Anonymous ID: c83745 May 19, 2021, 9:56 a.m. No.13702250   🗄️.is 🔗kun   >>2454 >>2565 >>2571 >>2614 >>2683 >>2852 >>2886 >>2928 >>2955 >>2981

U.S. Attorney’s Office

District of Rhode Island

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wednesday, May 19, 2021

Smithfield Sex Offender Indicted for Multiple Child Sexual Exploitation Offenses

 

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – A registered sex offender living in Smithfield was ordered detained by a federal magistrate judge Tuesday after a federal grand jury returned an indictment charging him with multiple child sexual exploitation offenses. Mathew Hoard, 35, was charged in a five-count indictment with Attempted Enticement of A Minor to Engage in Criminal Sexual Activity; Attempted Transfer of Obscene Material to a Minor; Distribution and Possession of Child Pornography; and Committing Offenses While Required to Register as a Sex Offender.

 

According to court documents and information presented to the court, Hoard was convicted of possession of child pornography in Rhode Island Superior Court in 2010 and sentenced to five years of probation and required to register as a sex offender. According to information received by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, in February 2020 an individual uploaded child pornography to a social media application. Members of the Rhode Island State Police Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC) traced the upload to Hoard.

 

Meanwhile, in a separate ICAC investigation, Hoard was allegedly communicating via a social media application with an individual he believed was a 14-year-old girl. Hoard allegedly sent obscene images to the 14-year-old; requested the 14-year-old send nude images of herself to him; said he wanted to marry her, and repeatedly asked the 14-year-old to meet for sex. Court-authorized searches discovered electronic media devices owned by Hoard that allegedly contained child pornography and other evidence related to the case.

 

Hoard was arrested on Tuesday by members of the ICAC and Homeland Security Investigations and was ordered detained by United States Magistrate Judge Lincoln D. Almond following an initial court appearance in U.S. District Court, announced Acting United States Attorney Richard B. Myrus.

 

If convicted as charged, Hoard faces a mandatory minimum sentence of at least 15 years in federal prison.

 

An indictment is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

 

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John P. McAdams. It was investigated by the Rhode Island Stated Police Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force with assistance from the Homeland Security Investigations.

https://www.justice.gov/usao-ri/pr/smithfield-sex-offender-indicted-multiple-child-sexual-exploitation-offenses

Anonymous ID: c83745 May 19, 2021, 9:56 a.m. No.13702256   🗄️.is 🔗kun   >>2454 >>2565 >>2571 >>2614 >>2683 >>2852 >>2886 >>2928 >>2955 >>2981

U.S. Attorney’s Office

Eastern District of Wisconsin

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wednesday, May 19, 2021

Missouri and Tennessee Residents Charged with Distribution of Child Pornography as Part of Operation Kick Boxer

 

Acting United States Attorney Richard G. Frohling of the Eastern District of Wisconsin announced that on May 18, 2021, a federal grand jury handed down an indictment alleging that Joshua A. Gama (age: 35) of Bridgeton, Missouri, distributed child pornography in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2252A(a)(2)(A).

 

Later that morning, the same grand jury handed down a separate indictment alleging that David J. Dexter (age: 43) of Lebanon, Tennessee, also distributed child pornography in violation of federal law.

 

Gama is charged with two counts of distributing child pornography. Dexter is charged with a single count of distribution. Each count carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years and up to 20 years of incarceration in federal prison upon conviction.

 

Each man’s indictment is a direct result of Operation Kick Boxer, a collaborative effort involving the Milwaukee Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, and the Winnebago County Sheriff's Office https://go.usa.gov/xHzJp.

 

Both Gama and Dexter utilized a popular internet messaging platform to access chat rooms in which they each are alleged to have distributed child pornography. Each man was investigated separately and there is no known connection between the two.

 

These cases were investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Milwaukee, Green Bay, Memphis, Nashville, and St. Louis Offices, as well as the Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office. They will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel R. Humble.

