The charges are the result of Operation Cyberwild, a task force investigation conducted by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the California Department of Fish and Game (CDFG), which received substantial assistance from volunteers with the Humane Society of United States.

            Operation Cyberwild was announced this morning following the arrest of a Las Vegas man who is charged with selling boots made out of threatened sea turtles.

            During Operation Cyberwild, federal agents and state game wardens recovered live endangered fish, protected migratory birds, an elephant foot, and pelts from a tiger, a polar bear, a leopard and a bear.

To read the Official Department of Justice press release click link below.

OPERATION CYBERWILD

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     Sergio Santiago de Leon Syjuco, aka “Yogi,” 25, of Muntinlupa City, Philippines; Cesar Paolo Inciong Ubaldo, aka “Arvi,” 26, of Paranaque City, Philippines; and Arjyl Revereza, 25, of Manila, Philippines, were charged in criminal complaint unsealed yesterday in the Central District of California with importing defense articles into the United States without a license, in violation of the Arms Export Control Act. Syjuco, Ubaldo and Revereza were arrested upon their entry into the United States on Jan. 5, 2012.  They will make their initial appearances today in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles before U.S. Magistrate Judge Alicia G. Rosenberg.  According to the complaint, the case is part of an FBI investigation of transnational Asian organized crime groups involved in the illicit trafficking of firearms.

To read the official Department of Justice press release click link below.

INTERNATIONAL ARMS TRAFFICKING CASE

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To read the Official Department of Justice press release click link below

Wind Tech Scam

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            The 24-count indictment, which was returned yesterday afternoon, alleges a scheme in which vehicles were offered for sale on various legitimate websites. Money was subsequently collected from victims across the United States and supposedly put into escrow accounts with PayPal and eBay Motors. The money was then siphoned from the accounts, with millions of dollars being sent to Europe. Not one vehicle was delivered to the hundreds of victims who lost more than $4 million during the 3½ years the scheme operated, according to the indictment.

            The charges are the result of a probe by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), IRS – Criminal Investigation and the U.S. Secret Service. Several other state and local law enforcement agencies provided substantial assistance during the investigation, including the Costa Mesa Police Department…

To read the Official Department of Justice press release click the link below.

Internet car sales scam

From the press release:

“Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced the appointment of Kathleen E. O’Leary as presiding justice of the Fourth District Court of Appeal, Division Three.”

“O’Leary, 60, of Santa Ana, has served as an associate justice for the Fourth District Court of Appeal, Division Three since 2000. Previously, she was a judge for the Orange County Superior Court from 1986 to 2000, where she served as presiding judge from 1998 to 2000. She was a judge for the West Orange County Municipal Court from 1981 to 1986. O’Leary served as a deputy public defender for the Orange County Public Defender’s Office from 1976 to 1981. She earned a Juris Doctorate degree from Southwestern Law School and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Loyola Marymount University. “O’Leary fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Presiding Justice David G. Sills. This position requires confirmation by the Commission on Judicial Appointments. The Commission consists of Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye, Attorney General Kamala D. Harris and Senior Presiding Justice Manuel A. Ramirez. O’Leary is a Democrat. Subject to her confirmation, O’Leary will be the first female presiding justice in the history of the Fourth District Court of Appeal, Division Three.”

            According to the indictment, Stratos defrauded a woman of at least $7 million by convincing her that he would manage the proceeds of her divorce by investing them overseas where they would earn a high rate of return. Stratos represented to the woman that he was himself wealthy and successful and involved in the entertainment industry. At Stratos’s request and instruction, the woman executed a revocable trust with Stratos in Fair Oaks into which she placed the cash proceeds of her divorce and houses. Stratos then opened a bank account in Florida connected with the trust. The indictment alleges that Stratos never invested any money overseas as he promised. Instead, he diverted substantial sums of money from the trust for his own personal use. He also used portions of the money to pay the woman’s expenses, misrepresenting to her that he was spending his own money to pay for her expenses.

Read the Official Department of Justice press release:

$7 Million Divorce Fraud Case

LOS ANGELES – A New York man who admitted illegally uploading to the Internet a pirated, nearly final “workprint” copy of the movie “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” was sentenced this afternoon to one year in federal prison.

            Gilberto Sanchez, 49, who resides in The Bronx and who used screen names that were variations on “skillz,” was sentenced by United States District Judge Margaret M. Morrow, who described the offense as “extremely serious.” In addition to the prison term, Judge Morrow imposed one year of supervised release and numerous computer restrictions.

            “The federal prison sentence handed down in this case sends a strong message of deterrence to would-be Internet pirates,” said United States Attorney André Birotte Jr. “The Justice Department will pursue and prosecute persons who seek to steal the intellectual property of this nation.”

To read the Official Department of Justice press release click the link below.

X-Men Wolverine

            Frank Johnston, 55, of Whittier, who retired from ICE in August 2009 after 31 years in federal law enforcement, was convicted of the two felony charges following a 9-day trial.

            The evidence presented during the trial showed that Johnston in 2006 and 2007 made false statements that resulted in the delay – lasting nearly a year and a half – of a prison term for a man who received an 18-month sentence after being convicted in relation to a cigarette-smuggling operation. At the time, Johnston began receiving payments for “consulting” services from a foster family agency run by a man with ties to the man who had been convicted of felony charges in Florida.

To read the Official Department of Justice press release click the link below.

ICE AGENT CORRUPTION

            Aerospace employed William Hunter as an engineer specializing in software quality assurance reviews from 2001 to 2008.  When he was hired, Hunter claimed to have a doctorate from Oxford University, but, in fact, Hunter only had a high school education. For the more than seven years he worked at Aerospace, Hunter was simultaneously employed by another defense contractor. He filled out time cards at both employers, claiming to be working full-time at two places and working a considerable number of overtime hours. The evidence uncovered by the government showed that Hunter frequently was not at either employer’s site, but instead was visiting bars, amusement parks, theaters and other non-workplace locations.

            The government investigation showed that Aerospace was aware of Hunter’s fraud, but it nonetheless charged the Air Force for his time.

            Norma Coronel, 40, of Livermore, California, who is an illegal alien from Mexico, was sentenced today by United Stated District Judge Manuel Real. In addition to the prison term, Judge Real ordered Coronel to pay $302,186 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service.

            Coronel pleaded guilty in September to three felony counts – aiding and assisting in the preparation of fraudulent federal income tax returns, fraudulently using Social Security numbers obtained with false information, and theft of government property.

            In a plea agreement filed in this case, Coronel admitted that in 2003 she applied

for and obtained Social Security numbers for at least 20 fictitious children, falsely claiming that the children had been born to her at a Los Angeles hospital on December 11, 2002. Using these bogus identities, Coronel prepared and filed fraudulent federal tax returns for family members and friends that claimed dependent deductions and fraudulently sought refunds.

To read the full article from the Official Department of Justice press release click the link below.

Department of Justice Press Release Tax Scam