Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

The United States has filed a complaint and motion for preliminary injunction against the State of New Mexico, New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez, the City of Albuquerque, and Albuquerque Mayor Timothy Keller, alleging that the implementation of House Bill 9 (HB9), entitled the “Immigrant Safety Act,” and Albuquerque City Ordinance O-26-15, entitled the “Safer Community Places Ordinance (SCPO),” infringes on federal immigration enforcement authority.

Through HB9, the State of New Mexico is trying to abolish decades of long-standing, voluntary partnerships between local governments and federal authorities that are essential for enforcing immigration laws and keeping the federal immigration system running as Congress intended. Both HB9 and the SCPO seek to block federal agents from using any local government property to carry out their work. Additionally, by unlawfully requiring private businesses to tip off illegal aliens about immigration enforcement activities, the SCPO attempts to harbor and shield illegal aliens from detection by federal immigration authorities and poses an obstacle to the enforcement of federal immigration law.

“New Mexico is attempting to regulate immigration policy, something the federal government is clearly and uniquely empowered by the Constitution to do,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Our filings seek to halt the state’s unconstitutional actions by preserving cooperation between federal, state, and local law enforcement and allowing federal immigration officials to enforce the law.”

“The State of New Mexico and the City of Albuquerque seek to intentionally obstruct federal law enforcement by preventing cooperation between local governments and the federal government,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison for the District of New Mexico. “HB9 and the SCPO unlawfully interfere with federal immigration enforcement, illegally discriminate against federal operations, and violate constitutional protections regarding contracts and federal supremacy. Additionally, by barring public entities from participating in federal immigration detention in New Mexico, HB9 jeopardizes nearly 300 jobs and the economy of Otero County. Our lawsuit asks the court to declare these laws invalid and issue an immediate injunction to stop them from being enforced.”

Upon taking office, President Trump declared a national emergency at the southern border to address a security and public safety crisis caused by previous Open Border policies. On February 5, 2025, the Attorney General instructed the Department’s Civil Division to identify state and local laws, policies, and practices that facilitate violations of federal immigration laws or impede lawful federal immigration operations. On August 5, 2025, the Attorney General published a list of sanctuary jurisdictions, which included Albuquerque, and vowed to bring litigation to end these policies nationwide. Today’s lawsuit in New Mexico is the latest in a series of lawsuits targeting illegal sanctuary jurisdiction policies across the country.

Under President Trump’s mandate, the federal government is exercising its proper constitutional authority to remove criminal aliens from the United States. Central to this mission are long-standing, voluntary agreements between federal and local agencies that allow state and local officials to assist with the investigation, transportation, and detention of illegal aliens. The federal government relies heavily on these partnerships, which have operated successfully in New Mexico for decades, to fulfill its immigration enforcement duties and keep New Mexicans safe.

The case is United States v. State of New Mexico et al., No. 1:26-cv-01471 in U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico.

The claims asserted by the United States are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – On April 30, 2026, a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico returned an indictment charging a San Juan woman with providing false statements to the FBI.  According to court documents, Joely Rodríguez-Villega, 28, willfully and knowingly made materially false, fictitious, and fraudulent statements and representations in a matter within the jurisdiction of the executive branch of the Government of the United States, all in violation of Title 18, USC, Section 1001.  Rodríguez-Villega is charged with lying to FBI Agents regarding her whereabouts during the evening hours of March 29, 2024. 

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Poul Thorsen, a Danish researcher who was one of the U.S. Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General’s top ten most wanted fugitives, was arraigned today on federal wire fraud and money laundering charges after his extradition from Germany.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

The Justice Department’s National Fraud Enforcement Division continued to advance its mission to fight fraud and protect taxpayers.  Just on Monday, two men were sentenced to 151 months and 36 months in prison, respectively, for their roles in submitting over $522 million in fraudulent claims for medically unnecessary genetic tests in a scheme to defraud Medicare, Medicaid, and private health insurance companies.

“The Fraud Division continues to grow its footprint and aggressively prosecute fraud schemes, no matter the size,” said Assistant Attorney General Colin McDonald of the National Fraud Enforcement Division. “Every day, prosecutors and law enforcement partners across the country are working to protect Americans from fraudsters who want to steal citizens’ hard-earned prosperity.”

Benefits Program Fraud

A defendant was sentenced to 144 months in prison in the Middle District of Pennsylvania for fraudulently obtaining $59 million in public benefits and laundering the proceeds to China.

A defendant in Florida pleaded guilty to one count of receiving approximately $250,000 in stolen U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (“VA”) disability compensation and benefits. The defendant falsely represented to the VA that he was legally blind and that his vision conditions prevented him from driving, working, and performing various daily functions.

