I.C.E. AND C.B.P. News Releases 2/18/19
I.C.E. News Releases
02/13/2019
BALTIMORE, MD
ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL
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ICE removes MS-13 member wanted in El Salvador
Saul Ernesto Orellana-Jandres, 25, is wanted by Salvadoran authorities for membership to a terrorist organization.
02/13/2019
SAN DIEGO, CA
WORKSITE ENFORCEMENT
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ICE Homeland Security Investigations execute federal search warrant during worksite enforcement operation at local market
During the operation, 26 individuals working at the market were determined to be in the United States without authorization. They were temporarily taken into custody and released pending the outcome of their immigration case.
02/13/2019
KANSAS CITY, MO
CHILD EXPLOITATION
Former teacher indicted in Missouri for allegedly producing child pornography with 3 minor victims
William Derek Williams, 39, of Cameron, Missouri, was charged with three counts of producing child pornography, involving three different minor victims, from Jan. 1, 2013, to Sept. 6, 2018. Williams is also charged with one count of possessing child pornography.
02/12/2019
NEW YORK, NY
FINANCIAL CRIMES
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Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman found guilty on all charges in US Court
Joaquin Archivaldo Guzman Loera, the boss of the Siniloa Cartel, also known by various aliases, including “El Chapo” and “El Rapido,” was convicted Tuesday by a federal jury in Brooklyn of being a principal leader of a continuing criminal enterprise, a count that includes 26 drug-related violations and one murder conspiracy, through his leadership of the Mexican organized crime syndicate known as the Sinaloa Cartel.
02/12/2019
SAN JUAN, <acronym title="Google Page Ranking">PR</acronym>
CONTRABAND
ICE, DHS partners; Vieques Municipal Police seize 2,378 pounds of cocaine
On Feb 7, while investigating a suspicious yola-type vessel in Vieques, HSI and CBP special agents and officers, respectively, learned that a Coast Guard air unit, while on a routine patrol, detected another incoming vessel at approximately 10 nautical miles south of Vieques.
02/12/2019
NEWARK, NJ
ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL
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ICE removes South Korean national to face indecent assault convictions in home country
Don Hyun Choi departed the U.S. and was turned over to South Korean law enforcement authorities for the aforementioned criminal convictions.
02/08/2019
TAMPA, FL
HUMAN SMUGGLING/TRAFFICKING
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ICE Tampa announces human trafficking awareness campaign
ICE's HSI office partnered with Clear Channel Outdoor on a Tampa Bay area human trafficking awareness outreach campaign utilizing billboards across the region.
02/08/2019
LOS ANGELES, CA
CONTRABAND
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US and Australian authorities intercept 1.7 tons of methamphetamine bound for Australia from Los Angeles/Long Beach Seaport
The drugs, which consisted of three containers targeted for inspection, were seized at the Los Angeles/Long Beach seaport by officers with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on January 11 – intercepting the shipment before it could reach Australian shores.
02/08/2019
PHOENIX, AZ
ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL
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Phoenix ERO repatriates Guatemalan national wanted for homicide
Funes-Herrera, 52, came into ICE custody Sept. 5, 2018, after apprehension by the U.S. Border Patrol. At that time, he was detained, and placed into removal proceedings.
02/08/2019
DEL RIO, TX
CHILD EXPLOITATION
South Texas man sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for possessing child pornography
Timothy Robert Beasley, 51, from Del Rio, Texas, was sentenced Feb. 8 by U.S. District Judge Alia Moses who ordered Beasley to serve 120 months in prison. In addition, Beasley must also serve 10 years of supervised release after he completes his prison term; he must also pay $20,000 restitution to his victims. On Nov. 30, 2016, Beasley pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography.
02/08/2019
FORT WORTH, TX
NATIONAL SECURITY
North Texas man charged with conspiring to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization
Michael Kyle Sewell, 18, was charged Feb. 8 by criminal complaint with conspiring to provide material support and resources to Lashkar-e-Taiba, a Pakistani-based foreign terrorist organization.
02/07/2019
BOSTON, MA
HUMAN SMUGGLING/TRAFFICKING
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ICE HSI Boston special agent leads presentation at large anti-human trafficking networking, education event in western Massachusetts
ICE's HSI Boston Special Agent Michael Morizio was the featured presenter at a well-attended Feb. 5, anti-human trafficking professionals networking and education event hosted by the western Massachusetts division of the Office of the Massachusetts State Attorney General, which focused on effective practices in the identification and combating of human trafficking in Springfield, Massachusetts.
02/07/2019
HOUSTON, TX
ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL
Honduran child sex offender charged in Houston with illegally re-entering US
Marvin Yovani Mejia-Ramos – aka Martin Jose Romos-Ramirez, aka Ricardo Rodriguez-Morales – 50, an illegal alien from Honduras who has used multiple aliases and countries of origin, was charged Feb. 6 with illegal re-entry by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas.
