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Homeland Security Investigations

Oh, SNAP! PA Store Owner Busted For $1.8M Food Scam: Feds Oh, SNAP! PA Store Owner Busted For $1.8M Food Scam: Feds
Oh, SNAP! PA Store Owner Busted For $1.8M Food Scam: Feds Looks like crime didn’t pay for one Philly shopkeeper! Jenny Espinal Tejada, 34, is trading her grocery store for a prison cell after she was caught running a nearly $2 million scam on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), prosecutors said. Tejada was sentenced to 18 months behind bars for defrauding the federal food aid program, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania announced on Wednesday, Feb. 5. The corner store owner got creative—and criminal—by using stolen merchant ID numbers to pretend her business was SNAP-approved, authorities said. But…
$39.5M In Fake Sports Gear Seized In Massive Crackdown Before Super Bowl LIX $39.5M In Fake Sports Gear Seized In Massive Crackdown Before Super Bowl LIX
$39.5M In Fake Sports Gear Seized In Massive Crackdown Before Super Bowl LIX Authorities confiscated $39.5 million worth of counterfeit sports merchandise ahead of Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans. More than 214,500 items were seized in the year-long crackdown, Immigration and Customs Enforcement said in a news release on Wednesday, Feb. 5. "Operation Team Player" targeted fake jerseys, hats, jewelry, and other memorabilia being sold to fans. Led by the National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center (IPR Center), the operation involved Homeland Security Investigations, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and major sports leagues.  The initia…
PA Mom Breastfed Toddler While Using Meth, Selling Drugs From Home: DA PA Mom Breastfed Toddler While Using Meth, Selling Drugs From Home: DA
PA Mom Breastfed Toddler While Using Meth, Selling Drugs From Home: DA A Lancaster Township mother admitted to breastfeeding her toddler while using methamphetamine and marijuana, authorities announced on Friday, Jan. 31. Kristina Kadian, 32, and Joseph Eberle, 45, are accused of selling meth from their home while the child was present, according to the Lancaster County Drug Task Force. Both were charged with felony possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, felony conspiracy, and felony endangering the welfare of children. Detectives launched an investigation into Kadian and Eberle in December 2024, using undercover and confidential informants to p…
Overdose Death Of PA County EMS Worker Uncovers Online Pharmacy Operation: Police Overdose Death Of PA County EMS Worker Uncovers Online Pharmacy Operation: Police
Overdose Death Of PA County EMS Worker Uncovers Online Pharmacy Operation: Police An overdose death in Bucks County led to the takedown of an illicit online pharmacy based in the Dominican Republic, Warrington Township police announced in a press release issued Monday, Jan. 6. The investigation began in April 2022 after a Bucks County EMS first responder died of a drug overdose, police said. The day after the victim’s death, a FedEx package containing Valium and Rivotril (Clonazepam) was delivered to their residence in Bucks County, according to investigators. Detectives traced the drugs to an online pharmacy operating under the domain “Sure Life Solutions,” police said.…
Lancaster Raid Busts Man With $19K In Cocaine, Meth, Mushrooms, Guns: DA Lancaster Raid Busts Man With $19K In Cocaine, Meth, Mushrooms, Guns: DA
Lancaster Raid Busts Man With $19K In Cocaine, Meth, Mushrooms, Guns: DA A Lancaster man is accused of dealing more than $19,000 in illegal drugs, including cocaine, methamphetamine, and psilocybin mushrooms, authorities announced. Josiah McClarence-Giddons, 30, was charged with multiple felonies, including possession with intent to deliver cocaine, methamphetamine, and psilocybin mushrooms, after a search warrant was executed at his home in the 600 block of East Madison Street on Tuesday, Nov. 14, according to the Lancaster County Drug Task Force. Agents with the Drug Task Force, Homeland Security Investigations, and Pennsylvania State Police said they seized…
Accused Cocaine Dealer Arrested During Pennsylvania Raid: DA Accused Cocaine Dealer Arrested During Pennsylvania Raid: DA
