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US Attorney's Office

Man Accused Of Killing Wife Ana Walshe, Gets 3 Years For Art Fraud: Feds Man Accused Of Killing Wife Ana Walshe, Gets 3 Years For Art Fraud: Feds
Man Accused Of Killing Wife Ana Walshe, Gets 3 Years For Art Fraud: Feds A Lynn, Massachusetts, man who will soon stand trial for allegedly murdering his wife found himself in another courtroom Tuesday when he was sentenced to more than three years in prison for an elaborate art fraud scheme, authorities said.  Brian Walshe, 49, was given 37 months behind bars after he pleaded guilty to selling fake Andy Warhol paintings on eBay labeled as authentic, the US Attorney for Massachusetts said.  The fraud began in 2011 when a friend gave Walshe three Andy Warhol paintings to sell on his behalf. Walshe kept the paintings and the profits, prosecutors said.&nb…
220 Pounds Of Drugs, Worth $8M, Seized In Mass; 'Largest Seizure' In State History: Feds 220 Pounds Of Drugs, Worth $8M, Seized In Mass; 'Largest Seizure' In State History: Feds
220 Pounds Of Drugs, Worth $8M, Seized In Mass; 'Largest Seizure' In State History: Feds Thousands of fentanyl pills made to look like candy, 20 pounds of cocaine, and more drugs than there are people in Massachusetts. That's what federal investigators laid out on a table Monday, Nov. 6, when they announced what is likely the biggest drug bust in history.  Emilio Garcia, 25, Sebastien Bejin, 33, and Deiby Felix, 40, all of Lynn, were charged with a litany of felonies following their arrests, the US Attorney for Massachusetts said.  US Attorney's Office Police began investigating the crew following an overdose death in Salem over the summer, investigators said. Officers surve…
Stealing From Critical Ill Patient: Pittsfield Nurse Who Took Fentanyl Going To Jail, Feds Say Stealing From Critical Ill Patient: Pittsfield Nurse Who Took Fentanyl Going To Jail, Feds Say
Stealing From Critical Ill Patient: Pittsfield Nurse Who Took Fentanyl Going To Jail, Feds Say A 37-year-old Pittsfield nurse who admitted she stole fentanyl from a critically ill patient's IV using a syringe will spend the next three months in federal prison, authorities said.  Jessica Lotto pleaded guilty in May to one count of acquiring a controlled substance by fraud, deceit, or subterfuge, the US Attorney's Office said. A judge sentenced her to three months behind bars on Friday, Feb. 17.  Investigators said Lotto was caring for a critically ill patient at Berkshire Medical Center in 2019 when she siphoned off some of the powerful painkiller. The patient was sedat…
FBI Probing Veteran's Claim That George Santos Stole Dying Dog's Charity Money, Report Says FBI Probing Veteran's Claim That George Santos Stole Dying Dog's Charity Money, Report Says
FBI Probing Veteran's Claim That George Santos Stole Dying Dog's Charity Money, Report Says The bad news just keeps coming for embattled New York Rep. George Santos, who is now the subject of an FBI investigation into accusations he stole charity money intended to help a Navy veteran’s dying service dog, Politico reports.  Richard Osthoff, of Howell, New Jersey, told the outlet that two FBI agents reached out to him on Wednesday, Feb. 1, as part of an investigation by the US Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of New York. Earlier Report: Bye George: Embattled Nassau Rep Santos Stepping Down 'Temporarily' From Committee Assignments Osthoff told Politico he gave the agents …
Famed Painter's Son In Central Mass Guilty Of Ramming Cops With Shield In Jan. 6 Attack: Feds Famed Painter's Son In Central Mass Guilty Of Ramming Cops With Shield In Jan. 6 Attack: Feds
Famed Painter's Son In Central Mass Guilty Of Ramming Cops With Shield In Jan. 6 Attack: Feds A Washington, DC, jury found a 61-year-old Athol man who testified he thought the Jan. 6 riots on the US Capitol was "fun and enjoyable" guilty of taking part in the violent uprising, federal authorities said.  Vincent Gillespie was convicted earlier this month of assaulting, resisting, or impeding officers; civil disorder; engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds; and acts of physical violence in the Capitol grounds or buildings, the US Attorney's Office said. A judge will sentence him in March.  NBC News reporter Ryan J. Reilly tweeted that in November Gillespie …
