Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

A federal grand jury returned a one-count indictment today against Jose Tobias Jimenez-Martinez, 35, a Mexican national residing in Madera, charging him with trafficking large amounts of methamphetamine and fentanyl, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced.

According to court documents, on March 4, 2025, probation officers arrived at Jimenez’s residence in Madera to conduct a probation search. Jimenez is on probation for a prior state felony conviction. During the search, officers found and seized several thousand fentanyl pills and more than 75 pounds of methamphetamine. Jimenez later admitted to transporting the methamphetamine from San Diego and was planning to distribute it in Reno, Nevada. The methamphetamine was individually packaged in several plastic bags.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Madera Police Department; the Fresno High Impact Investigation Team (HIIT), which is composed of personnel from the California Department of Justice, the Fresno Police Department, the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation; the Madera County Narcotics Enforcement Team (MADNET); the Madera County District Attorney’s Office; and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorney Cody S. Chapple is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Jimenez faces a minimum statutory penalty of 10 years and a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison and a $10 million fine. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Defendant Made Threats Following Altercation with a Voter, Lied to FBI During Investigation

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – A Belgian national in the United States operated a $5 million Ponzi scheme over the course of five years was sentenced today to 60 months’ imprisonment.

Kenny Dirk Van Der Spek, 36, who was living in South Jordan, Utah, pleaded guilty to securities fraud, wire fraud and money laundering in May 2025, after he defrauded approximately 75 investors, and used at least $3 million on real estate, a personal chef, a new 2022 Chevrolet Corvette, online gambling and more.

In addition to Van Der Spek’s term of imprisonment, a U.S. District Court Judge sentenced him to three years’ supervised release and ordered he pay full restitution in the amount of $4,107,282.97 to the victims. He also was ordered to comply with the forfeiture of real property in Martinsville, Virginia and Spanish Fork, Utah.  See prior press release: Belgium National and Utah Business Owner Charged After Allegedly Running a $5M Ponzi Scheme

According to court documents and admissions made at Van Der Spek’s change of plea and sentencing hearings, Van Der Spek was the owner and manager of K & K Strategies, LLC, which he marketed as a “hedge fund.” Between December 2017 to November 2023, Van Der Spek, convinced investors to invest in his company by making false promises and misrepresentations about investor funds. Van Der Spek, who was not licensed to sell securities, told investors K & K Strategies was legally operating a hedge fund and that he was licensed to do so. He represented to investors that their investments with K & K Strategies were succeeding, showing them fabricated financial records, when in reality, investors were suffering losses. He also displayed a “live stream” of trades on K&K Strategies’ website so that investors could “watch [their] money grow.”

As part of Van Der Spek’s criminal conduct, Van Der Spek promoted K & K as a “mom and pop hedge fund,” accepting investments as low as $500 and specifically targeting “smaller investors” – Investors who had little or no safety net beyond their slowly and meticulously accumulated savings. To those targets, Van Der Spek stated that he wanted to “help people who didn’t have much money.”

“This was not a crime of opportunity. Van Der Spek specifically planned and targeted vulnerable investors and caused substantial financial hardships for victims in Utah and other states,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Felice John Viti of the District of Utah. “Stealing hard earned money from our citizens is a serious offense, and it will not be tolerated in the District of Utah. We will continue to prosecute and seek justice for victims who suffer from these types of crimes.”

“Van Der Spek’s ‘mom and pop hedge fund’ had a devastating financial impact on hardworking Utahns, exploiting them for personal gain and taking millions to support his lavish lifestyle,” said Robert Cummings, Director of the Utah Division of Securities. The Division received complaints about Van Der Spek, which led to an investigation into his fraudulent activities and ultimately resulted in his arrest and conviction. “We are grateful to Utah’s law enforcement, the Financial Crime Task Force, the FBI, and the Department of Justice for their diligent work in apprehending Mr. Van Der Spek and holding him accountable. We encourage everyone to visit securities.utah.gov to verify the proper license of anyone providing investment advice before investing their money.”

“Like many fraudsters, Mr. Van Der Spek was motivated by greed, spending his victims’ money on luxuries for himself,” said Special Agent in Charge Robert Bohls of the Salt Lake City FBI. “Most of the victims in this case didn’t have the money to lose, resulting in financial and emotional devastation that will cause lasting harm. The FBI and our partners continue to seek accountability for those who exploit others for financial gain.”

“Mr. Van Der Spek chose to live a life of fraud built on the backs of hardworking Americans,” said IRS-CI Acting Special Agent in Charge, Jarom Gregory of the Phoenix field office. “He deliberately targeted his investment scheme to prey upon those who had the least to give and the most to lose. IRS-CI employs some of the world’s best financial investigators and working together on a team with our law enforcement partners we have been able to bring some measure of justice for the people victimized by Mr. Van Der Spek.”