Accused Cocaine Dealer Arrested During Pennsylvania Raid: DA An accused cocaine dealer has been arrested in Lancaster City, the Lancaster County District Attorney’s Office announced. Victor Casado, 51, was charged with Felony Possession With Intent to Distribute Cocaine, Felony Possession With Intent to Distribute Marijuana, and Misdemeanor Possession of Drug Paraphernalia after a search warrant was executed at his home, authorities said on Monday, Nov. 25. Drug Task Force agents, Homeland Security Investigations, and Pennsylvania State Police conducted the search on Oct. 8 at Casado’s residence in the 200 block of East Ross Street. During the raid, …
Homeland Security Investigation Leads To $294K Cocaine Bust In PA Homeland Security Investigation Leads To $294K Cocaine Bust In PA
Homeland Security Investigation Leads To $294K Cocaine Bust In PA A joint investigation with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) led to the arrest of a Columbia man and the seizure of more than $294,000 worth of cocaine and marijuana, the Lancaster County Drug Task Force announced on Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. Roderick Gonzalez-Perez, of the 800 block of Blunston Street, was arrested on Oct. 4 after authorities intercepted a package containing over five kilograms of cocaine en route to his home from Puerto Rico. The package, addressed to “Senior Perez,” was flagged during transit, prompting a collaborative investigation by the Drug Task Force and HSI. Af…
UPMC Professor Of Pediatric Radiology Indicted For Child Porn: USDOJ UPMC Professor Of Pediatric Radiology Indicted For Child Porn: USDOJ
Upmc Professor Of Pediatric Radiology Indicted For Child Porn: Usdoj A University of Pittsburgh Doctor and Professor Of Pediatric Radiology has been indicted on child pornography charges, according to a release by the US Department Of Justice on Wednesday, Sept. 4.  Dr. Ashok Panigrahy, 53, of Pittsburgh, was caught transporting "material depicting the sexual exploitation of a minor in interstate commerce, as well as possessed material depicting the sexual exploitation of a minor," in Nov. 2022, as stated in the USDOJ release.  The material included images of the raping of children under the of 12 and/or prepubescent, according to federal court documents obt…
Victims Speak Out At Sentencing Of PA Man Who Filmed Sex Assaults On Victims 2 To 12 Victims Speak Out At Sentencing Of PA Man Who Filmed Sex Assaults On Victims 2 To 12
Victims Speak Out At Sentencing Of PA Man Who Filmed Sex Assaults On Victims 2 To 12 A Bucks County man who pleaded guilty to recording the sexual assaults of three children and sharing the footage on social media has learned his fate. Brian Nathaniel Harris, 29, of Bristol, was sentenced to 18 to 42 years in the state correctional institution by Common Pleas Judge Gary B. Gilman, the Bucks County District Attorney's Office announced Friday, Aug. 23. He was also sentenced to three years of probation and ordered to undergo sex offender treatment and a mental health evaluation.  Relatives of the victims packed a courtroom at the Criminal Justice Center on Friday wit…
Speakers Filled With Millions In Meth, Cocaine From Cali Found In Bucks Co.: DA Speakers Filled With Millions In Meth, Cocaine From Cali Found In Bucks Co.: DA
Speakers Filled With Millions In Meth, Cocaine From Cali Found In Bucks Co.: DA Six men were charged with trafficking millions of dollars in methamphetamine and cocaine by concealing them inside Bluetooth karaoke speakers and shipping them from California to Bucks County, authorities said. This multifaceted investigation by the Bucks County Detectives Drug Strike Force, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Attorney General’s Office resulted in the dismantling of the Byrne Drug Trafficking Organization, led by Matthew James Byrne, 43, of Broomall in Delaware County, Bucks County District Attorney Jennifer Schorn announced on Wednesday, Aug. 7. The Charged Suspects …
Bethlehem Man Paid $24K+ To Filipino Child Sex Traffickers: USDOJ Bethlehem Man Paid $24K+ To Filipino Child Sex Traffickers: USDOJ
