Criminal Division

The Criminal Division of the office prosecutes defendants who commit federal crimes within the Eastern District of Missouri. These prosecutions result from investigations conducted by various federal agencies and state and local police.

The Criminal Division consists of the following sections:

• General Crimes/Economic Crimes
  • Bank Fraud
  • Bankruptcy Fraud
  • Child Pornography/Violence Against Women/ Child Support Enforcement
  • Civil Rights
  • Computer Crimes
  • Elder Justice
  • Environmental Crimes
  • Forfeiture
  • Fraud Against the Government
  • Health Care Fraud
  • Identity Theft
  • Public Corruption
  • Tax Fraud
• Violent Crimes
• Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF)

General Crimes/Economic Crimes

This section handles a variety of general federal crimes, economic crimes and fraud offenses. While this section deals with a wide variety of federal crimes, it focuses on the following areas:

• Bank Fraud - investigation and prosecution of crimes involving federally insured financial institutions, such as banks, savings and loans, or credit unions; typically, embezzlements, false loan applications and false bank entries.
• Bankruptcy Fraud - investigation and prosecution of fraudulent filings in the bankruptcy court; fraudulent transfers of assets; failure to file accurate schedules and statements with the bankruptcy court and false statements in bankruptcy proceedings.
• Child Pornography, Violence Against Women, Child Support Enforcement and Child Luring - investigation and prosecution of the manufacture, possession and receipt of child pornography in interstate commerce; federal prosecution of interstate transportation or the use of interstate commerce to commit sexual exploitation of minors; federal prosecution of violence against women in contravention of an order of protection; and federal enforcement of child support orders.
• Civil Rights - investigation and prosecution of violations of federal civil rights, including allegations of police misconduct and violations of the federal "hate" crimes statute. This office works with the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Section in these cases.
• Computer Crimes - investigation and prosecution of crimes in which the information contained in a federally protected computer is attacked, cases in which fraud is perpetrated using computers or cases in which the computer is used to send threatening communications. Additional information
• Elder Justice - Combatting elder abuse and financial fraud targeted at seniors is a key priority of the Department of Justice and the Eastern District of Missouri’s United States Attorney’s Office.  Elder abuse affects at least 10% of older Americans annually as predators prey upon vulnerable citizens.  By partnering with federal, state and local law enforcement agencies and prosecutors, as well as Adult Protective Services, consumer and senior advocacy agencies, victim services networks, and financial service providers, this Office seeks to execute a holistic and robust response in its fight for justice for older Americans. Additional Information
• Environmental Crimes - investigation and prosecution of environmental crimes, including violations of the Clean Water Act; violations of Resource Conservation Recovery Act or the Clean Air Act. The office participates in a task force with all state and federal agencies charged with maintaining and protecting the environment.
• Asset Forfeiture - civil litigation to forfeit seized property and assets which were used in or resulted from criminal activity. In criminal forfeiture cases, this section provides criminal AUSAs with preseizure planning, postseizure litigation support and assistance with final forfeiture and disposal of property.
• Fraud Against the Government - investigation and prosecution of cases in which a federal program is defrauded. Cases include false applications for federal benefits, involving Social Security, Housing and Urban Development, Small Business Administration and Department of Agriculture.
• Health Care Fraud - investigation and prosecution of health care providers for fraudulent billing practice.
• Identity Theft - investigation and prosecution of persons who steal identity information which is then used to create false identities which may then be used to obtain credit, hide from law enforcement or illegally remain in this country. This office participates in a task force with the Social Security Administration, Postal Inspection Service, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Immigration and Naturalization Service, Secret Service and local law enforcement. The Task Force works closely with banks, credit companies and local merchants to investigate and prosecute cases. Additional information
• Public Corruption - investigation and prosecution of government officials and private citizens working with officials who violate the public trust by benefiting personally from official actions or inaction.
• Tax Fraud - investigation and prosecution of cases involving the preparation or filing of false or fraudulent federal income tax returns and failure to file required returns.

Violent Crimes

This section handles the investigation and prosecution of federal offenses involving violence, including kidnapping, carjacking, bank robbery and firearm violations. The section also handles all drug cases that fall outside the guidelines of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force. Additionally, the section works in partnership with state and local law enforcement officers to implement investigations and prosecutions under the Project Safe Neighborhood program, which include the identification and prosecution of criminal street gang members.

Homeland Security Task Force

The Homeland Security Task Force is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States.

The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Kansas City comprises agents and officers from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE); Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF); United States Marshal Service (USMS); Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA); Internal Revenue Service (IRS); and United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri.