Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
Jackson, TN – Lytrice Adams, 36, of Savannah, Tennessee, has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for distributing methamphetamine. D. Michael Dunavant, United States Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, announced the sentence today. According to information presented in court, in July 2023, agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration and the 24th Judicial District Drug Task Force began investigating a…
Source: United States Department of Justice
Jackson, TN – Lytrice Adams, 36, of Savannah, Tennessee, has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for distributing methamphetamine. D. Michael Dunavant, United States Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, announced the sentence today. According to information presented in court, in July 2023, agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration and the 24th Judicial District Drug Task Force began investigating a…
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
Ismael Guerrero-Moya, an illegal alien from Mexico, was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for his role in coordinating the distribution of hundreds of pounds of methamphetamine from his Waycross, Georgia prison cell. Four other members of the trafficking ring previously were sentenced to lengthy prison terms.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Missouri announced that a collection of culturally significant Native American artifacts has been returned to the Osage Nation after the conclusion of a civil forfeiture action involving items unlawfully removed from federal lands near Harry S. Truman Lake.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
St. Thomas, USVI –U.S. Attorney Adam F. Sleeper announced today that Mario Felix, 36, of St. Croix, was sentenced on September 1, 2026 by District Judge Mark A. Kearney to 60 months of imprisonment for causing attempted possession with intent to distribute, five years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment. He will receive credit for the period of time he was detained.
Source: United States Navy
Nearly 70 high school, undergraduate and graduate students from across the country shared the results of their summer research internships with the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) community during the 2026 NPS STEM Internship Research Showcase, Aug. 7, highlighting the university’s commitment to developing the next generation of scientists and engineers who will support naval and national security.
Source: United States Navy
Elements of the Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group (ABECSG), including Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), the embarked staffs of CSG-3, Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 9, and Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 21, and the nine squadrons of CVW-9 arrived in Laem Chabang, Thailand, while Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. (DDG 121) docked in nearby Sriracha, for scheduled port visits, Sept. 2, 2026.
Source: United States Department of Justice
The Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Counsel has issued a legal opinion clarifying that when a state chooses to participate in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) programs, all agencies within that state — not only those that administer TANF or SSI benefits — must report individuals known to be not lawfully present in the United States to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
“Congress wrote this requirement plainly,” said Assistant Attorney General T. Elliot Gaiser of the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel. “When a state chooses to participate in TANF, it accepts the obligation to report illegal aliens in the United States. Tax dollars intended to help vulnerable Americans should not perversely encourage illegal entry into the United States, but rather should reinforce our laws and our borders.”
“Our clarification does not impose new obligations on states,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Joshua Craddock of the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel and author of the opinion. “It simply restores the original meaning of the statute Congress enacted and ensures that DHS receives the information it is legally entitled to. States that accept TANF funding must abide by federal law, and failure to comply may lead to serious consequences, including loss of program funding.”
The Office withdrew a Clinton-era opinion from 1998 that construed the reporting requirement much more narrowly. Under that prior interpretation, only the specific state agencies administering TANF or SSI were required to provide information to federal immigration authorities. All fifty states, the District of Columbia, and several U.S. territories currently participate in TANF and SSI, and federal TANF funding grants exceed $16.4 billion annually.
The Office of Legal Counsel’s Sept. 1 opinion explains that Congress defined “State” broadly in the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996. As a result, when a state accepts federal TANF or SSI funds, the entire state government — including all component agencies — is bound by federal law to share information with DHS about individuals the state knows to be not lawfully present.
The opinion applies prospectively. States will not face retroactive penalties for past reliance on the 1998 interpretation. Federal agencies may rely on OLC’s advice to update TANF and SSI grant agreements and compliance processes to reflect the correct legal standard moving forward.
Note: Read the full opinion here.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
A Michigan man pleaded guilty yesterday to filing a false claim in connection with his $7 million scheme to defraud the IRS.
“Filing false returns isn’t a shortcut — it’s pure theft,” said Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the Justice Department’s National Fraud Enforcement Division. “Fraudulent refunds steal millions from Americans who play by the rules, and we will pursue those who willfully cheat the tax system without fear or favor.”
According to court documents and statements made in court, Rodney Underwood, of Detroit, prepared and filed with the IRS more than 200 nearly identically false tax returns on behalf of clients from various locations in Detroit. Underwood “ghost prepared” these returns, meaning he left the paid preparer section blank so the returns appeared to be self-prepared. On each of the false tax returns, Underwood reported false dividend income amounts and false withholding amounts to generate refunds that the clients were not entitled to receive. Underwood did not report fees he received from the scheme as income on his own individual tax returns. The false tax returns filed by Underwood fraudulently claimed more than $7 million in refunds and caused an actual loss to the government of approximately $6.2 million.
Underwood pleaded guilty to making a false claim. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 6, 2027 and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
IRS Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.
Trial Attorneys Shawn Noud and Alexis Hughes of the National Fraud Enforcement Division’s Tax Section are prosecuting the case.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
Kamo Kirakosyan, an Armenian national, was sentenced to 26 months in federal prison for his participation in a criminal conspiracy to export goods from the United States to the Russian Federation through the Republic of Armenia without the requisite license or authorization from the U.S. government