME TO EXPORT FIREARMS TO MEXICO SENTENCED TO FEDERAL PRISON
(BROWNSVILLE, Texas) – The last of three defendants charged for their role in a scheme to purchase firearms and sell them at inflated prices knowing the firearms were to be smuggled into Mexico has been sentenced to prison (Read more)
Mar. 30, 2010 - Northern
KATY WOMAN PLEADS GUILTY TO FRAUD
(HOUSTON) - Bisa Abena Northern has pleaded guilty to wire fraud (Read more)
Mar. 26, 2010 - Black
FORT WORTH MAN ARRESTED AND CHARGED IN ALLEGED $25 MILLION NATIONWIDE SCHEME TO SELL FRAUDULENT SECURITIES
(HOUSTON) – George Douglas Black Sr., 41, of Fort Worth, Texas, was arrested today on mail fraud charges arising from allegedly selling millions of dollars worth of worthless construction bonds for projects across the U.S. (Read more)
Mar. 26, 2010 - Byrd
LOCAL TAX RETURN PREPARER PLEADS GUILTY TO FALSIFYING RETURNS
(HOUSTON) – Local tax return preparer Kimyosia Michelle Byrd has pleaded guilty to preparing false tax returns for local clients that inflated their income tax refunds by approximately $300,000 during 2004–2006 (Read more)
Mar. 26, 2010 - Perez-Pinon et al
REMAINING FOUR OF SIX DEFENDANTS CHARGED WITH HOSTAGE TAKING CONVICTED
(HOUSTON) - The remaining four defendants in a six-defendant case have pleaded guilty to hostage taking (Read more)
Mar. 25, 2010 - Vallejos-Castillo and Ramirez-Rios
TWO CHARGED IN SMUGGLING OPERATION THAT LEFT 14 INJURED FOLLOWING VEHICLE ROLLOVER
(LAREDO, Texas) – A criminal complaint has been filed against two Mexican nationals for their alleged involvement in the smuggling operation that ended with the rollover of a white Suburban on state highway 83 on Monday, March 22, resulting in injury to 14 (Read more)
Mar. 25, 2010 - Sanders
AMERICAN POSTAL WORKER’S UNION (APWU) OFFICER CHARGED
WITH EMBEZZLEMENT OF UNION FUNDS AND WIRE FRAUD
(HOUSTON) – The former Southern Region Coordinator of the American Postal Worker’s Union (APWU) has been charged with embezzlement of union funds and wire fraud (Read more)
Mar. 24, 2010 - Gonzalez
BROWNSVILLE JURY FINDS HOUSTON WOMAN GUILTY OF TRAFFICKING MARIHUANA
(BROWNSVILLE, Texas) – A federal jury has returned its verdicts finding Sheri Ann Gonzalez, 37, of Houston, guilty of conspiring to posses and possessing with intent to distribute more than 88 pounds of marihuana (Read more)
Mar. 24, 2010 - Davis
HOUSTON AREA MAN FOUND GUILTY OF SEX TRAFFICKING OF A MINOR AND COERCING AND ENTICING AN ADULT TO COMMIT PROSTITUTION
(HOUSTON) – After a three-day trial and one and one-half hours of deliberation, a federal jury has returned its verdicts finding a Houston area man guilty of sex trafficking of a minor, enticing and coercing an adult and transporting the victims across state lines for the purpose of engaging in prostitution (Read more)
Mar. 23, 2010 - Gonzalez-Pena et al
THREE MEN SENTENCED FOR HOSTAGE TAKING OF LOCAL BUSINESSMAN
(McALLEN, Texas) – Gilberto Ivan Gonzalez-Pena, 26, Jose Alfredo Gonzalez, 37, and Uvaldo Quintero, 27, have been sentenced to federal prison for taking a local businessman hostage (Read more)
Mar. 23, 2010 - Gonzalez-Reyes
ATTEMPT TO SMUGGLE SEMI-AUTOMATIC FIREARMS AND AMMUNITION THWARTED AT ANZALDUAS PORT OF ENTRY
(McALLEN, Texas) – A 48-year-old Mexican national has been arrested and charged with attempting to export semi-automatic weapons and ammunition into Mexico without a license or authorization (Read more)
Mar. 17, 2010 - Kocaya
BROWNSVILLE MAN SENTENCED TO LENGTHY PRISON TERM FOR POSSESSING CHILD PORNOGRAPHY
Court orders restitution to be paid to exploited child depicted in some of the photographs