Harvard-Educated Sleep Doctor Slept Well In Brookline Home He Bought Defrauding Patients: Feds Harvard-Educated Sleep Doctor Slept Well In Brookline Home He Bought Defrauding Patients: Feds
Harvard-Educated Sleep Doctor Slept Well In Brookline Home He Bought Defrauding Patients: Feds A federal grand jury indicted a Brookline sleep doctor this week on charges that he ran multiple frauds and laundered hundreds of thousands of dollars to help him purchase a $1.6 million home in the toney town.   Dr. Pankaj Merchia, 49, faces three counts of money laundering and one count of health care fraud stemming from the alleged schemes, the US Attorney's Office said.  The indictment lays out the two alleged frauds. In one, Merchia continued to bill patients' insurance companies for monthly rentals of CPAP and BiPap machines — breathing devices used to treat sleep …
Car Full of Fools Gold Sinks Scammer's Plan To Swindle Central Mass Woman: Feds Car Full of Fools Gold Sinks Scammer's Plan To Swindle Central Mass Woman: Feds
Car Full of Fools Gold Sinks Scammer's Plan To Swindle Central Mass Woman: Feds A Jersey City, NJ, man posing as a DEA agent attempted to scam an Athol woman out of more than $330,000 in a complicated grift involving non-existent drug dealers and a car loaded down with fake gold in a Texas Roadhouse parking lot, federal authorities said.  Gaurang Contractor, 38, an Indian national, faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted on the charge of wire fraud, the US Attorney's Office announced on Friday, Dec. 9.  Investigators said Contractor contacted the woman in August and claimed to be a DEA agent named Oscar White. He told her that she was implicated…
Lynn Ex-Postman Who Admitted Stealing iPads, Cash From Mail Avoids Jailtime: Feds Lynn Ex-Postman Who Admitted Stealing iPads, Cash From Mail Avoids Jailtime: Feds
Lynn Ex-Postman Who Admitted Stealing iPads, Cash From Mail Avoids Jailtime: Feds A 32-year-old former post office employee who admitted to stealing mail must pay restitution to his victims, but he won't serve jail time, federal authorities said.  Juan Murillo, who admitted to taking two iPads bound for a Harvard University dorm and cash from an envelope he was delivering, was sentenced to a year of probation and $2,400 restitution, the US Attorney for Massachusetts said.  Murillo pleaded guilty in April and could have faced as much as five years in prison and a fine ranging up to $25,000.  Murillo isn't the only area postal employee accused of stealing m…
Ex-Yale Med School Worker Who Stole $40 Million In Electronics Sentenced Ex-Yale Med School Worker Who Stole $40 Million In Electronics Sentenced
Ex-Yale Med School Worker Who Stole $40 Million In Electronics Sentenced A former Yale University School of Medicine employee who stole $40 million in computer and electronic hardware from the university has been sentenced. Jamie Petrone, age 43, a former resident of Naugatuck, was sentenced on Thursday, Oct. 13, to nine years in prison followed by three years of supervised release for wire fraud and filing a false tax return, according to Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States attorney for the District of Connecticut. She pleaded guilty to the charges on March 28. Earlier report - Former Yale Med School Employee Admits Stealing, Selling $40 Million In Elec…
RI Man Who Kidnapped, Killed MA's Jassy Correia Sentenced To Life In Prison RI Man Who Kidnapped, Killed MA's Jassy Correia Sentenced To Life In Prison
RI Man Who Kidnapped, Killed MA's Jassy Correia Sentenced To Life In Prison A Rhode Island man will spend the rest of his life behind bars for kidnapping and killing a 23-year-old mother from Boston, the US Attorney's Office for Massachusetts reports. Louis Coleman, of Providence, was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility for the death of Jassy Correia, of Dorchester on Tuesday, Oct. 11.  Corriera was reported missing after leaving her birthday celebration at Venu Nightclub in downtown Boston in the overnight hours of Sunday, February 24, 2019, authorities reported.  Shortly after 2 a.m., Correia got separated from her friends and tried to getting a…
