FBI’s Top Ten News Stories for the Week Ending October 15, 2010
| Washington, D.C. October 15, 2010 |
- Department of Justice/Multiple Field Offices: 73 Members and Associates of Organized Crime Enterprise, Others Indicted for Health Care Fraud Crimes Involving More Than $163 Million
Seventy-three defendants, including a number of alleged members and associates of an Armenian-American organized crime enterprise, were charged in indictments unsealed in five judicial districts with various health care fraud-related crimes involving more than $163 million in fraudulent billing. Indictments were filed in California, Georgia, New Mexico, New York, and Ohio. Full Story
- FBI Headquarters/Detroit: Justice Department Concludes No Federal Criminal Violation in the Death of Imam Abdullah in Dearborn
The Justice Department announced Wednesday that the evidence does not reveal a violation of the applicable federal criminal civil rights statute or warrant further federal criminal investigation in the death of Imam Luqman Ameen Abdullah, a Detroit Muslim cleric, who was shot during an October 28, 2009, arrest by FBI agents in Dearborn, Michigan. Full Story
- New York: Chief Operating Officer of a Money Service Company Pleads Guilty to Defrauding Banks, Retailers, Hospitals, and Universities of More Than $50 Million
Bernard McGarry, the chief operating officer of Mount Vernon Money Center (MVMC), pled guilty Wednesday to defrauding MVMC clients, including banks that had received TARP funds, universities, and hospitals, of more than $50 million that had been entrusted to MVMC. McGarry pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud and six counts of bank fraud. Full Story
- Dallas: U.S. Army Major Sentenced to 21 Months in Prison for False Statements Charge Related to Attempt to Smuggle Currency from Iraq to the United States
U.S. Army Major Charles E. Sublett was sentenced to 21 months in prison for making false statements to a federal agency. According to the indictment, Sublett smuggled more than $100,000 in currency, concealed in a shipping package, into the United States from Iraq in January 2005. Full Story - FBI Headquarters: Businessman Accused of Taking Bribe in Afghanistan and Promising to Steer U.S.-Funded Contracts
Neil Campbell, a senior construction manager for an intergovernmental organization working in Afghanistan, has been detained on a bribery charge. The indictment alleges that from on or about May 25, 2010, until on or about August 5, 2010, in Afghanistan, Campbell corruptly solicited a bribe for awarding sub-contracts funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development. Full Story
- Boston: Uncle, Nephew Indicted for Insider Trading
Peter E. Talbot and Carl E. Binette were charged in a seven-count indictment with conspiracy and securities fraud. Binette was also charged with obstruction of justice. Talbot was employed by the Hartford Investment Management Company (HIMCO) and learned that the insurance company Safeco Corp. was a potential acquisition target of HIMCO’s parent company, the Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. Talbot proceeded to tip his nephew, Binette, with regard to Safeco’s status as a potential acquisition target, and the two set up an online brokerage account to buy Safeco securities. Full Story
- Detroit: Michigan Business Owner Enters Guilty Plea as Part of Ferguson Big-Rigging Scheme
Brian Dodds pled guilty as part of the ongoing federal investigation into fraud, money laundering, and obstruction of justice involving the Garden View Estates public housing project in Detroit. Full Story
- Baltimore: Man Sentenced to More Than 15 Years for Attempting to Rob an Armored Car
Toumani Touray Thomas was sentenced to 183 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release for attempting to rob a Dunbar armored truck containing more than $2 million in cash and firing a rifle during the robbery attempt. Thomas was also ordered to pay restitution of $5,285 for the damage he caused to the armored truck. Full Story
- New York: Former Construction Manager for Touro College Pleads Guilty to Commercial Kickback Scheme
Lawrence Pesce, a former construction manager for Touro College, pled guilty to wire fraud in connection with defrauding Touro College of more than $2 million through a commercial kickback scheme. Pesce was previously arrested in this case on June 22, 2010. Full Story
- San Francisco: President of Organic Fertilizer Company Indicted for Fraud in Connection with Selling Synthetic Fertilizer to Organic Farms
A federal grand jury in San Francisco indicted Peter Townsley on eight counts of mail fraud, two counts of making false statements, and one count of conspiring to commit mail fraud. The indictment charges Townsley with engaging in a scheme to defraud purchasers of organic fertilizers, and the agency that approves fertilizers as organic, by falsely representing his company’s fertilizer to be an organic product when he knew that the product contained prohibited synthetic materials. Full Story