(BROWNSVILLE, Texas) – David Kocaya, 54, of Brownsville, has been sentenced to prison for possessing more than 26,000 images of child pornography obtained via the Internet (Read more)
Mar. 16, 2010 - Soberanis and Huezo
JOINT ATF-ICE INVESTIGATION LEADS TO ARREST OF THREE
(HOUSTON) – An 18-month joint Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) investigation has resulted in the arrest of three people in Houston as a result of the filing under seal of two separate complaints charging two with felony drug trafficking offenses and a third with felony gun violations (Read more)
Mar. 16, 2010 - De-Solis and Ruiz
ATTEMPT TO SMUGGLE INFANT FROM MEXICO INTO U. S. THWARTED BY CBP OFFICERS
(McALLEN, Texas) – An attempt by a mother and her daughter-in-law to smuggle an infant boy from Mexico into the United States for financial gain has been thwarted by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers working at the Hidalgo/Reynosa International Bridge (Read more)
Mar. 15, 2010 - Santos and Chavez-Delamora
TWO CHARGED WITH CONSPIRACY TO RECEIVE OR POSSESS MACHINE GUN
(McALLEN, Texas) - Two men arrested and charged by criminal complaint with conspiracy to receive or possess a machine gun not registered to them will remain in federal custody pending a detention hearing on Wednesday (Read more)
Mar. 11, 2010 - Jarvis, Dial and Ellerman
THREE CHARGED IN ALLEGED GRIFCO INTERNATIONAL, INC. STOCK FRAUD
(HOUSTON) – Three men have been indicted for allegedly defrauding investors who purchased stock from 2004 until 2007 in a publicly-traded company called Grifco International Inc. (Read more)
Mar. 11, 2010 - Tindall
HOUSTON JURY CONVICTS FORMER CONROE POLICE OFFICER OF BANK ROBBERY
(HOUSTON) – A federal jury has convicted a 22-year veteran of the Conroe Police Department for robbing the First Bank of Conroe (Read more)
Mar. 11, 2010 - Nelson
PEARLAND MAN CHARGED WITH PRODUCING CHILD PORNOGRAPHY
(HOUSTON) - William Scott Nelson, 63, a Pearland resident, was ordered held without bond in federal custody pending his trial on six counts related to the production, possession and attempted distribution of child pornography (Read more)
Mar. 10, 2010 - Williamson
HOUSTON JURY CONVICTS MISSISSIPPI MAN OF SENDING THREAT TO BLOW UP FBI, DOJ and CIA
(HOUSTON) – A federal jury has found Jeff Henry Williamson, 45, of Jackson, Miss., guilty of sending a threatening communication in interstate commerce (Read more)
Mar. 10, 2010 - Dossey
HOUSTON AREA ARCHITECT CHARGED WITH PRODUCING AND POSSESSING CHILD PORNOGRAPHY
(HOUSTON) - John Robert Dossey, 62, charged with producing and possessing child pornography, has been ordered detained without bond pending trial after a lengthy detention hearing (Read more)
Mar. 10, 2010 - Puig and Puig
McALLEN PHYSICIAN’S ASSISTANT AND HIS WIFE CHARGED IN SCHEME TO DEFRAUD MEDICAID
(McALLEN, Texas) – Manuel Anthony Puig, 44, and his wife Romelia Sanchez Puig, 41, both of Edinburg, Texas, have been indicted by a federal grand jury for health care fraud, mail fraud and conspiracy to commit health care fraud (Read more)
Mar. 10, 2010 - Gonzalez
CREDIT UNION MANAGER SENTENCED TO PRISON FOR EMBEZZLEMENT
(HOUSTON) – Donna Gonzalez, 40, of Houston, and a former Saint John Vianney Federal Credit Union manager, has been sentenced to 15 months in federal prison without parole for embezzling $56,862.36 from the credit union (Read more)
Mar. 9, 2010 - Leon
FEDERAL JURY RETURNS GUILTY VERDICT IN DRUG TRAFFICKING CASE
(McALLEN, Texas) - After approximately two hours of deliberation, a federal jury in McAllen found Jose-Leon Chavaria, a 37-year-old Mexican national from Reynosa, guilty of conspiracy and possession with the intent to distribute more than 100 kilograms of marijuana (Read more)