Bernie Madoff Ponzi Scheme Victims To Get $372M More In Distributions, Feds Announce Bernie Madoff Ponzi Scheme Victims To Get $372M More In Distributions, Feds Announce
Bernie Madoff Ponzi Scheme Victims To Get $372M More In Distributions, Feds Announce Thousands of Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme victims will be receiving their portions of the latest distribution of more than $370 million. US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams announced that the Madoff Victim Fund will be distributing approximately $372 million to 40,000 victims worldwide who were involved in the fraud scheme. Earlier Report: Madoff Ponzi Scheme Victims To Get Nearly $500M More In Distributions To date, approximately $4 billion has been distributed to Madoff’s victims. Williams said that this eighth payment will bring the victims’ total re…
CT Resident Sentenced For Recruiting, Transporting Teen Girl To Engage In Commercial Sex CT Resident Sentenced For Recruiting, Transporting Teen Girl To Engage In Commercial Sex
CT Resident Sentenced For Recruiting, Transporting Teen Girl To Engage In Commercial Sex A 24-year-old man has been sentenced after he admitted to bringing a 16-year-old girl to a Connecticut hotel to engage in commercial sex acts. Joel Lindsay, who last resided in East Hartford, was sentenced on Thursday, Sept. 22, to more than 11 years in prison after pleading guilty to sex trafficking of a minor on Oct. 15, 2021, according to Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut. Lindsay conspired with an associate, Joseph Pina, to recruit and transport a 16-year-old girl to engage in commercial sex acts in October of 2019, the US Attorney's Offi…
21-Year-Old ‘All Around Great Guy’ From NY Charged For Alleged Role In Jan. 6 Riots 21-Year-Old ‘All Around Great Guy’ From NY Charged For Alleged Role In Jan. 6 Riots
21-Year-Old ‘All Around Great Guy’ From NY Charged For Alleged Role In Jan. 6 Riots A 21-year-old New York man is among the latest group of suspects facing charges for their alleged roles in breaching the US Capitol building on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021. Long Island’s Jon Lizak, of Cold Spring Harbor in Suffolk County, was arrested by federal investigators on Thursday, Sept. 15. Lizak and four other defendants illegally entered the Capitol as a group before moving through multiple corridors and rooms, including the office of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the US Attorney’s Office said. The group reportedly exited the building a half hour later. That’s when a 23-year-old ma…
New England Teacher On Leave After 8 Middle School Boys Keep Log Of His Alleged Harassment New England Teacher On Leave After 8 Middle School Boys Keep Log Of His Alleged Harassment
New England Teacher On Leave After 8 Middle School Boys Keep Log Of His Alleged Harassment A log of alleged harassment by their teacher dubbed the “Pedo Database” that was created by eight middle school boys in New England is now part of an official investigation into the teacher, The Boston Globe reports.  The Rhode Island teacher, who works at Davisville Middle School in North Kingstown, has been placed on administrative leave amid a probe into numerous claims of inappropriate behavior, including that he made female students dance for him, the outlet reports. One of the former students, now a 15-year-old high school student, told The Boston Globe that he and several other male…
Connecticut Man Admits To Cyberstalking, Threatening Massachusetts Woman Connecticut Man Admits To Cyberstalking, Threatening Massachusetts Woman
Connecticut Man Admits To Cyberstalking, Threatening Massachusetts Woman A 31-year-old Connecticut man has admitted to threatening, harassing, and intimidating a Massachusetts woman through email and social media.  Marshall Nicholas Fain, of New Haven, pleaded guilty on Wednesday, Aug. 31, to one count of cyberstalking and one count of transmitting threats through interstate commerce, United States Attorney Rachael Rollins announced on Wednesday, Sept. 7. Fain was arrested and charged on Feb. 2, the US Attorney's Office said. According to the report, Fain was in a relationship with the victim for about two years, and the relationship ended in August 2…
