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Manhattan Federal Court

Husband Orchestrated Murder Of Renowned NY Art Dealer Brent Sikkema, DOJ Says Husband Orchestrated Murder Of Renowned NY Art Dealer Brent Sikkema, DOJ Says
Husband Orchestrated Murder Of Renowned NY Art Dealer Brent Sikkema, DOJ Says The estranged husband of acclaimed New York City art dealer Brent Sikkema orchestrated his killing, prosecutors alleged. Daniel Sikkema, 54, was indicted on murder-for-hire and related charges in Manhattan federal court on Tuesday, Feb. 11, in the death of Brent Sikkema. The art dealer and co-founder of Manhattan-based Sikkema Jenkins & Co, 75, was found stabbed to death inside his Rio de Janeiro townhouse in January 2024, according to the US Attorney’s Office. An investigation found that the couple was in the midst of contentious divorce proceedings when Daniel Sikkema hired a hit man…
Weight Loss Drug Illegally Purchased On Social Media Sickens Westchester Woman, Feds Say Weight Loss Drug Illegally Purchased On Social Media Sickens Westchester Woman, Feds Say
Weight Loss Drug Illegally Purchased On Social Media Sickens Westchester Woman, Feds Say A wannabe social media influencer from New York hoping to cash in on the medication weight loss craze illegally sold Ozempic and other drugs on TikTok, sickening at least one victim, federal prosecutors allege. Long Island resident Isis Navarro Reyes, age 36, of Shirley, is named in a six-count indictment that was unsealed in Manhattan federal court on Wednesday, May 1. Prosecutors allege that Reyes posted dozens of TikTok videos advertising and selling various misbranded and adulterated weight loss drugs, including Ozempic, Mesofrance, and Axcion, between November 2022 and January 2024. S…
Trump Defamation Case: Westchester Juror Among Those Awarding E. Jean Carroll $83.3M In Damages Trump Defamation Case: Westchester Juror Among Those Awarding E. Jean Carroll $83.3M In Damages
Trump Defamation Case: Westchester Juror Among Those Awarding E. Jean Carroll $83.3M In Damages For the second time in less than a year, a Manhattan federal jury has ordered former President Donald Trump to pay columnist E. Jean Carroll, a longtime Hudson Valley resident, millions of dollars in damages for repeatedly defaming her. The seven men and two women – including Hudson Valley residents from Westchester, Putnam, and Rockland counties – awarded Carroll a combined $83.3 million after deliberating for three hours on Friday, Jan. 26. The other jurors were from New York County (Manhattan) and the Bronx. Specifically, jurors decided that Trump should pay Carroll $11 million to fund a…
$10M Fraud Scheme: NY Father-Son Duo Spent Investor Money On Lavish Lifestyle, Feds Say $10M Fraud Scheme: NY Father-Son Duo Spent Investor Money On Lavish Lifestyle, Feds Say
$10M Fraud Scheme: NY Father-Son Duo Spent Investor Money On Lavish Lifestyle, Feds Say A New York father and son are accused of conning investors out of millions of dollars that allegedly went toward funding their lavish lifestyle. Long Island residents Eugene Austin, age 60, of Port Jefferson, and his son Brandon Austin, age 27, of Coram, are named in an indictment that was unsealed in Manhattan federal court on Wednesday, July 12. According to prosecutors, the men fraudulently offered to serve as a broker for sales of large quantities of cryptocurrency at below-market exchange rates and provide short-term investments in cryptocurrency for purportedly high returns. They als…
‘Trusted Lieutenant’ Of Westchester College Sex-Cult Leader Admits To Conspiracy ‘Trusted Lieutenant’ Of Westchester College Sex-Cult Leader Admits To Conspiracy
‘Trusted Lieutenant’ Of Westchester College Sex-Cult Leader Admits To Conspiracy A former Westchester County college student who fell under the spell of convicted sex-cult leader Larry Ray has pleaded guilty to conspiring to launder money for his illegal dealings. Isabella Pollok, age 31, a former student at Sarah Lawrence College, located near the border of Yonkers and Bronxville, who was described as Ray's "trusted lieutenant," pleaded guilty on Wednesday, Sept. 7 to one count related to Ray's twisted plot in Manhattan federal court. Ray, now age 62, will be sentenced in December on more than a dozen charges, including extortion, sex trafficking, and racketeering cons…
Hudson Valley Man Among Four Charged In Multi-Billion Dollar Market Manipulation Scheme Hudson Valley Man Among Four Charged In Multi-Billion Dollar Market Manipulation Scheme