A defendant pleaded guilty in Michigan to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft related to a decade-long, multi-million-dollar federal student loan fraud scheme.  The defendant fraudulently caused more than $16 million in benefits to be awarded, with more than $10 million disbursed.

In Tennessee, a defendant pleaded guilty to wire fraud related to misrepresentations he made on his application for a $159,900 CARES Act loan, which was designed to provide emergency financial assistance to people affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.  Instead he used the proceeds for personal expenses.

Health Care Fraud

A former NFL player was sentenced to over 16 years in prison for his role in a conspiracy to defraud Medicare and the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs out of nearly $200 million.  The defendant was ordered to pay over $110 million in restitution and to forfeit approximately $17 million that was seized from bank accounts and other assets.

An optometric physician pleaded guilty in Tennessee for her role in defrauding Medicare out of $6.9 million.  Over three-and-a-half years, the defendant used her practice to submit false claims seeking reimbursements from Medicare for new wound care products she had not actually purchased or used.

A pharmacy technician in Michigan pleaded guilty to a $5.6 million health care scheme and illegal distribution of Oxycodone.  The defendant billed benefit programs, including Medicare and Medicaid, for prescription medications that he never dispensed and provided unlawful prescriptions of oxycodone to drug traffickers in exchange for cash.

A defendant in Oklahoma City was sentenced to 20 months in prison for a $1.1 million health care fraud scheme. The defendant submitted, and caused to be submitted, thousands of false and fraudulent claims to private insurance for behavioral health counseling sessions purportedly provided to family members.

Government Fraud

Four defendants, including two former U.S. Postal Service Employees, pleaded guilty for their involvement in a conspiracy to steal $84 million in U.S. Treasury checks.  During the scheme, conspirators stole thousands of envelopes containing U.S. Treasury checks from mail sorting machines and then sold them to buyers around the country.

Tax Fraud

In South Florida, a tax preparer pleaded guilty for submitting false tax forms to support more than 200 fraudulent loan applications under the CARES Act’s Paycheck Protection Program.  The defendant and his co-conspirators used false records to seek more than $4.1 million in PPP loans.

Two defendants in Jacksonville, Florida, were sentenced to 57 months’ and 24 months’ imprisonment, respectively, for a $148 million construction payroll scheme that defrauded the IRS and workers’ compensation insurers.  All told, the U.S. Treasury lost over $37 million in unpaid payroll taxes.

A tax preparer pleaded guilty in California to filing false tax returns to get substantial refunds for his clients and fraudulently including false information on COVID-19 business-relief loan applications, causing more than $ 25 million in losses to the government.

A Florida defendant was sentenced to 37 months in federal prison for filing a false tax return and was ordered to pay $103,646 in restitution.

Financial Fraud

A New York federal grand jury indicted six defendants in a financial fraud scheme impacting victims across the country.  According to the indictment, the defendants obtained stolen United States Treasury tax refund checks that were payable to other persons, and then used fraudulent identification documents to open bank accounts in the names of the persons the tax refund checks were payable.

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On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division (“Fraud Division”). The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

The former chief executive officer of a publicly traded healthcare services company was sentenced on May 5, 2026, for his role in a large-scale conspiracy to defraud investors in connection with the purchase or sale of the company’s securities.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Tampa, Florida – Rebecca Stewart Vaughn (64, Tampa) has been charged by federal indictment with four counts of wire fraud and one count of theft of government money. If convicted, Vaughn faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison on each wire fraud count and up to 10 years for the theft of government money. The indictment also notifies Vaughn that the United States is seeking the forfeiture of more than $75,000, the proceeds of the charged criminal conduct. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

ROANOKE, Va. – A pair of Maryland men who conspired with Dr. Rotimi Iluyomade, an Annandale-based doctor convicted of distributing more than 7,000 oxycodone pills, 34,000 milliliters of hydrocodone-chlorpheniramine solution (also known as “Tussionex”), and 107,000 milliliters of promethazine-codeine solution (“also known as lean”), had court appearances today in U.S. District Court in Roanoke.Obioma Alozie Ndubuka, 32, a.k.a. “Bank Roll” of Derwood, Maryland, was sentenced today to 24 months in federal prison. Ndubuka pled guilty in February to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute Schedule II controlled substances and to acquire promethazine-codeine solution by fraud.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Jay Clayton, announced that RODERIC SAGE pled guilty today to conspiring to defraud the United States in connection with a scheme to help high-value U.S. taxpayer-clients conceal more than $60 million in income and assets held in undeclared, offshore bank accounts and evade U.S. income taxes.