Mar. 9, 2010 - Martin
BANK TELLER CONVICTED OF DEFRAUDING FORMER EMPLOYER OF THOUSANDS
(HOUSTON) - A Houston area bank teller has pleaded guilty to bank fraud arising from a scheme to steal thousands of dollars from his former employer’s customer accounts (Read more)
Mar. 8, 2010 - Handy
COUNTY COMMISSIONER PLEADS TO HARBORING CONSPIRACY AND FALSE STATEMENT IN A TAX RETURN
(McALLEN, Texas) – County Commissioner Sylvia Sue Handy-Espronceda, 52, has pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to harboring an illegal alien and to making a false statement on her 2005 tax return (Read more)
Mar. 8, 2010 - Morales
MARYLAND MAN SENTENCED TO PRISON FOR COCAINE TRAFFICKING
(McALLEN, Texas) – Jose Joaquin Morales, 33, of Baltimore, Md., has been sentenced to 262 months in federal prison without parole for possessing with intent to distribute cocaine (Read more)
Mar. 8, 2010 - McCullough
FORMER CFO OF HOUSTON ENGINEERING FIRM CHARGED WITH EMBEZZLING MILLIONS
(HOUSTON) – A federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging Christopher McCullough, 47, with interstate transportation of stolen property in connection with his alleged embezzlement of more than $3 million (Read more)
Mar. 5, 2010 - Garcia
FEDERAL PRISONER CONVICTED OF ATTEMPTED MURDER FOR SLASHING DEPUTY MARSHAL’S THROAT SENTENCED TO 20 YEAR MAX
(HOUSTON) - Jose Garcia Jr., 31, of Mercedes, Texas, has been sentenced to the statutory maximum punishment of 20 years imprisonment for the attempted murder of a deputy U.S. marshal (Read more)
Mar. 5, 2010 - Womack and Womack
HUSBAND AND WIFE CONVICTED OF TAX FRAUD
(HOUSTON) – A jury has found Donald Ray Womack and Tonya Buckner Womack guilty of conspiracy and aiding and abetting in the preparation and presentation of false income tax returns (Read more)
Mar. 5, 2010 - Simmons
CORPUS RESIDENT CONVICTED OF MAKING BOMB THREATS TO THE CCAD
(CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas) - Henry L. Simmons, 24, of Corpus Christi, has been convicted of all 13 counts of willfully using a cellular telephone or other instrument of interstate or foreign commerce in making bomb threats to the Corpus Christi Army Depot (CCAD) (Read more)
Mar. 3, 2010 - Gonzalez
TAX PREPARER INDICTED FOR PREPARING FRAUDULENT TAX RETURNS
(McALLEN, Texas) – A Hidalgo County area tax preparer has been indicted for willfully aiding, assisting and advising in the preparation of fraudulent U.S. income tax returns (Read more)
Mar. 3, 2010 - Birts
HOUSTON AREA BEHAVIORAL COUNSELING BUSINESS OWNER CHARGED WITH DEFRAUDING MEDICAID
(HOUSTON) – A 17-count indictment charging the owner of a Houston area behavioral counseling business arising from a scheme to defraud Medicaid of more than one million dollars and aggravated identity theft has been unsealed (Read more)
Mar. 2, 2010 - Kaluanya
DME OWNER PLEADS GUILTY TO HEALTH CARE FRAUD AND AGGRAVATED IDENTITY THEFT
(HOUSTON) – Mento Nnana Kaluanya, a Texas resident born in the Federal Republic of Nigeria, entered a plea of guilty yesterday to one count of health care fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft (Read more)
Mar. 1, 2010 - Lapin
FORMER HOUSTON BROKER SENTENCED TO PRISON
(HOUSTON) - A former broker connected with the failed Premiere Holdings of Texas LLC has been convicted and sentenced to prison for failing to disclose a crime to authorities and concealing material facts from investors (Read more)
Mar. 1, 2010 - Gonzalez
FORMER FEDERAL JUROR CONVICTED OF JURY TAMPERING
(HOUSTON) – A former federal juror who served on the jury of the 2008 trial of two brothers charged with drug trafficking which ended in a mistrial has been convicted of jury tampering (Read more)