The case was investigated by the Utah Division of Securities, FBI Salt Lake City Field Office, and Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Phoenix Field Office.  

Special Assistant United States Attorney Sachiko J. Jepson and Assistant United States Attorney Mark Y. Hirata, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah prosecuted the case. 
 

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Jayson Geoffrey Evans, age 51, of Sulphur, Oklahoma, was sentenced to 46 months in prison for one count of Assault with a Dangerous Weapon with Intent to do Bodily Harm in Indian Country and 46 months in prison for one count of Eluding Peace Officer in Indian Country.  The Court ordered the sentences to be served concurrently.

The charges arose from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation—Oklahoma City Joint Terrorism Task Force, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol, the Murray County Sheriff’s Office, the National Parks Service, and the Chickasaw Nation Lighthorse Police Department.

On May 7, 2025, Evans pleaded guilty to the charges. According to investigators, on December 30, 2023, Evans fled from a Trooper during a roadside traffic stop, leading law enforcement on a chase at speeds reaching 90 mph.   During the pursuit, Evans threw road-spikes—known as caltrops—into the path of the pursuing law enforcement, causing damage to a law enforcement vehicle and two civilian vehicles.  Evans was taken into custody but failed to appear to face charges, eluding law enforcement for over a year until his campsite was discovered in the Chickasaw National Recreation Area in April of 2025.  The crimes occurred in Murray County, within the boundaries of the Chickasaw Nation Reservation, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma.

“Law enforcement officers put their lives on the line every day to protect the American people. Harming, or attempting to harm them for doing their job is completely unacceptable,” said FBI Oklahoma City Special Agent in Charge Doug Goodwater. “For nearly two years, this dangerous fugitive went to extreme lengths to evade justice, but he was not successful. I appreciate the efforts of the FBI Oklahoma City JTTF, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol, the Murray County Sheriff’s Office, the Chickasaw Nation Lighthorse Police Department, the National Parks Service, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, who brought this case to a resolution.”

“Evans’ brazen and reckless acts endangered law enforcement and the public,” said United States Attorney Christopher J. Wilson.  “I commend the collaborative work of troopers, rangers, deputies, officers, agents, and prosecutors for their tireless efforts in locating and bringing the defendant to justice.”

The Honorable Ronald A. White, Chief U.S. District Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, presided over the hearing.  Evans will remain in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending transportation to a designated United States Bureau of Prisons facility to serve a non-paroleable sentence of incarceration.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lewis M. Reagan and Jarrod Leaman represented the United States.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

BofA Securities, Inc. (BoAS) a North Carolina-based financial institution, has agreed to resolve a criminal investigation involving alleged market manipulation schemes by former BoAS employees pursuant to Part I of the Criminal Division’s Corporate Enforcement and Voluntary Self-Disclosure Policy (CEP). As part of the resolution, the Justice Department has declined to prosecute BoAS, and BoAS will disgorge approximately $1.96 million and contribute approximately $3.6 million to a victim compensation fund it will establish and administer.

The Justice Department’s investigation found evidence that from in or about November 2014 through approximately April 2020, two BoAS traders on the bank’s U.S. Treasuries desk separately engaged in schemes to manipulate the secondary (or “cash”) market, and one of those employees also engaged in a scheme to manipulate the futures market for U.S. Treasuries by entering spoof orders — that is, orders placed without the intent to execute them at the time they were placed. Collectively, these two former employees entered more than one thousand suspected spoof orders during the relevant time period. One of the traders, Tyler Forbes, pleaded guilty in April 2022 to manipulating U.S. Treasury securities prices.

In May 2025, the Justice Department revised the CEP to increase transparency and encourage voluntary self-disclosure. The Justice Department announced today that it resolved its investigation against BoAS after considering the factors set forth in the updated CEP, including (1) BoAS’s timely and voluntary self-disclosure of the misconduct; (2) BoAS’s full and proactive cooperation in this matter, including providing all known relevant facts about the misconduct; (3) the nature and seriousness of the offense; (4) BoAS’s timely and appropriate remediation, including the termination of the junior trader, an internal review of the trading of all traders on its U.S. Treasuries desk, an internal review of its compliance program and internal controls, a thorough and systematic root-cause analysis, significant investment in and improvements to its surveillance programs and parameters, enhancements to its broader compliance program, and the implementation of external testing of its internal controls; (5) the absence of aggravating circumstances; and (6) BoAS’s agreement to disgorge its gains and provide victim compensation.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Assistant Director in Charge Christopher G. Raia of the FBI New York Field Office; and Inspector in Charge Eric Shen of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), Criminal Investigations Group made the announcement. The FBI and USPIS are investigating the case.

