December 10, 2014

Goddard Man Charged with Seven Counts of Producing Child Pornography

WICHITA, KS—Paul F. Grimm, 43, Goddard, Kan., is charged with seven counts of producing child pornography. The crimes are alleged to have occurred in 2011, 2012 and 2013 in Sedgwick County, Kan.

The indictment alleges he sexually exploited a 13-year-old girl in order to make the images.

If convicted, he faces a penalty of not less than 15 years and not more than 30 years in federal prison on each count, as well as a fine of up to $250,000 on each count. The FBI investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Hart is prosecuting.

Grimm has been charged in federal court in Texas in a separate indictment alleging he had sex with a minor girl on a cruise ship.

OTHER INDICTMENTS

Michael Muoghalu, 61, Pittsburg, Kan., is charged with one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering. The crime is alleged to have occurred beginning in 2006 in Pittsburg, Kan.

The indictment alleges that while Muoghalu worked for Pittsburg State University and managed a program for recruiting Nigerian graduate exchange students he fraudulently obtained more than $148,000 in Pittsburg State University refunds to Nigerian graduate exchange students. The money came from fees paid by Nigerian exchange students who were accepted into Pittsburg State’s Masters of Business Administration program.

The students were required to pay a deposit for tuition and fees to Pittsburg State upon being accepted into the program. After the students were enrolled, they were to receive partial refunds of their deposits. The indictment alleges the defendant fraudulently directed students to pay a portion of their refunds to him for acting as the students’ agent in obtaining the refund. The defendant filed fraudulent paperwork causing the university to issue partial refunds totaling $148,430.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years and a fine up to $250,000 on the wire fraud count, and a maximum penalty of 20 years and a fine up to $500,000 on the money laundering count. The Pittsburg State University Police, the Crawford County Sheriff’s Office, the Internal Revenue Service, the FBI and the Springfield, Mo., Police Department investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alan Metzger is prosecuting.

Gerardo Arzate-Arzate, 23, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with attempting to enter McConnell Air Force Base in Wichita using a counterfeit identification indicating he was a legal permanent resident of the United States.

Azarte-Azarte is charged with one count of possessing false documents, four counts of aggravated identity theft, one count of producing a false identification document, one count of making a false statement to the U.S. government and one count of misusing a Social Security number. The crimes are alleged to have occurred in 2013, 2014 and 2015 in Sedgwick County, Kan.

The indictment alleges he was arrested Nov. 17, 2014, while attempting to enter McConnell using a counterfeit U.S. Department of Homeland Security Permanent Resident Card bearing his photo and an alien registration number assigned to another person. He was working for Central Missouri Countertops, Inc., of Columbia, Mo., a subcontractor for Warden Construction Corp. of Jacksonville, Mo., which has a contract with the U.S. Air Force for improvements related to the KC-46 air refueling aircraft project.

Upon conviction, the crimes carry the following penalties:

  • Possession of false documents: A maximum penalty of 10 years and a fine up to $250,000.
  • Aggravated identity theft: A mandatory two years to run consecutive to the underlying sentence and a fine up to $250,000 on each count.
  • Producing a false identification: A maximum penalty of 15 years and a fine up to $4250,000.
  • Making a false statement to the U.S. government: A maximum penalty of five years and a fine up to $250,000.
  • Misusing a Social Security number: A maximum penalty of five years and a fine up to $250,000.

Immigration and Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.

Andris Cukurs, 68, Glendale, Calif., is charged with one count of attempted money laundering. The government is seeking forfeiture of more than $314,800 seized Nov. 14, 2014. The crime is alleged to have occurred in Dickinson County, Kan.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $500,000. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Debra Barnett is prosecuting.

Michael L. Shelton, 32, Wichita, Kan., is charged one with one count of possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, one count of possession with of heroin with intent to distribute, one count of unlawful possession of a firearm following a felony conviction, one count of possession of a stolen firearm and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. The crimes are alleged to have occurred Oct. 21, 2014, in Clark County, Kan.

Upon conviction, the crimes carry the following penalties:

  • Possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute: Not less than 10 years and a fine up to $10 million.
  • Possession of heroin with intent to distribute: Not less than five years and not more than 40 years and a fine up to $5 million.
  • Possession of a firearm following a felony conviction, possession of a stolen firearm: A maximum penalty of 10 years and a fine up to $250,000.
  • Possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking: Not less than five years and a fine up to $250,000.

The Drug Enforcement Administration investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lanny Welch is prosecuting.

Curtis D. Wooten, II, 30, Wichita, Kan., is charged with one count of unlawful possession of a firearm following a felony conviction, one count of possession of a stolen firearm, and one count of unlawful possession of a sawed off shotgun. The crimes are alleged to have occurred Sept. 18, 2014, in Sedgwick County, Kan.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison on each count. The Wichita Police Department investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lanny Welch is prosecuting.

John P. Stark, 47, Great Bend, Kan., Kan., Deona L. McNutt, 24, Great Bend, Kan., Alyssa Dannebohm, 30, Hutchinson, Kan., and Keith M. Dannebohm, 22, Hutchinson, Kan. are charged with counterfeiting $100 bills. In the same case, Justin E. Herren, 30, Great Bent, Kan., is charged with one count of passing two $100 bills.

In addition, Stark is charged with one count of unlawful possession of a firearm following a felony conviction and three counts of making counterfeit bills.

If convicted, the defendants face a maximum penalty of 10 years and a fine up to $250,000 on the firearms charge, and a maximum penalty of 20 years and a fine up to $250,000 on each of the other counts.

The U.S. Secret Service and the Department of Homeland Security investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matt Treaster is prosecuting.

Joseph Anthony Ransom, 29, Ellis, Kan., and Carly Marie Dreiling, 21, Hays, Kan., are charged with one count of growing181 marijuana plants in the basement of their residence, one count of possessing 181 marijuana plants, and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking. The crimes are alleged to have occurred Sept. 25, 2014, in Ellis County, Kan.

If convicted, they face a maximum penalty of 20 years and a fine up to $1 million on each of the drug charges; and a penalty of not less than five years and a fine up to $250,000 on the firearm charge. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney David Lind is prosecuting.

Pedro Garcia-Cordero, 41, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with unlawfully re-entering the United States after being deported. He was found July 7, 2014, in Sedgwick County, Kan.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of two years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.

Teodoro Erasmo Luna, 53, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with three counts of making a false statement to the U.S. government, three counts of misusing a Social Security number, five counts of aggravated identity theft, two counts of document fraud, one count of unlawful production of an identification document, one count of making a false statement on a passport application and one count of making a false claim of U.S. citizenship. The crimes are alleged to have occurred in 2010, 2011, 2013 and 2014 in Ford County, Kan.

Upon conviction, the crimes carry the following penalties:

  • False statement: A maximum penalty of five years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000.
  • Misusing a Social Security number: A maximum penalty of five years and a fine up to $250,000 on each count.
  • Aggravated identity theft: A mandatory consecutive two-year sentence and a fine up to $250,000.
  • Document fraud: A maximum penalty of 15 years and a fine up to $250,000.

The U.S. Department of State and Defense Security Services investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.

Antonio Perez-Vargas, 47, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with two counts of making false statements to the U.S. government.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on each count. The Social Security Administration—Office of Inspector General investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.

In all cases, defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. The indictments merely contain allegations of criminal conduct.