Indictment: Former Employee Stole $1 Million Worth Of Garmin GPS Devices

KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A man who used to work for the Garmin company in Olathe, Kan., has been indicted on federal charges of stealing more than $1 million worth of GPS devices from the company, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said today.

Terrence M. Heathington, 31, currently of Atlanta, Ga., is charged with forty counts of mail fraud. The indictment alleges that the crimes were committed between March and September 2008 while Heathington worked as a warehouse material handler for Garmin International, Inc., in Olathe. He caused boxes of GPS devices to be shipped via commercial carrier to his residence and the residences of co-conspirators. He and other conspirators sold the GPS devices on eBay and through other means. He stole approximately 165 cases of Garmin GPS devices with a wholesale value of more than $1 million.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on each count. The U.S. Secret Service investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Oakley is prosecuting.

OTHER INDICTMENTS

Derrick L. Freeman, 28, Kansas City, Kan., Joe Freeman, 33, Kansas City, Kan., and Jeffrey B. Jackson, 47, Kansas City, Kan., are charged in a superseding indictment with one count of conspiracy to commit armed robbery. In addition, Derrick Freeman and Jeffrey Jackson are charged with one count of brandishing and discharging a firearm. In addition, Derrick Freeman is charged with one count of carjacking, two counts of brandishing and discharging a firearm, and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction. The crimes are alleged to have occurred in May 2013 in Kansas City, Kan.

The defendants initially were charged in a criminal complaint filed June 5 in U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Kan.

The indictment alleges the defendants arranged to buy synthetic marijuana from a man in Kansas City, Kan. Once at his home, they threatened him with a gun and stole his money.

Upon conviction, the crimes carry the following penalties:
Conspiracy: A maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000
Brandishing and discharging a firearm in a crime of violence: Not less than 10 years and not more than life and a fine up to $250,000 on each count. Conviction for a second or subsequent conviction: Not less than 25 years and a fine up to $250,000.
Carjacking: A maximum penalty of 15 years and a fine up to $250,000.
Unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction: A maximum penalty of 10 years and a fine up to $250,000.

The Kansas City, Kan., Police Department investigated. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin Tomasic and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Trent Krug are prosecuting.

Adrian L. Brown, 29, is charged with escaping from federal custody at the Grossman Community Corrections Center, a halfway house located in Leavenworth, Kan.. The crime is alleged to have occurred Aug. 21, 2013.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. The U.S. Marshals Service investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Oakley is prosecuting.

Dale Ray Reiman, 53, Lawrence, Kan., is charged with one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, one count of unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction, and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking. The crimes are alleged to have occurred Oct. 25, 2012, in Douglas County, Kan.

If convicted he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $1 million on the charge of possession with intent to distribute, a maximum penalty of 10 years and a fine up to $250,000 on the charge of unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction and a penalty of not less than five years on the charge of unlawful possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking. The Kansas City Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tris Hunt and Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Rask are prosecuting.

Shawn Richard Seburn, 35, Topeka, Kan., is charged with one count of failing to register as required by the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act. The crime is alleged to have occurred between April 15 and Aug. 21, 2013, in Shawnee County, Kan.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years and a fine up to $250,000. The Topeka Police Department and the U.S. Marshals Service investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine Kenney is prosecuting.

Johnathan Rush, 28, who is in federal custody, is charged with unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction. The crime is alleged to have occurred July 27, 2013, in Topeka, Kan.

If convicted, Rush faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. The Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office, the Lawrence Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated. U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom is prosecuting.

Arthur D. Mitchell, 20, Kansas City, Kan., is charged with one count of unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction. The crime is alleged to have occurred Aug. 21, 2013, in Kansas City, 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 and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin Tomasic is prosecuting.

Aarick M. Warren, 28, Kansas City, Mo., is charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine; two counts of distributing crack cocaine within 1,000 feet of Bethany Park in Kansas City, Kan.; one count of possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine within 1,000 feet of Bethany Park in Kansas City, Kan.; one count of maintaining a residence at 1026 Reynolds Avenue in Kansas City, Kan., in furtherance of drug trafficking; one count of unlawful possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking; one count of unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction; and two counts of using a telephone in furtherance of drug trafficking. The crimes are alleged to have occurred at various times between Jan. 1, 2012, and Jan. 16, 2013, in Kansas City, Kan.

Upon conviction, the crimes carry the following penalties:
Conspiracy: Not less than five years and not more than 40 years in federal prison and a fine up to $5 million.
Distributing crack cocaine within 1,000 feet of a public park: A maximum penalty of 40 years and a fine up to $4 million on each count.
Possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine within 1,000 feet of a public park: Not less than five years and not more than 80 years and a fine up to $10 million.
Maintaining a residence in furtherance of drug trafficking: A maximum penalty of 20 years and a fine up to $500,000.
Unlawful possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking: Not less than five years and a fine up to $250,000: A maximum penalty of 10 years and a fine up to $250,000.
Using a telephone in furtherance of drug trafficking: A maximum penalty of four years and a fine up to $30,000 on each count.

The Kansas City, Kan., Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin Tomasic is prosecuting.


In all cases, defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. The indictments merely contain allegations of criminal conduct.