News and reports from the Department of Justice.

Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke, Civil Rights Division, explains how to report voter intimidation. In a brief statement released recently, Clarke highlighted the importance of addressing voter intimidation and provided guidance on the necessary steps to take when encountering such actions. The message serves as a reminder of the ongoing efforts to safeguard voting rights and ensure fair and accessible elections.For individuals who witness or experience voter intimidation, Clarke's instructions offer a clear pathway for reporting such incidents. By outlining the...

The Justice Department, Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have unveiled an online portal named HealthyCompetition.gov for the public to report potential anticompetitive practices in the health care sector. The initiative aims to address concerns regarding unfair competition and monopolistic practices that could impact healthcare affordability and quality in the United States.Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter emphasized the importance of competition in healthcare, stating, "Competition in health care is crucial to...

The Justice Department has reached a settlement agreement with the City of Virginia Beach, Virginia, to enhance access for individuals with disabilities, including Veterans, to city buildings and civic programs. According to Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, "The ADA mandates equal access to civic life for people with disabilities." U.S. Attorney Jessica D. Aber for the Eastern District of Virginia emphasized that "Ensuring that individuals who have disabilities are afforded equal access to local government...

A Colombian national, Pedro Jose Silva Ochoa, has been extradited from Chile to the United States to face charges related to the kidnapping and assaulting of two U.S. Army soldiers in Bogota, Colombia. Silva Ochoa, also known as Tata, is set to make his initial court appearance today in Miami, Florida.Court documents reveal that Silva Ochoa and his accomplices targeted and kidnapped the two soldiers in Bogota with the intention of robbing them. The victims were drugged at a pub in Bogota and then taken to a waiting car where they were robbed of their valuables including...

An Illinois man, Byron Taylor, of Homewood, has made his initial appearance on an indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Chicago. The indictment charges Taylor with 21 counts of preparing false tax returns for others through his business, We Are Taxes Inc.The indictment alleges that Taylor prepared false tax returns for clients for tax years 2017 through 2020. The returns contained false information, leading clients to claim refunds they were not entitled to. The false information included fraudulent business losses, false deductions like medical expenses, gifts...

The Justice Department has announced the establishment of 11 carjacking task forces in various U.S. Attorneys' Offices across the country to combat the rising public safety threat posed by carjackings. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco emphasized the importance of this initiative, stating, "The Justice Department has no higher priority than keeping our communities safe." She highlighted the success of existing task forces in cities like Chicago, Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, and Tampa, where carjacking rates have shown a significant decline.The newly formed task...

An indictment was unsealed in Brooklyn, New York, today charging a Florida man with sex trafficking multiple women and coercion and enticement of a minor."Joel David Forney, 41, of Kissimmee, was charged with sex trafficking; interstate transportation for purposes of prostitution; and coercion and enticement of a minor." Forney allegedly trafficked women to work in commercial sex in New York, including at an open-air sex trafficking market along a stretch of Pennsylvania Avenue in Brooklyn known as the Penn Track."According to the indictment, for years, Forney preyed...

Aleksandr Pikus, the New York man at the center of a multimillion-dollar health care kickback and tax avoidance conspiracy, has been resentenced to nine years in prison and ordered to pay $39 million in restitution. The scheme orchestrated by Pikus involved referring Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries to health care providers in exchange for illegal kickbacks. As a result, the health care providers submitted millions of dollars in false and fraudulent claims to the Medicare and Medicaid programs."Pikus failed to report that cash income to the IRS, instead using sham...

A document procured by Protect the Public’s Trust (PPT) via the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) discloses that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) directed hundreds of DOJ officials nationwide to collaborate with local law enforcement agencies in executing the "Garland Memo." This revelation challenges prior statements from the DOJ, which sought to minimize the memo's significance.

Despite years of preparation and six weeks at trial, leaders in technology and business remain confused about the Department’s motives in bringing this case.

Fifteen people were arrested in a large-scale gun and drug bust in Dallas, Texas, after a two-year investigation involving more than 200 officers and agents from various law enforcement agencies.

Dr. Muhammad S. Awaisi, a medical doctor from Pontiac, Mich., was convicted by a federal jury on five charges related to a scheme in which he created fraudulent medical documentation to help immigrants obtain U.S. citizenship.

Lohrasb "Jeff" Jafari, former executive vice president of Atlanta engineering firm PRAD Group Inc., has been sentenced to five years in prison for paying bribes to Atlanta city officials and a former DeKalb County official to obtain lucrative city contracts worth millions of dollars. The allegations and other evidence produced in court state that PRAD Group, an architectural, design, and construction management company with its headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia, provided services to the City of Atlanta and DeKalb County, Georgia, between 1984 and 2018. As PRAD Group's executive vice president, Jafari was in charge of managing the company's finances.

Ray Anthony Shoulders, a physician's assistant at a Fort Worth pain management clinic, has been charged with healthcare fraud for allegedly injecting amniotic fluid into patients' joints in a deceptive attempt at pain management. The liquid that surrounds a developing fetus during pregnancy was allegedly fraudulently claimed for payment by Medicare in excess of $614,000 by Mr. Shoulders and others, according to the indictment, for the off-label treatment of joint pain in patients by injecting amniotic fluid into their connective tissue.

Attorney General Merrick Garland recently sentenced a Texas resident to 90 consecutive life terms in prison for the August 3, 2019 shooting at the Cielo Vista Walmart in El Paso, Texas. Patrick Wood Crucius, 24, was the shooter who liked 23 people and injured 22 more, according to a release by the U.S. Department of Justice.