Bethlehem Man Paid $24K+ To Filipino Child Sex Traffickers: Usdoj A 49-year-old Pennsylvania man has been sentenced for paying and directing "livestreamed sexual abuse of Filipino children," the US Department of Justice announced on Friday night, Aug. 2.  Harold "Harry" C. Daleus (also known as Dalaeus), Jr., 49, of Bethlehem, was sentenced to 20 years in prison to be followed by a lifetime of supervised release for the production of child pornography and related offenses, United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero detailed in the release.  Daleus sent over $24,000 to the Philippines over several years, "in order to view the live transmiss…
NJ Feds: PA Sex Offender Recorded Tryst With Minor In UK NJ Feds: PA Sex Offender Recorded Tryst With Minor In UK
NJ Feds: PA Sex Offender Recorded Tryst With Minor In UK A registered sex offender from Pennsylvania who authorities said recorded himself and a minor having sex in the United Kingdom is now in federal custody in New Jersey. Gregory J. Barger, 38, of Morrisville, PA, was originally one of 21 accused predators arrested by undercover investigators with the New Jersey attorney general's and Mercer County (NJ) prosecutor's offices in what became known as "Operation Risky Business" in the spring of 2022. It came to light during that probe, however, that Barger had flown to the United Kingdom, where he recorded video and still images on his phone of hi…
Philly Trio Admits $1.6M Worth Of Thefts From 55 UPS Locations Across NJ, NY, PA, Beyond Philly Trio Admits $1.6M Worth Of Thefts From 55 UPS Locations Across NJ, NY, PA, Beyond
Philly Trio Admits $1.6M Worth Of Thefts From 55 UPS Locations Across NJ, NY, PA, Beyond UPDATE: Three young Philadelphia men admitted burglarizing 55 UPS warehouses across New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and beyond, netting more than $1.6 million worth of electronics. Sekou Fofanah, 20, Shamaire Brown, 19, and Quamaire Brown, 19, each pleaded guilty in federal court in Camden to conspiracy to commit cargo theft, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced. All three and a fourth man, Aboudramane Karamoko, had been arrested and released at one time or other since the burglaries began nearly four years ago, records show. The most recent was last past April, when po…
PREDATOR STING: PA Man Expected Sex With Girl, 12, At NJ Hotel, Homeland Security Says PREDATOR STING: PA Man Expected Sex With Girl, 12, At NJ Hotel, Homeland Security Says
Predator Sting: PA Man Expected Sex With Girl, 12, At NJ Hotel, Homeland Security Says A Pennsylvania man who arranged what he thought was sex with a pre-teen in a New Jersey hotel was instead seized by federal agents when he showed up, authorities said Wednesday. Louis Goldenberg, 41 of Philadelphia, "began interacting on a messaging application with an undercover Homeland Security Investigations agent, who was posing as a middle-aged woman with a 12-year-old niece" last month, U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Philip R. Sellinger said on Sept. 20. Goldenberg messaged the purported aunt, "continuously expressing interest in having sexual contact," the U.S. att…
Predator Who Drove 2,700 Miles For Sex With Jersey Shore Girl, 14, Busted When He Returns: Feds Predator Who Drove 2,700 Miles For Sex With Jersey Shore Girl, 14, Busted When He Returns: Feds
Predator Who Drove 2,700 Miles For Sex With Jersey Shore Girl, 14, Busted When He Returns: Feds A predator from Louisiana who drove 2,700 miles roundtrip for sex with an underage Jersey Shore girl was captured when he flew back for more, federal authorities said. Spencer William-Wayne Caudle, 34, began grooming the 14-year-old victim through the Whisper app in April, a complaint on file in U.S. District Court in Trenton alleges. Although he expressed concern about ending up on TV's “To Catch a Predator,” Caudle drove to Toms River and “committed sexual acts on the victim” on May 27, U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Philip R. Sellinger said. Caudle left for home later that night, Seliling…
Feds: It's 30 Years With No Parole For NJ Dad, 62, Who Made, Shared Child Rape Streams, Videos Feds: It's 30 Years With No Parole For NJ Dad, 62, Who Made, Shared Child Rape Streams, Videos
