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Tag: US Attorney's Office
NY Man Who Assaulted Female Passenger On Flight To Newark Gets 2 Years, No Parole
UPDATE: An upstate New York man who admitted assaulting a fellow passenger on a flight from Denver to Newark must spend two plea-bargained years in federal prison.
Ryan Manuella, 30, of Erie County, “moved to a vacant center seat next to a female passenger, who was sitting in a window seat” on the April 16, 2021 flight, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said.
Manuella, who didn't know the woman, then "touched the passenger without her consent," Sellinger said.
"The victim then yelled at him and left the row of seats," the U.S. attorney said.
Defense attorney Andrew Olesnyck…
Corrections Officer, Inmate Get Time For Bribery, Drug Smuggling Scheme At DC Jail
A former corrections officer is heading to prison and an inmate will face more time for their roles in a bribery scheme at a DC jail, federal authorities announced.
Inmate Andre Gregory, 31, of Washington, DC, and Officer Beverly Williams, 52, of Upper Marlboro were sentenced this week to time behind bars after admitting to smuggling drugs into the District of Columbia Central Detention Facility.
Gregory got 42 months in prison, while Williams was sentenced to 18 months. A third co-conspirator, Keywaune McLeod, 28, is still awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty earlier this year.
K…
Virginia Drug Dealer Convicted Of Causing Multiple Fentanyl Overdoses
One Dumfries man is to blame for six people overdosing on fentanyl back in 2021, officials said.
Michael Vaughn, 28, gave out cocaine laced with fentanyl during a party in Fairfax County, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The six people who took the substance, thinking it was cocaine, overdosed and were taken to a local hospital, authorities said.
One victim died from the fentanyl overdose, officials reported.
The other five were saved when given Narcan at the hospital and survived, law enforcement said.
When officers arrested Vaughn at his home on Oct. 21, 2021,…
Ex-Youth Pastor In VA Busted With Child Porn While On Probation For Another Sex Crime: Feds
A former youth pastor in Virginia pled guilty to distributing child pornography, while he was on probation for a different sex offense, officials reported.
Deric Peacock, 39, of Highland Springs, used a messaging platform called "Wickr", to distribute the child pornography, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
He committed this crime while on probation for two previous convictions. Peacock allegedly solicited sex acts on the computer, from someone who was believed to be under 15 years old, authorities said.
When Peacock used "Wickr" to distribute the child pornography, …
DC Man Sentenced For Scheming To Steal $31M In Covid-19 Funds
A 31-year-old D.C. man was sentenced to 10 years in prison for trying to steal $31 million from the government’s COVID relief programs, officials said.
Elias Eldabbagh used his company, Alias Systems, LLC, to apply for 25 phony Paycheck Protection Program loans between July 2020 and May 2021, the U.S. Attorney's Office reported.
Eldabbagh used an alias to hide his identity and steal over two million dollars, which he spread across 13 separate bank and brokerage accounts, authorities said.
He also stole from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, which…
Last Two Defendants Convicted In Federal Trial For Lynchburg Drug Conspiracy
The final two defendants in the Lynchburg drug conspiracy trial were convicted in federal court, officials said. On September 2, Ricky Donnell Abner, 44, and Charay Lamont Trent, 43, were convicted on drug conspiracy and weapon charges, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Between January 2016 and January 2021, ringleader of the operation Jermel "Jan" Storey distributed large amounts of cocaine, that he received from Texas, to a network of drug dealers, right out of his Lynchburg home, authorities said.
Even after he moved to North Carolina, Storey continued to meet up with co-cons…
DC Man Admits To Sexually Abusing His Sisters, Infant For Years: Feds
A DC man pleaded guilty to charges related to his sexual abuse of children for six years, officials said.
Law enforcement's investigations revealed that Matthew Stitt-Johnson, 31, sexually abused three children, an 8-year-old, a 5-year-old, and an 8-month-old, between 2015 and 2020, according to the US Attorney's Office.
Though the five-year-old and her sister reported the abuse to their mother, nothing was reported to the police at that time, authorities said.
In 2021, after police received a tip about the suspect, they found videos depicting the sexual abuse of the five-year-old vic…
DC Man Who Encountered Senate Minority Leader During Capitol Breach Sentenced
A D.C. man who illegally entered the Capitol building on January 6, 2021, has been sentenced to prison, officials said.
During the Capitol breach, 40-year-old Joshua Pruitt, who was wearing a tactical glove and knee pads, destructed the property inside the building as one of the first intruders to enter the Crypt, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
During his tirade, Pruitt, of the 'Proud Boy' group, encountered Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, who ran in the opposite direction of Pruitt to avoid danger, authorities reported.
Although Pruitt escaped the building, he …
DC Man Admits To Posing As Young Girl To Exploit 10-Year-Old Child: DOJ
A man from D.C. pled guilty to the sexual exploitation of a young child, officials said.
Christopher Young, 31, pretended to be a young girl and reached out to a 10-year-old in June 2019 to exploit her, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Young blackmailed the young girl as a way to sexually abuse her, and told her that if she did not engage in sexual acts with him, he would send embarrassing pictures of the victim to her family, officials said.
Law enforcement discovered pictures of Young's sexual abuse, that he took, on his email account, authorities said.
The 10-year-old bravely e…
Repeat Bank Robber From DC Sentenced To 25 Years For His Multiple Crimes
A man from D.C. was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for an armed bank robbery he committed back in 2021, authorities said.Amobi Agu, 37, is no stranger to the law, as he allegedly committed seven other armed bank robberies between 2007 and 2008, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Agu served time for those crimes, from 2008 to 2020, officials reported.
In January of 2021, Agu robbed the Bank of America located in Dulles Crossing Plaza, where he threatened a bank teller and unarmed security guard with his gun, law enforcement said.
Agu was convicted of brandishing a f…
DC Teen Charged For Series Of Armed Robberies During 10-Day Spree
A D.C. teen pleaded guilty August 8 to charges related to a string of armed robberies he commit over a 10-day period, officials said.
Mekhi Truesdale, 19, an accomplice allegedly robbed a woman, of her phone and money, at gunpoint in October 2020, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Truesdale and an accomplice then carried out another robbery in November of 2020 and stole items like phones, wallets, and keys of a man and woman, authorities reported.
Three men aside from Truesdale pleaded guilty to charges related to the string of robberies, the Attorney's Office said.
Truesdale was a…
Former DC Principal Gets 30 Months For Embezzling 175K Meant For Student Affairs
A former D.C. principal was sentenced to 30 months in prison on Wednesday, August 3, for embezzling $175,000, officials said. Bridget Coates, 49, of Falls Church was formerly the principal of St. Thomas More Catholic School, where her embezzlement scheme ran, depositing about 66 unauthorized checks, from 2012 to 2017, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The money was intended for the Home School Association, which is a program that funds student services and activities, officials reported.
Coates abused her access to the association's checks and deposited the money to her account …
Man, Woman Convicted Of Operating Virginia Meth House
A Norfolk man and woman were both convicted on Wednesday, August 3, of operating a meth house, officials said.
Along with firearms, Vicente Andres, 61, and Margaret Sutton, 51, stored and sold meth and marijuana in a house on Danwood Drive, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
After law enforcement issued a search warrant, officers found 10 pounds of pure methamphetamine, 10 pounds of marijuana, 3 firearms, and currency from the illegal sale of narcotics, officials reported.
Andres and Sutton were convicted of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to dist…
