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In April 2019, Berman brought the first ever drug trafficking charges against a pharmaceutical company and two of its executives, charging Rochester Drug Co-Operative and its former CEO, Laurence Doud III, with illegally conspiring to distribute oxycodone and fentanyl and conspiring to defraud the DEA. In announcing the charges, Berman said “This prosecution is the first of its kind: executives of a pharmaceutical distributor and the distributor itself have been charged with drug trafficking, trafficking the same drugs that are fueling the opioid epidemic that is ravaging our country. Our Office will do everything in its power to combat this epidemic, from street-level dealers to the executives who illegally distribute drugs from their boardrooms.”[58][59]
In May 2019, Berman charged Michael Avenatti with another indictment, alleging that he stole $300,000 from his client Stormy Daniels. Berman said: "Far from zealously representing his client, Avenatti, as alleged, instead engaged in outright deception and theft, victimizing rather than advocating for his client."[60]
In July 2019, Berman charged financier Jeffrey Epstein with sex trafficking of minors and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of minors. Berman said at his press conference: "The alleged behavior shocks the conscience. And while the charged conduct is from a number of years ago, it is still profoundly important to the many alleged victims, now young women. They deserve their day in court, and we are proud to stand up for them in bringing this indictment.”[61][62]
Berman's prosecution resurfaced then-Labor Secretary Alex Acosta's handling of Epstein's sex traffic case a decade earlier. On July 12, Acosta resigned amid pressure from the case.[63]
On August 10, 2019, Epstein was found dead in his cell of an apparent suicide. Berman stated: Today's events are disturbing, and we are deeply aware of their potential to present yet another hurdle to giving Epstein's many victims their day in Court.
To those brave young women who have already come forward and to the many others who have yet to do so, let me reiterate that we remain committed to standing for you, and our investigation of the conduct charged in the Indictment - which included a conspiracy count - remains ongoing."[64]
On October 9, 2019, Berman announced charges against Lev Parnas, Igor Fruman and two others for campaign violations relating to the illegal use of straw donors and foreign money.[65] Berman said: “They sought political influence not only to advance their own financial interests but to advance the political interests of at least one foreign official - a Ukrainian government official who sought the dismissal of the U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine.” Berman said that the investigation is continuing.[66]
On October 15, 2019, Berman announced the indictment of Halkbank, the largest state-owned bank in Turkey, for a multi-billion dollar scheme to evade U.S. sanctions on Iran. In announcing the charges, Berman said: “The bank’s audacious conduct was supported and protected by high-ranking Turkish government officials, some of whom received millions of dollars in bribes to promote and protect the scheme.”[67][68][69]
On November 19, 2019, Berman charged guards Michael Thomas and Tova Noel with creating false records, and with conspiracy, after video footage obtained by prosecutors revealed that alleged sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein had, against regulation, been in his cell unchecked for eight hours prior to being found dead on August 10, 2019.[70]
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