Feds: It's 30 Years With No Parole For NJ Dad, 62, Who Made, Shared Child Rape Streams, Videos UPDATE: A 62-year-old New Jersey father of three must spend the next 30 years in a federal penitentiary with no opportunity for parole for producing and sharing live streams and videos of children being sexually assaulted – some of them by him. Antonio Del Prado of Millburn must serve out the entire plea-bargained sentence because there's no parole in the federal prison system. U.S. District Judge Susan D. Wigenton also sentenced him to 10 years of supervised release. Del Prado theoretically would have to live into his 90s to ever breathe free air again -- and into his 100s before the gove…
Delaware Man Admits Peddling Heroin In NJ: Feds Delaware Man Admits Peddling Heroin In NJ: Feds
Delaware Man Admits Peddling Heroin In NJ: Feds A Delaware man admitted in federal court that he sold heroin in New Jersey, authorities said. Carl L. Jones, 49, of Newport, did business with "a confidential source who was working with law enforcement" in a commercial parking lot in Mount Laurel on March 29, 2019, U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Philip R. Sellinger said. According to Sellinger, Jones sold the informant a pound and a half of a a "mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of heroin." Jones took a deal from the government rather than risk the potential consequences of a guilty verdict at a trial, pleading to drug po…
NJ Celebrity Hairstylist Charged With Trafficking Child Porn, Worked On 'Mrs. Maisel,' More NJ Celebrity Hairstylist Charged With Trafficking Child Porn, Worked On 'Mrs. Maisel,' More
NJ Celebrity Hairstylist Charged With Trafficking Child Porn, Worked On 'Mrs. Maisel,' More A Bergen County hairstylist to the stars is charged with trafficking more than 450 child sex abuse images, authorities said. Daniel Koye, 40, of Rutherford, was seized by Homeland Security Investigations and U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents on Jan. 28 in Atlanta after detectives from the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office obtained a warrant for his arrest, they said. He's been held since then in the Clayton County Jail in Jonesboro, GA pending extradition to New Jersey, records show. Authorities began looking for Koye following a warranted search at his Ettrick Terrace apartme…
Repeat Child Porn Collector From Atlantic City Gets 11 Mandatory Years Repeat Child Porn Collector From Atlantic City Gets 11 Mandatory Years
Repeat Child Porn Collector From Atlantic City Gets 11 Mandatory Years UPDATE: A previously-convicted child porn collector from Atlantic City was sentenced Thursday to more than 11 years in federal prison -- without parole -- for doing it again, authorities said. Cory Newman, a 46-year-old former U.S. Navy petty officer, must serve out just about all of the sentence handed down on Jan. 5 because there’s no parole in the federal prison system. Newman had previously spent more than four years behind bars following a 2007 conviction on similar charges when he showed up on law enforcement radar once again, authorities said. Agents of Homeland Security Invest…
Tri-State Tour Company Founder Gets 7 Years, No Parole, In Child Porn Case Tri-State Tour Company Founder Gets 7 Years, No Parole, In Child Porn Case
Tri-State Tour Company Founder Gets 7 Years, No Parole, In Child Porn Case A tri-state nature tour company founder from North Jersey was sentenced to a plea-bargained seven years in federal prison for collecting hundreds of child porn images. Vaughn Tiedeman -- whose Living Adventure Tours operates in the Garden State, New York and Pennsylvania -- must serve out the entire term because there's no parole in the federal prison system. He'll also remain under supervised release for 10 years under the sentence imposed by U.S. District Judge Susan D. Wigenton in Newark on Thursday, Sept. 21. Special agents of the Department of Homeland Security’s Homeland Security Inv…
GOTCHA! Fugitive Cocaine Dealer Captured In DR, Returned To NJ After 15 Years On Run GOTCHA! Fugitive Cocaine Dealer Captured In DR, Returned To NJ After 15 Years On Run
Gotcha! Fugitive Cocaine Dealer Captured In DR, Returned To NJ After 15 Years On Run A cocaine dealer who fled the country after being sentenced to federal prison time 15 years ago has been returned to New Jersey following her capture in the Dominican Republic, authorities said. Ramona Cruz will have to serve out the entire 3½-year sentence because there’s no parole in the federal prison system. Cruz and her brother, Ramon DeJesus, were busted in 2005 with more than 6½ pounds of cocaine that had been flown in through Newark Airport by an unidentified associate from the DR, authorities said. DeJesus took a deal from the government rather than face trial, pleading guilty to…