Massachusetts Post Office Manager Admits To Stealing Packages Of Cocaine: Feds Massachusetts Post Office Manager Admits To Stealing Packages Of Cocaine: Feds
Massachusetts Post Office Manager Admits To Stealing Packages Of Cocaine: Feds A 43-year-old Worcester post office manager pleaded guilty last month in federal court to stealing packages at least eight times that contained cocaine so he could sell the drugs, the Department of Justice announced.  Kevin Dombroski of Worcester admitted to one count of mail theft by a US Postal Service employee on Aug. 30, the US Attorney's Office said. A federal judge will sentence him in January. Dombroski said he stole packages between eight to 10 times that were mailed from Puerto Rico to Worcester that he thought had drugs inside. He would take the parcels into a private ro…
Ex-Cop From Hudson Valley Gets Record Jan. 6 Riot Sentence For Assaulting Officer With Weapon Ex-Cop From Hudson Valley Gets Record Jan. 6 Riot Sentence For Assaulting Officer With Weapon
Ex-Cop From Hudson Valley Gets Record Jan. 6 Riot Sentence For Assaulting Officer With Weapon A retired NYPD officer from the Hudson Valley received the longest prison sentence to date among those convicted of taking part in riots at the US Capitol on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021. Orange County resident Thomas Webster, age 56, of the village of Florida, was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison Thursday, Sept. 1, after a jury convicted him of assaulting a Washington, DC police officer with a deadly weapon. In May 2022, the jury found him guilty of five felonies and one misdemeanor for his actions during the Capitol breach. Earlier Report: Ex-Cop From Orange County Convicte…
Whitinsville Post Office Worker Busted For Stealing Packages: Feds Whitinsville Post Office Worker Busted For Stealing Packages: Feds
Whitinsville Post Office Worker Busted For Stealing Packages: Feds Porch pirates have become a major nuisance, but federal authorities said a U.S. Postal Service carrier decided to cut out the middle man and steal the packages himself.  William J. Page, 32, who worked at the USPS office in Whitinsville, was arrested this week and charged with three counts of mail theft by a Postal Service employee, the U.S. Attorney's Office said on Friday, Aug. 19.  Investigators said Page swiped collector's coins and other items in January and February 2022.  If convicted, Paige faces up to five years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine, the D…
Boston Traffickers Took Over Apartment Complex To Build Drug Factory: Feds Boston Traffickers Took Over Apartment Complex To Build Drug Factory: Feds
Boston Traffickers Took Over Apartment Complex To Build Drug Factory: Feds A federal judge sentenced a 36-year-old Boston man to more than five years in federal prison after he pleaded guilty to drug distribution and conspiracy charges, authorities said.  Arthur Hodges of Brighton was arrested as part of Operation Snowfall, a multi-law enforcement agency drug sting that targeted the drug operations of Boston-area street gangs, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. Investigators said Hodges was a supervisor and drug distributor.  During the operation, agents determined that a gang turned portions of the Commonwealth Development, formerly known as Fidelis Way a…
Repeat Arlington Child Porn Peddler, 27, Sent Sex Pics Of Toddlers: Prosecutors Repeat Arlington Child Porn Peddler, 27, Sent Sex Pics Of Toddlers: Prosecutors
Repeat Arlington Child Porn Peddler, 27, Sent Sex Pics Of Toddlers: Prosecutors A 27-year-old Arlington man with multiple convictions of sending and receiving child porn will spend the next decade in prison after he pleaded guilty to the charge in federal court, authorities said.  Mason Lister was arrested in 2020 after police found he had traded sexual images of children as young as toddlers through social media, the Department of Justice said. Authorities raided his home and found a tablet with 85 pictures and videos of child pornography, prosecutors said.  Lister pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography last month, and a judge sentenced him to 10 …
