News

BROOKLYN, NY – The United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York has entered a consent decree barring three corporations, ABH Nature’s Products, Inc., ABH Pharma, Inc., and StockNutra.com, Inc. (together, “ABH”), each of Edgewood, New York, and their owner, Mohammed Jahirul Islam (“Islam”), from distributing adulterated and misbranded dietary supplements and unapproved and misbranded drugs, and requiring them to take remedial action.

Aurora Betancourt, a Canadian citizen, will be arraigned today in federal court in Brooklyn before United States Magistrate Judge Steven M. Gold on an indictment charging her with conspiring to distribute, and distribution of, fentanyl. Betancourt was arrested in Colombia on December 28, 2018, and extradited to the United States on December 18, 2019.

Marlon Thompson was arraigned this afternoon in federal court in Central Islip before United States Magistrate Judge A. Kathleen Tomlinson on an indictment charging him with conspiracy to distribute cocaine base and heroin from April 2018 through May 2019, and distribution of a controlled substance containing fentanyl resulting in the fatal overdose of a Fredrick Koenig of Selden, New York, on December 26, 2018.

Former Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas J. Spota and Christopher McPartland, the former Chief of Investigations and Chief of the Government Corruption Bureau of the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office (SCDAO), were convicted today by a federal jury in Central Islip, New York, of all four counts of the indictment charging them with conspiracy to tamper with witnesses and obstruct an official proceeding, witness tampering, obstruction of justice, and being accessories after-the-fact to former Suffolk County Police Department (SCPD) Chief of Department James Burke’s deprivation of a

An indictment was unsealed today in federal court in Brooklyn charging John Comito, Chief Executive Officer of Staten Island-based AutoExec Computer Systems, Inc. (AutoExec) with mail and wire fraud in connection with the federal program known as E-rate. Comito was arrested this morning, and was arraigned this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Steven M. Gold. Comito was released on a $500,000 bond.

A federal jury in Brooklyn yesterday returned a guilty verdict for public benefits theft and healthcare fraud against Enock Mensah, a social worker participating in the New York State Early Intervention Program (EIP) that provides remedial services to developmentally delayed children.

Junior Zelaya-Canales, a regional leader of the 18th Street gang, will be arraigned this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Robert M. Levy in federal court in Brooklyn on a fourth superseding indictment charging him with murder in aid of racketeering in connection with the September 2016 fatal shooting of 15-year-old Josue Guzman in Hempstead, New York; conspiracy to murder rival gang members; and attempted murder of rival gang members.

An indictment was unsealed today in federal court in Brooklyn charging Genaro Garcia Luna, the former Secretary of Public Security in Mexico from 2006 to 2012, with three counts of cocaine trafficking conspiracy and one count of making false statements. In exchange for multimillion-dollar bribes, the defendant allegedly permitted the Sinaloa Cartel to operate with impunity in Mexico.

Two indictments and one complaint were unsealed today in federal court in Brooklyn variously charging 12 defendants with racketeering conspiracy, bribery, loansharking, fraud, obstruction of justice and related offenses. Those charged with racketeering conspiracy were Andrew Campos, an alleged captain in the Gambino organized crime family of La Cosa Nostra; James Ciaccia, George Campos, Vincent Fiore and Richard Martino, alleged Gambino family soldiers; and Renato Barca, Jr., Benito DiZenzo, Mark Kocaj, Frank Tarul and Michael Tarul, alleged Gambino family associates.

Today, the Department of Justice announced that it has awarded $360,000 to the Office of the Nassau County District Attorney and $275,000 to Suffolk County, New York, as part of more than $376 million in grant funding to enhance state, local and tribal law enforcement operations and reinforce public safety efforts in jurisdictions across the United States. The awards were made by the Department’s Office of Justice Programs (OJP).

WASHINGTON – Attorney General William P. Barr and Justice Department leadership today announced the recipients of the Third Annual Attorney General’s Award for Distinguished Service in Policing, recognizing the exceptional work of 19 law enforcement officers and deputies from 12 jurisdictions across the country.

Earlier today, at the federal courthouse in Brooklyn, Sherzod Mukumov pled guilty to conspiracy to commit kidnapping. As alleged in the indictment, Mukumov and his co-conspirators used a Taser to subdue and abduct a victim to collect a debt the victim purportedly owed to one of Mukukmov’s co-defendants.