Repeat Child Porn Collector From Atlantic City Faces 10-Year Minimum In Federal Prison Repeat Child Porn Collector From Atlantic City Faces 10-Year Minimum In Federal Prison
Repeat Child Porn Collector From Atlantic City Faces 10-Year Minimum In Federal Prison A convicted child porn collector from Atlantic City is headed back to federal prison for at least 10 years for doing it again, authorities said. Cory Newman, 46, previously served most of a 51-month sentence following a 2007 conviction on similar charges, records show. Homeland Security Investigations agents "discovered electronic devices containing numerous videos and images of children being sexually abused" during a raid of Newman's Pacific Avenue home in May 2021, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said. Some were stored on a laptop and others on an external hard drive, according to an…
PA Man Learns His Fate For Fathering Two Kids With 12-Year-Old Girl PA Man Learns His Fate For Fathering Two Kids With 12-Year-Old Girl
PA Man Learns His Fate For Fathering Two Kids With 12-Year-Old Girl A Pennsylvania man was sentenced Tuesday, July 26 for repeatedly leaving the country to have a sexual relationship with a 12-year-old girl, with whom he later fathered two children, federal authorities said. Valentin Ortiz, 73, of Reading, was sentenced to five years and 11 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $10,000 restitution, United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero said. Ortiz was convicted in November 2021 of one count of travel in foreign commerce with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct, and two counts o…
GOTCHA! Fugitive Accused Of Love Triangle Murder Fled To Costa Rica From Newark: Feds GOTCHA! Fugitive Accused Of Love Triangle Murder Fled To Costa Rica From Newark: Feds
Gotcha! Fugitive Accused Of Love Triangle Murder Fled To Costa Rica From Newark: Feds A fugitive accused of killing a world-class cyclist used someone else’s passport to flee to Costa Rica from Newark Airport, then changed her appearance in a failed attempt to elude capture, federal authorities said. Kaitlin Armstrong, a 34-year-old yoga teacher, was wanted on murder charges following the May 11 shooting death of Anna Moriah "Mo" Wilson in Austin Texas. Wilson had briefly dated Armstrong’s boyfriend, who was also a pro cyclist, authorities said. Federal agents tracked Armstrong to the Santa Teresa Beach hotel in Costa Rica’s Provincia de Puntarenas, where she was taken into…
NJ Man Used TikTok To Solicit Sexual Photos From PA Girls: DA NJ Man Used TikTok To Solicit Sexual Photos From PA Girls: DA
NJ Man Used TikTok To Solicit Sexual Photos From PA Girls: DA A 26-year-old New Jersey man was arrested and found with child porn after he used social media to solicit sexually explicit photos from Pennsylvania girls, authorities said. An investigation began on April 20 when the dad of two girls, ages 11 and 12, told the Montgomery County Detective Bureau that his daughters had been solicited to send naked images via TikTok and text messages by a man later identified as Ryan Corcoran, of Andover, NJ, Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin R. Steele said. The dad claimed he learned of the communications when one of his daughters told him t…
Thousands In Cocaine Thrown Off 8th Floor Of Apartment In NJ Bust Involving PA Shooting Suspect Thousands In Cocaine Thrown Off 8th Floor Of Apartment In NJ Bust Involving PA Shooting Suspect
Thousands In Cocaine Thrown Off 8th Floor Of Apartment In NJ Bust Involving PA Shooting Suspect Thousands of dollars' worth of cocaine and guns were thrown from the eighth floor of a New Jersey apartment before it was recovered from the streets below during a drug investigation, leading to a slew of charges for two of the residents involved, including a PA shooting suspect using an alias, authorities said. A month-long investigation into the distribution of cocaine led detectives to the 600 block of West State Street in Trenton, where surveillance officers saw Jose Borges-Navarro open an eighth-floor window and throw two duffle bags out around 7:15 p.m. on Monday, June 13, Mercer Coun…