Hudson Valley Man Among Four Charged In Multi-Billion Dollar Market Manipulation Scheme Federal officials announced that four have been arrested and charged for their alleged roles in the multi-billion dollar collapse of Archegos Capital Management. US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams said that the firm’s former CFO, Long Island resident Patrick Halligan, age 45, of Syosset, and New Jersey resident of Bill Hwang of Tenafly in Bergen County, have been arrested in connection to what Williams said was a racketeering scheme to manipulate the prices of publicly traded securities and to defraud global investment banks. Also charged, according to the De…
Alleged Crime Family Members, Associates From Westchester Charged With Racketeering Alleged Crime Family Members, Associates From Westchester Charged With Racketeering
Alleged Crime Family Members, Associates From Westchester Charged With Racketeering Alleged members of the Genovese Organized Crime Family from Westchester and Fairfield counties are facing racketeering charges for their roles within the organization. Federal prosecutors announced that four members and two associates of the family have been charged with racketeering conspiracy involving illegal gambling and extortion. Those charged in Manhattan federal court: Michael Messina, age 69, of New Fairfield, Connecticut; Ralph Balsamo, age 51, of Tuckahoe, NY; Michael Poli, age 37, of Hawthorne, NY; Nicholas Calisi, age 63, of Boca Raton, Florida; John Campanella, age 47, of t…
COVID-19: Unvaxxed Sarah Palin Tests Positive Just As Her Defamation Trial Vs. NY Times Starts COVID-19: Unvaxxed Sarah Palin Tests Positive Just As Her Defamation Trial Vs. NY Times Starts
Covid-19: Unvaxxed Sarah Palin Tests Positive Just As Her Defamation Trial Vs. NY Times Starts Former Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin tested positive for COVID-19 just as a civil defamation trial involving her and the New York Times was set to begin. A lawyer for Palin, who remains defiantly unvaccinated, announced on Monday, Jan. 24 that the one-time Alaska governor tested positive for COVID-19 following a diagnosis last year for the virus. Palin said last month that she would get a COVID-19 vaccine “over (her) dead body.” Manhattan federal court judge Jed Rakoff said on Monday that he had learned the previous day that Palin, age 57, tested positive for COVID. T…
Four Hudson Valley Brothers Accused Of $19M Scam To Defraud Amazon Four Hudson Valley Brothers Accused Of $19M Scam To Defraud Amazon
Four Hudson Valley Brothers Accused Of $19M Scam To Defraud Amazon Four brothers from the Hudson Valley have been charged for allegedly engaging in a scheme to systematically defraud Amazon.com of millions. "Through the course of the scheme, they manipulated Amazon’s vendor system in attempts to fraudulently induce Amazon to pay for goods that Amazon had not ordered," Audrey Strauss, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, said. In executing the scheme, they fraudulently attempted to obtain at least approximately $32 million and successfully obtained at least approximately $19 million, Strauss said. The four are:…
New York DEA Investigator Tried To Entice 14-Year-Old Boy To Have Sex, Feds Say New York DEA Investigator Tried To Entice 14-Year-Old Boy To Have Sex, Feds Say
New York DEA Investigator Tried To Entice 14-Year-Old Boy To Have Sex, Feds Say A former Drug Enforcement Administration investigator is facing charges for allegedly attempting to use child pornography to entice a minor to have sex with him. Frederick Scheinin, 29, of Sunnyside, Queens, was arrested and charged with one count of attempted production of child pornography, and one count of attempted enticement of a minor after attempting to lure his alleged victim with child porn. It is alleged that between October last year and January, Scheinin attempted to produce child pornography and entice a minor to have sex.  Scheinin was arrested on Thursday, Jan. 16 a…
Area Man Charged With Running Multimillion-Dollar Ponzi, Embezzlement Schemes Area Man Charged With Running Multimillion-Dollar Ponzi, Embezzlement Schemes
Area Man Charged With Running Multimillion-Dollar Ponzi, Embezzlement Schemes The Securities and Exchange Commission has filed charges against a Hudson Valley investment adviser who allegedly operated a multimillion-dollar investment club that was actually a Ponzi scheme targeting the Haitian community. Nanuet resident Ruless Pierre, 50, was charged with securities fraud, wire fraud and structuring charges by the SEC in an indictment unsealed in Manhattan federal court this week after he was involved in a pair of fraud schemes. The SEC's complaint alleges that Pierre ran an investment club called the Amongst Friends Investment Group in Nanuet that operated as a frau…