Top Stories: Last Week



06/15/2017

SAN JUAN, P.R.

CHILD EXPLOITATION

7 Puerto Rican men indicted, arrested on child exploitation charges
HSI special agents arrested Gabriel Cañas-Guerrero, 23, of Ponce and Victor Gadiel Reyes-Rodriguez, 31, of Orocovis, for possession of images depicting actual minors engaging in sexually illicit conduct while Christian Joel Lorenzo-Feliciano, 22, of Aguada, was arrested for distribution and possession of child pornography. According to the indictment, Lorenzo Feliciano used a file-sharing computer program with access to the Internet to distribute visual depictions of minors engaging in sexually illicit conduct. Likewise, HSI special agents arrested Angel Luis Sepulveda-Ramos, 45, of Lajas and Martin Suarez-Imbert, 42, of Carolina, for advertising child pornography. Sepulveda-Ramos was also charged with transportation of child pornography. The indictment alleges that he used the Ares peer-to-peer software to share child pornography and that he transported such contraband. Two other defendants, Vidal Berrios-Davila, 65, of Cataño and Francisco Javier Alicea-Baez, were arrested for receipt and distribution of child pornography.



06/14/2017

NEW YORK, NY

TRANSNATIONAL GANGS


Operation Matador nets 39 MS-13 arrests in last 30 days
This joint initiative is comprised of: HSI special agents, ERO deportation officers, the ICE Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), and state and local law enforcement partners to include Suffolk County Police Department (SCPD), Nassau County Police Department (NCPD) and the New York City Police Department (NYPD). The DHS TOCI is responsible for identifying, interdicting and investigating a wide variety of transnational border crime with a concentration on MS-13 gang activity.



06/13/2017

GLYNCO, GA

OPERATIONAL


ICE OTTP Operations Glynco, Georgia: ICE Academy prepares next generation of officers
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Instructor, Nathan S. Brown, recognizes the importance of the Academy’s instructional staff: “Every agent I come in contact with has the potential to face a very real set of life or death decisions. It is my job to prepare them, to the best of my ability, for that day.”



06/12/2017

CHARLESTON, SC

TRANSNATIONAL GANGS

SC gang sentenced for drive-by shootings following ICE HSI investigation
Brian Manigo and Damien Robinson, of Walterboro, were each sentenced to 10 years in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Richard M. Gergel. Kelvin Mitchell, of Ruffkin, was sentenced to 39 months in federal prison. All three defendants were ordered to also pay the costs of medical care for their victims and to serve three years supervised release following their federal prison terms.



06/12/2017

DALLAS, TX

HUMAN SMUGGLING/TRAFFICKING

North Texas man sentenced to life in federal prison for child sex trafficking
Martavious Detrel Banks Keys, aka “Cheese” and “Matt,” 34, was convicted in February 2017, following a three-day jury trial, on two counts of child sex trafficking and one count of sex trafficking through force, fraud or coercion. Keys had been in custody since his arrest in May 2016.

https://www.ice.gov/news/top-stories...week&created=1



I.C.E. News Releases


06/19/2017

ABILENE, TX

HUMAN SMUGGLING/TRAFFICKING


2 West Texas men each receive 20 years in federal prison sentences for sexual exploiting a 12-year-old girl
Terrell Orlando Kinchen, 20, and Troy Lee Applin Jr., 23, were each sentenced by U.S. District Judge Reed C. O’Connor to 240 months in federal prison.



06/19/2017

NEWARK, NJ



ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL


ICE Newark arrests two aliens after New Jersey county declines detainers
On May 18, ICE lodged an immigration detainer on Aurelio Hernandez Cortez, a Mexican citizen, with the Middlesex County Adult Correctional Facility. On May 18, the facility released him from custody without notification to ICE. Hernandez Cortez currently has a pending criminal charge in Middlesex County.



06/16/2017

MINNEAPOLIS, MN



HUMAN SMUGGLING/TRAFFICKING


Minneapolis sex offender sentenced to 36 years in federal prison for sex trafficking 3 minors and producing child pornography
Deuvontay Shelby Charles, 22, was indicted on March 7, 2016, and on Dec. 14, 2016, was convicted by a federal jury on 20 of 23 counts.