4 Convicted In PA Sex Trafficking Ring 'The Sevens' 4 Convicted In PA Sex Trafficking Ring 'The Sevens'
4 Convicted In PA Sex Trafficking Ring 'The Sevens' Four members of a sex trafficking ring that ran out of a boarding house in southeastern Pennsylvania have been convicted, federal authorities said. Shaquile Newson, 29, Alexander Malave, 31, Karvarise Person, 33, and James Goode, 47, were convicted on multiple charges, including conspiracy to participate in a racketeering enterprise and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of minors, the US Attorney’s Office said. Federal investigators linked the quartet to "The Sevens," a "violent gang" that operated out of a 50-room boarding house on South 4th Street in Reading, t…
Man Who Showed Up For Sex With 'Girl,' 13, At NJ Motel Sent To Federal Prison Man Who Showed Up For Sex With 'Girl,' 13, At NJ Motel Sent To Federal Prison
Man Who Showed Up For Sex With 'Girl,' 13, At NJ Motel Sent To Federal Prison A Bronx man was sentenced to two years in federal prison for arranging what he thought would be sex with a 13-year-old girl at a New Jersey motel. Eduardo Silva, 44, must serve the entire term because there’s no parole in the federal prison system. U.S. District Judge Renée Marie Bumb also sentenced him to lifetime supervised release during a hearing in federal court in Camden on Thursday, April 28. Silva used a social media app to ask the “minor” whether she was “into older guys,” U.S Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said. He then “sent a series of explicit online communications and text mess…
PA Man Who Illegally Reentered The US Nabbed With Illegal Firearm: USDOJ PA Man Who Illegally Reentered The US Nabbed With Illegal Firearm: USDOJ
PA Man Who Illegally Reentered The US Nabbed With Illegal Firearm: Usdoj A 30-year-old Harrisburg man is heading to prison after he illegally reentered the US, but he wasn’t initially caught on those charges, according to a release by the US Department of Justice. Luis Miguel Mejia-Lugo fraudulently used the identity of a United States citizen, including a counterfeit social security card, to obtain a Pennsylvania Driver’s License— using the license to purchase a firearm, US Attorney John C. Gurganus says. He was found with the gun and arrested in Hazleton on Apr. 29, 2020, Gurganus says in the release. Mejia-Lugo had previously been deported as an “alien w…
Feds: EPA Inspector From Bergen County Watched Child Porn On Work Computer At Home Feds: EPA Inspector From Bergen County Watched Child Porn On Work Computer At Home
Feds: EPA Inspector From Bergen County Watched Child Porn On Work Computer At Home A U.S. Environmental Protection Agency employee from Fair Lawn watched child porn on his government-issued computer, authorities charged. John Struble, 63, was released by a U.S. magistrate judge in Newark, with conditions, after a brief video-conferenced appearance on Wednesday, March 29, U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Philip R. Sellinger said. Struble, who works as a tank system inspector for the EPA’s office in downtown Manhattan, is charged with possession of child pornography. “The EPA alerted the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Homeland Security Investigations that it discovered …
COVID Mask Seller From Brooklyn Pleads Guilty To Gouging NJ Grocers At 400% Markup COVID Mask Seller From Brooklyn Pleads Guilty To Gouging NJ Grocers At 400% Markup
COVID Mask Seller From Brooklyn Pleads Guilty To Gouging NJ Grocers At 400% Markup A Brooklyn company admitted that it illegally made a killing off a New Jersey grocery store chain by selling it COVID masks during the pandemic at a 400% markup, federal authorities said. Milk & Honey Ventures and two partners bought 250,000 KN95 filtering facepiece respirators from a foreign manufacturer, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said Tuesday, March 29. MHV had never sold personal protective equipment before, Sellinger said. The company and one its partners sold 100,000 of the masks to a chain of New Jersey grocery stores at $5.25 per mask -- far in excess of prevailing marke…