Jury Convicts Three Men for Violent Hobbs Act Conspiracy

MIAMI – On Dec. 12, a federal jury found Palacio Valdes Farley, a/k/a “Bobo” and “Bo,” Joassaint Josiah Aristil, Jr., a/k/a “JoJo,”, and Jamar Brandon Nattiel, a/k/a “Debo” and “D-Boy,” guilty of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery.

According to evidence presented at trial, during 2016 and 2017, Farley organized and led a South Florida-based conspiracy to distribute marijuana.  Farley sought to obtain marijuana for free, so that he could sell it at a 100 percent profit.  To obtain free marijuana, Farley would obtain marijuana on credit, fail to pay for it, and conspired with others to rob suppliers of their product.

Farley’s conspiracy to rob drug-traffickers of their marijuana began on or about May 22-23, 2016, when Farley, co-defendant Andrew Francois Martin, and Farley’s known associate and unindicted co-conspirator, “John Doe,” flew from Florida to Los Angeles for the purpose of robbing a supplier of his marijuana.  On the morning of May 24, 2016, the three robbers met with a supplier in an apartment in Van Nuys, California, for the purpose of taking 25 pounds of marijuana that the supplier intended to sell them.  When the supplier refused to sell the marijuana on consignment; the robbers shot the victim several times, took his marijuana, and fled the scene.

Evidence was also introduced at trial that on April 20, 2017, Farley and Martin approached two additional victims, with guns drawn, as they exited a restaurant in Daytona Beach, Florida and were walking to their car. One victim was pushed to the ground at gunpoint, while another was robbed of a chain, watch, pendant, and wallet.  Martin shot at the owner of the restaurant when the owner came to the aid of his customers.  The owner shot back and wounded Martin in the leg. 

Thereafter, the Hobbs Act conspiracy continued.

In and around Nov. 2017, Farley enlisted co-defendants Lisa Ann Flood, Karen Xiomara Williams, JoAristil and Nattiel, to rob a victim in southern California.  To set up the robbery, Farley told the victim that he would send one of his representatives to pay a drug debt and buy more marijuana. On the night of December 5, 2017, Flood, Williams, Aristil, Nattiel, and an unidentified male co-conspirator, met in a hotel room to prepare for the robbery.  Aristil, Nattiel, and the unidentified male donned black.  Lisa Flood loaded the 9 mm pistols and gave the firearms to Aristil and Nattiel.  The group then drove to the victim’s neighborhood.  At approximately 11:30 pm., Flood knocked on the front door of the marijuana distributor and was let in.  After a brief conversation, Flood excused herself to return to her car and get money.  A moment later, Aristil, Nattiel, and a third man burst through the front door.  They pointed their guns at the victim, tied the victim’s hands and feet with zip ties, and confined the victim to a room.  One of the robbers went upstairs and pulled the victim’s wife out of bed, put his arm around her neck, stuck his gun in her back, and marched her downstairs to the den, where they tied her hands and feet, and put a plastic bag over her head.  The robbers then ransacked the victims’ house, stealing marijuana, jewelry, and currency. 

Martin and Flood previously pled guilty to participating in the conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery and are pending sentencing. Williams pled guilty to conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery and was sentenced to 168 months in prison. 

U.S. District Judge Roy K. Altman is scheduled to sentence Farley, Aristil, and Nattiel, on March 18, 2024.  Each defendant faces up to 20 years in prison. 

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI, Miami Field Office, and Sheriff Gregory Tony of the Broward Sheriff’s Office (BSO) announced the convictions.

FBI and BSO investigated this case with assistance from Lauderhill Police Department, Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), and Daytona Beach Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dwayne E. Williams and Elena Smukler are prosecuting it. 

Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.

This prosecution is a part of the Justice’s Department’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) and Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) programs.

PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through the PSN program a broad spectrum of law enforcement and community stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs to reduce violence crime and gun violence, and to make our local neighborhoods safer for everyone.

OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies.  Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 22-20556-Cr-Altman/Reid.

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