06/16/2017

WASHINGTON, DC



TRANSNATIONAL GANGS


23 alleged Vagos outlaw motorcycle gang members, associates indicted on federal racketeering charges
Federal, state, and local law enforcement officers fanned out across three states early Friday morning to arrest 19 alleged members and associates of the Vagos Outlaw Motorcycle Gang charged in a 12-count federal indictment with conspiracy involving racketeering, murder, robbery, kidnapping and aggravated assault, among other charges.




06/15/2017

BROWNSVILLE, TX



CHILD EXPLOITATION


70-year-old southeast Texas man sentenced to 5 years in federal prison for possessing nearly 1,500 images of child pornography
Howard William Halverson, from South Padre Island, pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography Nov. 29, 2016.



06/15/2017

SAN JUAN, <acronym title="Google Page Ranking">PR</acronym>



CHILD EXPLOITATION


7 Puerto Rican men indicted, arrested on child exploitation charges
HSI special agents arrested Gabriel Cañas-Guerrero, 23, of Ponce and Victor Gadiel Reyes-Rodriguez, 31, of Orocovis, for possession of images depicting actual minors engaging in sexually illicit conduct while Christian Joel Lorenzo-Feliciano, 22, of Aguada, was arrested for distribution and possession of child pornography. According to the indictment, Lorenzo Feliciano used a file-sharing computer program with access to the Internet to distribute visual depictions of minors engaging in sexually illicit conduct. Likewise, HSI special agents arrested Angel Luis Sepulveda-Ramos, 45, of Lajas and Martin Suarez-Imbert, 42, of Carolina, for advertising child pornography. Sepulveda-Ramos was also charged with transportation of child pornography. The indictment alleges that he used the Ares peer-to-peer software to share child pornography and that he transported such contraband. Two other defendants, Vidal Berrios-Davila, 65, of Cataño and Francisco Javier Alicea-Baez, were arrested for receipt and distribution of child pornography.



06/14/2017

BROWNSVILLE, TX



NARCOTICS


South Texas jury convicts Mexican man for importing 11 pounds of methamphetamine disguised in bags of candy
Following a two-day trial and after about two hours of deliberation, Martin Araiza-Jacobo, a U.S. permanent resident who resided in Matamoros, Mexico, was convicted of conspiracy to possess and possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver as well as conspiracy to import and importation of methamphetamine.



06/14/2017

NEW YORK, NY



TRANSNATIONAL GANGS


Operation Matador nets 39 MS-13 arrests in last 30 days
This joint initiative is comprised of: HSI special agents, ERO deportation officers, the ICE Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), and state and local law enforcement partners to include Suffolk County Police Department (SCPD), Nassau County Police Department (NCPD) and the New York City Police Department (NYPD). The DHS TOCI is responsible for identifying, interdicting and investigating a wide variety of transnational border crime with a concentration on MS-13 gang activity.




06/13/2017

BEAUMONT, TX



NARCOTICS


East Texas man sentenced to more than 11 years in prison for drug trafficking
Ben Doyle Vaughn III, 45, of Vidor, Texas, was sentenced June 13 to 135 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Thad Heartfield for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. He pleaded guilty to the charge Jan. 5.



06/13/2017

SANTA ANA, CA



CHILD EXPLOITATION


Orange County man sentenced to over 8 years in federal prison for possessing large collection of child pornography
Peter Henry Herz, 61, received a 97-month sentence Monday from U.S. District Judge Cormac J. Carney. Following the completion of his prison term, Herz will be subject to supervised release for the rest of his life.



06/13/2017

GLYNCO, GA



OPERATIONAL


ICE OTTP Operations Glynco, Georgia: ICE Academy prepares next generation of officers
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Instructor, Nathan S. Brown, recognizes the importance of the Academy’s instructional staff: “Every agent I come in contact with has the potential to face a very real set of life or death decisions. It is my job to prepare them, to the best of my ability, for that day.”



06/12/2017

CHARLESTON, SC



TRANSNATIONAL GANGS


SC gang sentenced for drive-by shootings following ICE HSI investigation
Brian Manigo and Damien Robinson, of Walterboro, were each sentenced to 10 years in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Richard M. Gergel. Kelvin Mitchell, of Ruffkin, was sentenced to 39 months in federal prison. All three defendants were ordered to also pay the costs of medical care for their victims and to serve three years supervised release following their federal prison terms.