 

An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. Each defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove him guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

 

# # #

 

For further information contact:

 

Public Information Officer Kenneth.Gales@usdoj.gov

 

414-297-1700

https://www.justice.gov/usao-edwi/pr/missouri-and-tennessee-residents-charged-distribution-child-pornography-part-operation

Anonymous ID: c83745 May 19, 2021, 10:41 a.m. No.13702552   🗄️.is 🔗kun   >>2565 >>2571 >>2614 >>2683 >>2852 >>2886 >>2928 >>2955 >>2981

U.S. Attorney’s Office

District of Columbia

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tuesday, March 14, 2017

Individual Charged in Connection With 2001 Terrorist Attack in Jerusalem That Resulted in Death of Americans

 

WASHINGTON – A criminal complaint was unsealed today charging Ahlam Aref Ahmad Al-Tamimi, also known as “Khalti” and “Halati,” a Jordanian national in her mid-30s, with conspiring to use a weapon of mass destruction against U.S. nationals outside the U.S., resulting in death. The charge is related to the defendant’s participation in an Aug. 9, 2001, suicide bomb attack at a pizza restaurant in Jerusalem that killed 15 people, including two U.S. nationals. Four other U.S. nationals were among the approximately 122 others injured in the attack. Also unsealed today was a warrant for Al-Tamimi’s arrest and an affidavit in support of the criminal complaint and arrest warrant. The criminal charge had been under seal since July 15, 2013.

 

Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security Mary B. McCord, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips for the District of Columbia and Assistant Director in Charge Andrew Vale of the FBI’s Washington Field Office made the announcement.

 

“Al-Tamimi is an unrepentant terrorist who admitted to her role in a deadly terrorist bombing that injured and killed numerous innocent victims. Two Americans were killed and four injured. The charges unsealed today serve as a reminder that when terrorists target Americans anywhere in the world, we will never forget – and we will continue to seek to ensure that they are held accountable,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General McCord. “I want to thank the many dedicated agents and prosecutors who have worked on this investigation.”

 

“We have never forgotten the American and non-American victims of this awful terrorist attack,” said U.S. Attorney Phillips. “We will continue to remain vigilant until Ahlam Aref Ahmad Al-Tamimi is brought to justice.”

 

“Al-Tamimi is a terrorist who participated in an attack that killed United States citizens,” said Assistant Director in Charge Vale. “The bombing that she planned and assisted in carrying out on innocent people, including children, furthered the mission of a designated terrorist organization. The FBI continues to work with our international partners to combat terrorists like Al-Tamimi and hold them accountable.”

 

According to the affidavit in support of the criminal complaint and arrest warrant, Al- Tamimi was living in the West Bank in the summer of 2001, while attending school and working as a journalist for a television station. Al-Tamimi agreed that summer to carry out attacks on behalf of the military wing of Hamas (the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades), a Palestinian organization designated by the U.S. as a terrorist organization.

 

The affidavit states that on Aug. 9, 2001, Al-Tamimi met with the suicide bomber in Ramallah, in the West Bank, and traveled with the suicide bomber by car to Jerusalem. The suicide bomber was in possession of an explosive device concealed within a guitar. Al-Tamimi led the suicide bomber to a crowded area in downtown Jerusalem and instructed the suicide bomber to detonate the explosive device in the area, or somewhere nearby if an opportunity arose to cause more casualties. According to the affidavit, the suicide bomber entered a Sbarro pizza restaurant and detonated the explosive device, causing extensive damage, bodily injury, and death. Seven of the dead were children, including one U.S. national.

 

The affidavit states that Al-Tamimi pleaded guilty in an Israeli court in 2003 to multiple counts of murder arising from the Sbarro suicide bomb attack and was sentenced to 16 life terms of incarceration. The defendant served only eight years of the sentence before being released on or about Oct. 28, 2011, as part of a prisoner exchange between the government of Israel and Hamas.

