Week in Review—South Bend

SOUTH BEND, IN—The United States Attorney’s Office announced that:

Pleas:

• Robert Troup, 54, of Mishawaka, Indiana, pled guilty before Magistrate Judge Christopher Nuechterlein to the felony offense of sexual exploitation of children. Magistrate Nuechterlein is recommending that the district court accept the tendered guilty plea. Parties have 10 days in which to object to the magistrate judge’s recommendation. Sentencing has been set for February 7, 2013. These charges were filed as a result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Elkhart County Police Department. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney John Maciejczyk.
• Kimberly Lepitre, 45, of South Bend, Indiana, a defendant in the case U.S. v Dircks et al., pled guilty before Magistrate Judge Christopher Nuechterlein to the felony offense of being an unlawful user of a controlled substance in possession of a firearm. Magistrate Nuechterlein is recommending that the district court accept the tendered guilty plea. Parties have 10 days in which to object to the magistrate judge’s recommendation. Sentencing has been set for February 6, 2013. These charges were filed as a result of an investigation by the by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the South Bend Police Department. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Donald Schmid.
• Daniel Young, 52, of Mishawaka, Indiana, pled guilty before Magistrate Judge Christopher Nuechterlein to the felony offense of sexual exploitation of children. Magistrate Nuechterlein is recommending that the district court accept the tendered guilty plea. Parties have 10 days in which to object to the magistrate judge’s recommendation. Sentencing has been set for February 7, 2013. These charges were filed as a result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the St. Joseph County SVU, and the Mishawaka Police Department. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney John Maciejczyk.
• Corey Fair, 19, of South Bend, Indiana, pled guilty before Magistrate Judge Christopher Nuechterlein to six counts of robberies. Magistrate Nuechterlein is recommending that the district court accept the tendered guilty plea. Parties have 10 days in which to object to the magistrate judge’s recommendation. Sentencing has been set for February 7, 2013. These charges were filed as a result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Frank Schaffer.

If convicted in court, any specific sentence to be imposed will be determined by the judge after a consideration of federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

Dispositions:

• Jason Gray, 39, of Lake Station, Indiana, was sentenced by District Judge Robert Miller, Jr. to 18 months’ imprisonment and two years of supervised release after pleading guilty to the felony offense of being an unlawful user of a controlled substance in possession of a firearm. According to the plea agreement filed in this case, Gray was arrested by law enforcement after selling a green leafy substance which was tested and found to be marijuana. Officers found a loaded handgun on Gray when he was arrested. This case was the result of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Frank Schaffer.
• Lord Michael Hunt, 41, of South Bend, Indiana, was sentenced by District Judge Jon DeGuilio to 60 months’ imprisonment and four years of supervised release after pleading guilty to the felony offense of manufacture of marijuana over 100 plants. According to the plea agreement in this case, Hunt acknowledged that law enforcement entered his home and found the plants, grow materials, and grow lights. This case was the result of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Frank Schaffer.