06/12/2017

NEW YORK, NY



ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL


New York-area ICE detainee passes away
Consistent with the agency’s protocols, the appropriate state health and local law enforcement agencies have been notified about the death, as have the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General and the ICE Office of Professional Responsibility. Additionally, ICE has advised Salvadoran consular representatives.



06/12/2017

DALLAS, TX



HUMAN SMUGGLING/TRAFFICKING


North Texas man sentenced to life in federal prison for child sex trafficking
Martavious Detrel Banks Keys, aka “Cheese” and “Matt,” 34, was convicted in February 2017, following a three-day jury trial, on two counts of child sex trafficking and one count of sex trafficking through force, fraud or coercion. Keys had been in custody since his arrest in May 2016.



06/09/2017

NEWARK, NJ



ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL


ICE Newark arrests 113 criminal targets in 5-day enforcement surge
All of the targets in this operation were criminal in nature. 93% of those that were arrested were convicted criminals and 87% of them had prior felony convictions.



06/09/2017

SPOKANE, WA



CHILD EXPLOITATION


Washington man receives 5 years in child pornography case
Thomas J. Montieth, 65, was discovered by an undercover HSI special agent while using peer-to-peer file sharing software to distribute child pornography images from July 22 to Aug. 5, 2016. HSI special agents executed a federal search warrant Sep. 7 at Montieth’s residence where they discovered his desktop computer and flash drive contained 21,244 images and 394 videos of child pornography.




06/09/2017

LUBBOCK, TX



NARCOTICS


2 West Texas men sentenced to more than 12 years in prison for distributing methamphetamines
Michael Sebastian Ford, 24, from Lubbock, Texas was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Sam R. Cummings to 150 months. Ford pleaded guilty in February 2017 to one count of possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine.



06/09/2017

MIAMI, FL



HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATORS


ICE removes former soldier, human rights violator to El Salvador
According to court documents, Jose Francisco Grijalva Monroy, 49, a citizen of El Salvador, testified that as a soldier in the Salvadoran army, he tortured suspected guerrillas by hanging them by their hands from trees and slapping their chests with his bare hands.



06/09/2017

LUBBOCK, TX



CHILD EXPLOITATION


West Texas man sentenced to nearly 16 years in federal prison for distributing child pornography
According to documents filed in the case, on July 6, 2016, Kelly Turner, 35, of San Angelo, Texas, distributed two images depicting a minor female engaged in sexually explicit conduct.



06/09/2017

FORT BENNING, GA



OPERATIONAL


ICE OTTP instructor helps save life
Gueringer, a firearms programs specialist and tactical instructor with ICE’s Office of Training and Tactical Programs (OTTP), was class coordinator for a group of officers with the DHS National Protection and Programs Directorate’s Federal Protective Service (FPS).



06/09/2017

FORT WORTH, TX



NARCOTICS


North Texas man sentenced to life in prison for trafficking methamphetamine
Baldemar Solis, from Arlington, was sentenced June 9 by U.S. District John McBryde to a term of life imprisonment. Solis, who had been a fugitive since 2012, was arrested in September 2016 and has been in custody since his arrest.



06/09/2017

LAREDO, TX



NARCOTICS


Mexican woman sentenced to more than 8 years in federal prison for importing methamphetamine
Vanessa Hernandez, 24, from Guadalajara, Mexico, was sentenced June 9 by U.S. District George P. Kazen to 100 months in federal prison. Since she is not a U.S. citizen, she is expected to face deportation proceedings following her release from prison. Hernandez pleaded guilty to the charges Sept. 6, 2016.



06/09/2017

ATLANTA, GA



FINANCIAL CRIMES


Atlanta HSI, CBP establish coordination center to promote trade enforcement
ICE HSI Atlanta Special Agent in Charge Nick Annan and U.S. Customs and Border Protection Acting Atlanta Field Office Director Robert M. Del Toro signed an MOA between the agencies Wednesday to implement the Atlanta Trade Enforcement Coordination Center (TECC).



06/09/2017

SAN FRANCISCO, CA



ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL


ICE arrests over 50 in central California operation targeting criminal aliens, illegal re-entrants, and immigration fugitives
ICE deportation officers conduct targeted enforcement operations every day in locations around the country as part of the agency’s ongoing efforts to protect the nation, uphold public safety, and protect the integrity of our immigration laws and border controls.

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