Acting U.S Attorney Seth D. DuCharme Announces Resignation From Office

Seth D. DuCharme is resigning as Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York effective March 19, 2021. Mr. DuCharme has served in the position as chief federal law enforcement officer for the district comprising Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island in New York City, and Nassau and Suffolk Counties on Long Island, since July 10, 2020. Earlier today, Mr. DuCharme sent letters to President Biden and Acting United States Attorney General Monty Wilkinson informing them of his decision.

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark J. Lesko will become the Acting U.S. Attorney upon Mr. DuCharme’s departure.

Statement from Acting United States Attorney DuCharme:

“Earlier today, I announced that I am stepping down as Acting U.S. Attorney in the Eastern District of New York, effective March 19, 2021.  I have enjoyed a long and rewarding career in the Department, from Deputy U.S. Marshal to Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General of the United States, to my current position.  At each stage of my career, I was blessed to be faced with worthy challenges on behalf of the American people.  My time in EDNY and the Department gives me great confidence that the American people are well served by forward-leaning professionals, who put mission first, and assume risks every day on behalf of the people they are sworn to serve.  My guiding principles have been to serve others and to do my best to go where I am needed most.  After having had the opportunities to serve at so many levels, from junior AUSA, to close advisor to the Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General, and most recently as Acting U.S. Attorney, I am now thrilled to be spending more time with my family, and to transitioning thoughtfully and successfully into private practice, where I intend to serve clients zealously, capably and honorably. To all of those who offered me the chances to take risks, to test myself against the most skilled adversaries in the defense bar, to grow as a lawyer, and to serve the public, I am forever grateful.  Over the next two weeks, I will be increasingly shifting responsibility to my First Assistant U.S. Attorney, Mark Lesko – a proven professional who has served the District and the nation with distinction.  I have great confidence that the Office and the Department will function smoothly and effectively as we prepare for my departure.”

During his tenure as Acting U.S. Attorney, Mr. DuCharme’s notable achievements include the expansion of  the Office’s Rapid and Strategic Prosecution (RASP) Initiative to more effectively use crime data to identify, investigate, disrupt and prosecute violent armed criminals and organizations; and the creation of a Bank Integrity Task Force to investigate and charge corporate and individual actors who launder criminal proceeds using the U.S. banking system and to enforce anti-money laundering controls.

Prior to his designation as Acting United States Attorney, Mr. DuCharme served as the Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General at the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. from December 2019 until July 2020.  From March 2019 to December 2019, Mr. DuCharme served as Counselor to Attorney General William P. Barr.  He worked with Attorney General Barr and Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen to supervise and coordinate the work of all of the Department’s components, including all 94 United States Attorney’s Offices.  In addition, he helped to coordinate national initiatives against fraud, opioid trafficking, transnational organized crime, international terrorism and other national security priorities. 

Prior to his work at Main Justice, Mr. DuCharme served as Chief of the Criminal Division in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, where he initiated and supervised numerous investigations and prosecutions across a wide range of subject areas, including corporate and securities fraud, terrorism, cybercrime, public corruption, international narcotics trafficking, civil rights violations, and violent and organized crime. 

Mr. DuCharme first joined the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York in March 2008 and has served in the General Crimes, Violent Crimes and Terrorism, and National Security and Cybercrime Sections.  He also has served as Chief and Deputy Chief of the Office’s National Security and Cybercrime Section, the Office’s National Security Cyber Specialist and the Office’s representative on the Anti-Terrorism Advisory Council.