 

Al-Tamimi was returned to Jordan upon her release from incarceration. Jordan’s courts, however, have ruled that their constitution forbids the extradition of Jordanian nationals. The U.S. has worked and will continue to work with its foreign partners to obtain custody of Al- Tamimi so she can be held accountable for her role in the terrorist bombing. The FBI also announced today that Al-Tamimi has been placed on its list of Most Wanted Terrorists.

https://www.justice.gov/usao-dc/pr/individual-charged-connection-2001-terrorist-attack-jerusalem-resulted-death-americans

Anonymous ID: c83745 May 19, 2021, 10:51 a.m. No.13702622   🗄️.is 🔗kun

U.S. Attorney’s Office

Southern District of New York

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wednesday, May 27, 2020

Former Member Of Venezuelan National Assembly Charged With Narco-Terrorism, Drug Trafficking, And Weapons Offenses

 

Adel El Zabayar Allegedly Worked with the Former President of Venezuela Nicolás Maduro Moros and Other Prominent Venezuelan Officials to Distribute Cocaine and Weapons In Coordination with Terrorist Organizations

 

Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Timothy J. Shea, Acting Administrator U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”), announced today that ADEL EL ZABAYAR was charged in Manhattan federal court with participating in a narco-terrorism conspiracy, a cocaine importation conspiracy, and related weapons offenses involving the use and possession of machineguns and destructive devices, all based on his support of the Venezuelan Cártel de Los Soles and designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (“FARC”), Hizballah, and Hamas.

 

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said: “As alleged, Adel El Zabayar was part of the unholy alliance of government, military, and FARC members using violence and corruption to further their narco-terrorist aims. El Zabayar was allegedly a key part of the apparatus that conspired to export literally tons of cocaine into the U.S. We further allege today, for the first time, that the Cártel de Los Soles sought to recruit terrorists from Hizballah and Hamas to assist in planning and carrying out attacks on the U.S., and that El Zabayar was instrumental as a go-between. Allegedly, El Zabayar obtained from the Middle East a cargo planeload of military-grade weaponry. With today’s charges, El Zabayar joins the rogues’ gallery of defendants we charged two months ago, and he faces the possibility of life in a U.S. prison if and when he is apprehended.”

 

DEA Acting Administrator Timothy J. Shea said: “Today’s charges against Adel El Zabayar for trading arms for cocaine, and recruiting extremists, further demonstrates the corruption inside the Maduro regime. The actions charged in the complaint show that Maduro’s administration operates with no regard for its own citizens, instead choosing to flood the United States with cocaine and other drugs while enriching itself. As the layers of the Maduro regime are exposed, so is its immoral, unethical, and dangerous actions.”

 

According to the allegations contained in the Complaint charging EL ZABAYAR and in the related Superseding Indictment charging Maduro Moros and others in the Southern District of New York, which was unsealed on March 26, 2020[1]:

 

EL ZABAYAR is a member of the Cártel de Los Soles, or “Cartel of the Suns.” The Cartel’s name refers to the sun insignias affixed to the uniforms of high-ranking Venezuelan military officials. For more than two decades, Cartel members, including EL ZABAYAR and Maduro Moros, have abused the Venezuelan people and corrupted the legitimate institutions of Venezuela – including parts of the military, intelligence apparatus, legislature, and the judiciary – to facilitate the importation of tons of cocaine into the United States. The Cartel sought not only to enrich its members and enhance their power, but also to “flood” the United States with cocaine and inflict the drug’s harmful and addictive effects on users in the United States.