Massachusetts Man Admits To Assaulting Officers In Capitol Riot Case Massachusetts Man Admits To Assaulting Officers In Capitol Riot Case
Massachusetts Man Admits To Assaulting Officers In Capitol Riot Case A Massachusetts man pleaded guilty to assaulting law enforcement officers during the breach of the US Capitol.  Berkshire County resident Troy Sargent, age 38, of Pittsfield, pleaded guilty on Monday, June 27 in the District of Columbia to six counts of an indictment, including assaulting, resisting, or impeding officers and civil disorder. According to court documents, Sargent was part of a crowd of rioters illegally on the Capitol grounds on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021.  At approximately 2:30 p.m., he stepped forward from the crowd and swung his open hand towards a US Capitol police officer…
Massachusetts Man Sentenced For Child Exploitation Offenses Massachusetts Man Sentenced For Child Exploitation Offenses
Massachusetts Man Sentenced For Child Exploitation Offenses A 49-year-old Massachusetts man was sentenced to years in prison after pleading guilty to child exploitation offenses. David Cerasuolo, a resident of Plainville in Norfolk County, was sentenced to eight years in prison and five years of supervised release, according to Rachael S. Rollins, the United States attorney for the District of Massachusetts. Cerasuolo pleaded guilty to one count of attempted transfer of obscene material to a minor and one count of possession of child pornography on Friday, March 4, the US Attorney's Office said Beginning in June of 2020, Cerasuolo us…
Company Owner In Massachusetts Sentenced For Tax, Fraud Schemes Company Owner In Massachusetts Sentenced For Tax, Fraud Schemes
Company Owner In Massachusetts Sentenced For Tax, Fraud Schemes The owner of a Massachusetts plumbing company will spend more than a year behind bars for overbilling customers for work he never performed and engaging in a near $1.5 million tax evasion scheme, federal authorities announced. Prosecutors said that plumbing contractor Jared “Jay" Derrico, age 35, of the town of Boxford in Essex County, was sentenced to one year and one day in prison, followed by three years of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to one count of tax evasion and two counts of mail fraud in February. In addition to his prison time, Derrico was ordered to forfeit $315,00…
CT Resident Admits To Child Exploitation Offense CT Resident Admits To Child Exploitation Offense
CT Resident Admits To Child Exploitation Offense A 41-year-old Connecticut resident has admitted to a child exploitation charge. Former Litchfield County resident Kevin Curley pleaded guilty to one count of receipt of child pornography, according to Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States attorney for the District of Connecticut. In 2020, Homeland Security Investigations began investigating Curley's involvement in an online community of people who sent and received child pornography images and videos through a hidden service website that operated on a network that concealed the IP addresses and identities of the network's users, the ann…
Former CT Resident Sentenced For Distributing Fentanyl While Released On Bond Former CT Resident Sentenced For Distributing Fentanyl While Released On Bond
Former CT Resident Sentenced For Distributing Fentanyl While Released On Bond A convicted felon who was busted with an illegal assault rifle in Connecticut has been sentenced to additional prison time after admitting to distributing fentanyl while released on bond, the US Attorney’s Office announced. Brian “Whites” Velez, age 33, formerly of Hartford and West Hartford, has been sentenced to 57 months in prison, followed by four years of supervised release for illegally possessing a firearm and then distributing drugs while released on bond. US Attorney Vanessa Roberts Avery said that in November 2018, Velez led police on a short car chase in Hartford’s South End befo…
Western Mass Man Indicted For Sex Trafficking Minor Western Mass Man Indicted For Sex Trafficking Minor