02/07/2019
LOS ANGELES, CA
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS
3 federal cases allege illegal importation and sale of 'herbal' sexual enhancement pills that contained pharmaceutical drugs
Four companies and three individuals have agreed to plead guilty to federal criminal charges related to the illegal importation and sale of $11 million worth of pharmaceutical-grade erectile dysfunction drugs that were falsely marketed as herbal remedies for men. Federal prosecutors today filed two new cases against distributors of the misbranded drugs.
02/06/2019
WASHINGTON, DC
HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATORS
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ICE, DOJ recognize International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting
Female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) is a federal crime, and any involvement in committing this crime is a serious human rights violation which may result in imprisonment and potential removal from the United States. Individuals suspected of FGM/C, including sending girls overseas to be cut, may be investigated by the HRVWCC and prosecuted accordingly.
02/05/2019
SCRANTON, PA
CHILD EXPLOITATION
Pennsylvania man sentenced to 15 years' imprisonment for receiving child pornography
Michael Portanova, age 28, admitted that he used his cell phone to receive images and videos of child pornography, using a file-sharing network on the internet between August 2017 and Oct. 30, 2017, in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania.
02/01/2019
LOS ANGELES, CA
ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL
One of ICE's "most wanted" aliens indicted for illegally re-entering the US following deportation
Santos Moreira, 46, a citizen of Belize illegally present in the United States, was found in Los Angeles County on November 2, 2015, according to an indictment returned against him on January 25 by a federal grand jury.
02/01/2019
CHICAGO, IL
CHILD EXPLOITATION
Chicago-area musician pleads guilty to enticing underage girls to produce sexually explicit videos
Austin Jones, 26, of Bloomingdale, Illinois, pleaded guilty to one count of receiving child pornography.
02/01/2019
TULSA, OK
CHILD EXPLOITATION
Former Oklahoma teacher admits creating sexually violent images of children using photographs downloaded from Facebook
At the plea hearing, Jerry Matthew Berry admitted to producing obscene visual representations of the sexual abuse of children and distributing child pornography in 2017 and 2018. Cyber Crimes detectives from Tulsa Police Department and HSI special agents discovered Berry’s illicit activities during a peer-to-peer file-sharing undercover investigation.
01/31/2019
SANTA ANA, CA
DOCUMENT AND BENEFIT FRAUD
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Federal prosecutors unseal indictments naming 19 people linked to Chinese 'birth tourism' schemes that helped thousands of aliens give birth in US to secure birthright citizenship for their children
The indictments charge operators and clients of three “maternity house” or “birthing house” schemes that were dismantled in March 2015 when federal agents executed 35 search warrants, which resulted from international undercover operations.
01/31/2019
INDIANAPOLIS, IN
CHILD EXPLOITATION
Indiana high school swim coach sentenced to nearly 17 years in federal prison for sexually exploiting student athlete
John Goelz, 30, exploited his position of trust and authority with one of his student athletes, a minor, for his own sexual gratification.
01/31/2019
MUSKOGEE, OK
CHILD EXPLOITATION
Oklahoma man sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for possessing child pornography
Ryan Edward Offineer, 41, of Muldrow, Oklahoma, was sentenced to 120 months’ imprisonment, 15 years’ supervised release, and ordered to pay $8,500 in restitution to the victim(s) for possessing child pornography.
01/31/2019
PHOENIX, AZ
ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL
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ICE removes Honduran national wanted for homicide in his home country
Rigoberto Calderon-Villeda, 26, came into ICE custody July 30, 2018, after apprehension by the U.S. Border Patrol. At that time, he was detained for illegal entry, and placed into removal proceedings.
01/31/2019
ATLANTA, GA
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS
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ICE, CBP operation nets over $24 million in fake sports-related merchandise
Special agents from HSI teamed with industry, CBP, Atlanta police officers and other partner agencies to identify flea markets, retail outlets and street vendors selling counterfeit goods during the week leading up to Super Bowl LIII. They seized fake jerseys, hats, cell-phone accessories and thousands of other bogus items prepared to be sold to unsuspecting consumers.
01/30/2019
DETROIT, MI
STUDENT AND EXCHANGE VISITOR PROGRAM
8 individuals indicted for exploiting the US student visa system
Charged in the indictments were: Barath Kakireddy, 29, of Lake Mary; Suresh Kandala, 31, of Culpeper; Phanideep Karnati, 35, of Louisville, Kentucky; Prem Rampeesa, 26, of Charlotte, North Carolina; Santosh Sama, 28, of Fremont, California; Avinash Thakkallapally, 28, of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; Aswanth Nune, 26, of Atlanta, Georgia; and Naveen Prathipati, 26, of Dallas, Texas.
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