 

The Cártel de Los Soles has worked in coordination with designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations, including the FARC, Hizballah, and Hamas. EL ZABAYAR, in particular, has, among other things, participated in weapons-for-cocaine negotiations with the FARC, obtained anti-tank rocket launchers from the Middle East for the FARC as partial payment for cocaine, and recruited terrorists from Hizballah and Hamas for the purpose of helping to plan and organize attacks against United States interests.

https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/former-member-venezuelan-national-assembly-charged-narco-terrorism-drug-trafficking-and

Anonymous ID: c83745 May 19, 2021, 11:30 a.m. No.13702898   🗄️.is 🔗kun   >>2928 >>2955 >>2981

U.S. Attorney’s Office

Northern District of Oklahoma

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wednesday, May 19, 2021

Quapaw Man Convicted of Sexually Abusing a Native American Minor and Illegally Possessing Parts of Protected Eagles

 

A man who portrayed himself as a Native American spiritual counselor was convicted Tuesday by a federal jury of sexually abusing a Native American minor and illegally possessing feathers, talons and heads from seven bald eagles and seven golden eagles, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson.

 

The jury found Carl Gene Ortner Jr., 57, of Quapaw, guilty of transportation with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, sexual abuse of a child in Indian Country, abusive sexual contact in Indian Country, possession of parts of a bald eagle, and possession of parts of a golden eagle. U.S. District Judge John F. Heil III presided over the trial and set sentencing for Sept. 30, 2021.

 

“Carl Ortner is not a Native American spiritual counselor, as he led his community to believe. A jury this week saw Ortner for what he was – a predator who targeted a vulnerable young victim, using her Native American heritage and grief to sexually abuse her,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson. “During this trial, two other victims came forward and stated that Ortner also abused them. All three of these young women are to be commended for their bravery and for stopping this defendant from harming others.”

 

“No matter what type of crime wildlife is connected to, we will work tirelessly with our law enforcement partners for justice,” said Phillip Land, Special Agent in Charge of the Southwest Region for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Office of Law Enforcement. “These guilty verdicts send a strong message that these types of crime will not be tolerated, and we thank the U.S Attorney’s Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, and the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office for their assistance with this case.”

 

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Shannon Cozzoni and Ryan Roberts argued that Ortner fraudulently claimed to be a Native American spiritual counselor. Assistant U.S. Attorney Cozzoni pointed out the defendant portrayed himself as an Indian, yet he had no tribal affiliation. He told several people he was a member of several Tribes, but no Tribe claimed him.

 

A special agent with the Fish and Wildlife Service testified that investigators discovered feathers and various parts of bald and golden eagles, including heads, talons, and entire wings, at Ortner’s residence. Native Americans consider eagles to be sacred and use the parts in cultural and religious practices. Ortner illegally possessed the feathers and parts.

 

Further evidence was presented showing that the defendant used his position of influence to groom the victim and force her into sexual relations with him, using her cultural beliefs and vulnerability against her. The victim also had been struggling with losing a loved one, and Ortner used the loss to further groom the victim.

 

In 2016, Ortner began sexually abusing the minor. While some of the abuse allegedly occurred within state jurisdiction, Ortner, who is not a tribal citizen, also abused the victim on Indian land, which falls within federal jurisdiction. Furthermore, Ortner at one point drove the victim to Joplin, Missouri, to engage in criminal sexual activity with the minor victim. Crossing state lines to engage in illegal activity falls within federal jurisdiction.

 

Witnesses testified that Ortner threatened to embarrass the victim and the tribe unless she said the sexual assault did not happen. Also testifying for the government were two other women who stated that Ortner also groomed them as minors and sexually abused them.

 

In the Government’s closing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Roberts reminded the jury that all three women, who did not know one another, had made similar statements in court. They were vulnerable minors when the sexual abuse occurred. Several had experienced recent deaths of loved ones, which Ortner exploited. Ortner would also buy them lingerie and use the same term to describe the undergarments. Roberts called Ortner a wolf in sheep’s clothing, stating that he disguised himself as a caring Native American elder to get close to the victims. Then when the time was right, Ortner attacked.

 

The jury took less than two hours to deliberate before coming back with guilty verdicts on all five counts.

 

The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement, Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, Ottawa County Sheriff’s Department, FBI, and the Bureau of Indian Affairs conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ryan Roberts and Shannon Cozzoni prosecuted the case.

https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndok/pr/quapaw-man-convicted-sexually-abusing-native-american-minor-and-illegally-possessing