Western Mass Man Indicted For Sex Trafficking Minor A man from Western Massachusetts is accused of prostituting a minor. Hampden County resident Carlos Casillas, age 48, of Springfield, was indicted by a federal grand jury on one count of sex trafficking a minor, according to the US Attorney’s Office in Massachusetts. Investigators said Casillas caused a child under the age of 18 to engage in a commerical sex act in West Springfield in September 2021. He was arrested the following February on charges of aggravated rape of a child and enticing a child, according to prosecutors. If convicted of sex trafficking a minor, Casillas would face …
CT Man Sentenced For Role In Cocaine Trafficking Ring Involving Postal Worker CT Man Sentenced For Role In Cocaine Trafficking Ring Involving Postal Worker
CT Man Sentenced For Role In Cocaine Trafficking Ring Involving Postal Worker A Connecticut man is heading to federal prison for his role in a cocaine trafficking ring that involved a US Postal worker. Kendall Hooks, age 50, of Hartford, was sentenced to more than 5 years behind bars Wednesday, May 11, in federal court in Hartford. It came nearly nine months after he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine, the US Attorney’s Office said. The charges stemmed from an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in Hartford and the US Postal Inspection Service that revea…
Connecticut Man Sentenced For Producing Child Pornography Connecticut Man Sentenced For Producing Child Pornography
Connecticut Man Sentenced For Producing Child Pornography A 52-year-old Connecticut man was sentenced to decades in prison for producing child pornography. Ronald Daniel, of Hartford, was sentenced on Monday, May 2, to 27 years in prison followed by 10 years of supervised release, according to Leonard Boyle, United States attorney for the District of Connecticut. He pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of production of child pornography on Feb. 24, 2021, the US Attorney's Office said.  According to court documents, Daniel took cell phone photos of himself engaging in sexual contact with a prepubescent child on at least two occas…
Man Accused Of Traveling To NY To Meet Minor For Sex, Feds Say Man Accused Of Traveling To NY To Meet Minor For Sex, Feds Say
Man Accused Of Traveling To NY To Meet Minor For Sex, Feds Say A New England man has been accused of traveling across state lines with the intent to engage in a sexual act with a minor, federal authorities in New York announced. Martin Connearney, age 32, of Lenox, Massachusetts, in Berkshire County, was arrested Thursday, May 5 and charged with traveling across state lines with the intent to engage in a sexual act with a minor, the Department of Justice's US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York and the FBI's Albany Field Office announced. The criminal complaint alleges that between Wednesday, April 6, 2022 and Wednes…
CT Woman Admits Straw Purchasing Several Firearms CT Woman Admits Straw Purchasing Several Firearms
CT Woman Admits Straw Purchasing Several Firearms A Connecticut woman faces 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to one count of making a false statement to a firearms dealer. Hartford County resident Leah Boucher, age 30, of Bristol, made the plea on Friday, April 29, said Leonard Boyle, US Attorney for the District of Connecticut According to court documents and statements made in court in August 2021, law enforcement conducted a court-authorized search of Tyrone Brown’s residence on Stevens Street in New Haven and seized a loaded 9mm semi-automatic pistol.   Brown, who was a convicted felon and was prohibited by federal l…
Money Courier For Large-Scale CT Fentanyl Trafficking Ring Sentenced Money Courier For Large-Scale CT Fentanyl Trafficking Ring Sentenced
Money Courier For Large-Scale CT Fentanyl Trafficking Ring Sentenced A Connecticut man has been sentenced to more than nine years in prison for his role in a fentanyl trafficking ring and for violating the conditions of his supervised release after a previous federal conviction. Domingo Guzman, age 45, of Waterbury, was sentenced on Thursday, April 28, to a total of 114 months in prison followed by four years of supervised release, according to Leonard Boyle, United States attorney for the District of Connecticut. He pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl on Nov. 22, B…