Trial Attorneys Sara Hallmark and John J. Liolos of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.

The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only. There has been no determination of liability.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Yesterday, a federal jury in Gulfport, Mississippi, convicted Stefan Day Rowold on six counts of federal arson and civil rights charges for vandalizing and setting fire to a house of worship.

On July 5, 2024, and July 7, 2024, Rowold vandalized and set fire to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Wiggins, Mississippi. Evidence at trial showed that Rowold targeted the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints because of his disagreement with what he believed to be their religious views. During a confession, Rowold admitted to breaking into the building, vandalizing the interior walls of the building with hateful messages, and ultimately setting a fire in the middle of the church’s multipurpose room so they could not hold services. Rowold used the church’s hymnals as kindling for his original fire.

Rowold also confessed to breaking into the building two days later to finish the job, and after police had attempted to secure the scene. The second time he broke in, Rowold set another fire using cardboard and a piece of firewood.

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Patrick Lemon for the Southern District of Mississippi, and Special Agent in Charge Robert A. Eikhoff of the FBI Jackson Field Office made the announcement.

A sentencing hearing is set for Jan. 14, 2026. Rowold faces a minimum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum penalty of twenty years in prison on each of the arson charges, a maximum penalty of twenty years in prison for each of the civil rights charges, and a minimum penalty of ten years in prison for the use of fire to commit a federal felony offense.

The FBI Jackson Field Office investigated the case, with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation, the Mississippi State Fire Marshal, and the Wiggins Police Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Buckner for the Southern District of Mississippi and Trial Attorney Chloe Neely of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section are prosecuting the case.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

A district court judge yesterday convicted a previously convicted sex offender of distributing and possessing child sexual abuse material (CSAM) while on supervised release.

“This defendant continued to sexually exploit children online while on court-ordered supervision, following an earlier conviction for similar conduct,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Thanks to the tireless efforts and enduring dedication of our law enforcement partners and prosecutors, this defendant has been held accountable for his continued exploitation of children and now faces a fifteen-year mandatory minimum sentence.”

“Following his previous conviction for child sexual abuse material, Antonio Gonzalez knew what he was doing was illegal and knew the consequences,” said U.S. Attorney Erik S. Siebert for the Eastern District of Virginia. “Instead of embracing a respect for the law and the vulnerable lives it protects, Gonzalez returned to his previous crimes with no regards for those harmed by sexual exploitation. We will tirelessly prosecute anyone engaging in these detestable crimes, and we will continue to pursue anyone who refuses to reform.”

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, in April 2024, law enforcement began an investigation into a user who was reported to be distributing CSAM on Kik, a mobile-based messaging platform. Further investigation revealed that the user was Antonio Rudy Gonzalez, 41, of Alexandria, who sent dozens of images of children, including toddler-aged children, engaged in sexually explicit conduct to multiple other Kik users. His chat records revealed that he had written to another Kik user “[m]y two favorite things are rape and kids.” In 2013, Mr. Gonzalez had previously been convicted in the Eastern District of Virginia of distribution of child pornography.

Following a bench trial, Gonzalez was convicted on two counts of distribution of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography for his 2024 conduct. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 27, 2026. Due to his prior conviction, Gonzalez faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years in prison and a maximum penalty of 40 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Trial Attorney Nadia Prinz of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Vanessa Strobbe for the Eastern District of  Virginia are prosecuting the case.

The FBI Washington Field Office investigated the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Today, the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division launched an investigation into the City of Austin, Texas, to determine whether it engages in employment practices that discriminate based on race, sex, color, and national origin in violation of Title VII of the Civil Right Act of 1964, as amended.

“The Department of Justice will not tolerate discriminatory race-based employment practices and DEI policies, in Austin or other cities,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Such practices are illegal and un-American, and we will vigorously protect equal opportunity and hold accountable those who seek to perpetuate vestiges of outlawed discrimination.”

According to its website, the City of Austin’s Office of Equity and Inclusion, Equity Division “works across all City departments . . . to build capacity and leadership in working from a racial equity lens.” The Equity Division publicly promotes City guidance that recommends delineating “clear racial equity expectations regarding hiring,” applying “stronger racial equity criteria to the design and execution of executive-level searches,” and using “racial equity tools” that are “designed to integrate explicit consideration of racial equity in decisions, including policies, practices, programs and budgets.”

You can read the notice letter here.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Defendant Concealed Over $1M in Gross Receipts by Using an Under-the-Table Cash Payroll