News and reports from the Department of Justice.

Former Suffolk County Legislator And Co-Conspirator Convicted Of Defrauding Mortgage Lender Out Of More Than A Quarter Of A Million Dollars

A former prison correctional officer in Hawaii arrested arrested last week on allegations he sexually abused female inmates went after vulnerable victims and undermined the mission of federal prisons, Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco said in a news release

Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Michael J. Driscoll, the Assistant Director in Charge of the New York Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), and Susan A. Frisco, the Acting Special Agent in Charge of the New York Regional Office of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General (“HHS-OIG”), announced the unsealing of a seven-count Indictment today charging five defendants with participating in schemes to steal millions of dollars from government-funded childcare programs for low-income families, including by stealing proceeds from a fake after-school program that received millions in funding and by using funds to purchase private real estate, items at auction, and a luxury vehicle.

A total of 76 defendants are named in a newly unsealed federal indictment describing a massive drug trafficking investigation tied to the Ghost Face Gangsters criminal street gang that includes allegations of multiple deaths from illegal drug overdoses.

Stephen Jerome Brinson, 47, of Tallahassee, Florida, was sentenced to just under twenty years (239 months) in federal prison after previously pleading guilty to multiple counts of distribution of fentanyl, offenses committed while Brinson was under federal supervision after his release from federal prison for his 2005 federal narcotics conviction. The sentence was announced by Jason R. Coody, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

U.S. District Judge Kathryn Mizelle has sentenced Michael Lumpkin (27, Land O’Lakes) to 52 years in federal prison for producing child sex abuse materials, followed by a lifetime of supervised release. Lumpkin had pleaded guilty on October 3, 2022.

U.S. District Judge Virginia Hernandez Covington has sentenced Eric Paul Jones (44, New Port Richey) to 30 years and 5 months in federal prison for production and possession of child sex abuse material.

Senior United States District Judge Gregory A. Presnell has sentenced John Jones (56, District of Columbia) to 20 years in federal prison for assaulting a federal correctional officer with a deadly weapon and possessing contraband in a federal penitentiary.

U.S. Attorney Mark Totten announced charges against Brandon Huu Le, 21, of Maitland, Florida for coercion and enticement of a minor, sexual exploitation of a minor, and receipt of child pornography in connection with an alleged sextortion scheme using the popular social media app, Snapchat. Sextortion involves threats against a victim—including threats to publish or distribute private and sensitive information about someone—if the victim does not provide the perpetrator with sexually explicit images or videos, sexual favors, or money.

Defendants Allegedly Distributed Semi-Automatic Handguns, Untraceable “Ghost Guns” and Guns with Defaced Serial Numbers; Defendant Also Charged with Trafficking Fentanyl

An East St. Louis man received a prison sentence of 104 months on Tuesday in a U.S. District Court after admitting to possession of a firearm with a high-capacity magazine that operated as a machine gun as well as a 50-round drum magazine.

Defendant Murdered his Victim, Who Was Believed to Be Cooperating with Law Enforcement

U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that MICHAEL MALONE, age 38, a resident of Covington, Louisiana, was sentenced on January 10, 2023 in the United States District Court in connection with his plea of guilty to a one-count indictment charging him with Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(2).

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that MICHAEL NASTU, 63, of Bridgeport, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Omar A. Williams in Hartford to 18 month of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for a child exploitation offense.

A San Antonio man was sentenced last week to serve 20 years in prison and pay $100,000 in restitution for the sexual exploitation of children.