Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

Source: US FBI

            WASHINGTON— A New York man was sentenced to prison today after he previously pleaded guilty to multiple felony and misdemeanor charges, including assaulting law enforcement, during the Jan. 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol. His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election.

            Troy Weeks, 38, of Greenville, New York, was sentenced to 21 months in prison, 36 months of supervised release, and ordered to pay $2,000 in restitution by U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras.

            Weeks previously pleaded guilty to two felony charges, including civil disorder and assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers. In addition to the felonies, Weeks pleaded guilty to four misdemeanor offenses, including entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds, and impeding passage through the Capitol grounds or buildings.

            According to court documents, n Jan. 6, 2021, Weeks was present on the Lower West Terrace of Capitol grounds near an area known as the Tunnel, the site of some of the most violent attacks against law enforcement that day. At about 3:02 p.m., Weeks entered the Tunnel as a mob of rioters battled with police. Weeks made his way through the crowd and, after reaching the police line, turned around and called out to the crowd, “Alright! Get ready to push! C’mon!” Weeks and the other rioters then pressed in closer to police.

            Court documents say that Weeks then reached his arm past another rioter, through a broken window of a door, and grabbed a can of OC spray that was in the hands of a police officer. However, the officer was able to prevent Weeks from obtaining the spray. Seconds later, Weeks came around the door and made direct physical contact with the police on the other side and pressed his body up against police and their shields. At one point, Weeks grabbed onto one of the officer’s riot shields and was sprayed with OC spray.

            Weeks was expelled from the Tunnel at about 3:05 p.m. but remained in the area. At approximately 3:47 p.m., Weeks joined with other rioters in the Tunnel in a coordinated “heave-ho” push and rocking movement against an established police line defending the Tunnel.

            The FBI arrested Weeks on Jan. 10, 2023, in New York.

            The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section are prosecuting this case. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York provided valuable assistance.

            The FBI’s Albany and Washington Field Offices investigated this case and listed Weeks as BOLO (Be on the Lookout) #85 in its seeking information images. The U.S. Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Department provided valuable assistance.

            In the 45 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,532 individuals have been charged in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 571 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, a felony. The investigation remains ongoing.

            Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.

Source: US FBI

SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – Radu-Lucian Grigoras, 45, and Gheorghe Nistor, 42, both nationals of Romania, were indicted on two charges of financial institution fraud and two charges of aggravated identity theft.

United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman and Craig L. Tremaroli, Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), made the announcement.

Grigoras and Nistor were arraigned in federal court last week on a 4-count indictment alleging that from no later than April 2024 through at least August 2024, the defendants participated in a scheme to defraud financial institutions. The indictment alleges that the defendants installed skimming devices and pinhole cameras within ATMs belonging to financial institutions. Those devices captured and stored the debit card information of unsuspecting individuals who conducted transactions at those ATMs. The pinhole cameras recorded the customers entering their PINs to conduct the ATM transactions. The indictment further alleges that after installation of these devices, the defendants returned within five days to remove these devices and caused the stolen account information to be encoded onto the magnetic strips of other cards, which they used at ATMs to fraudulently withdraw money from customers’ accounts. The indictment alleges that the defendants executed the scheme in multiple states, including New York, Kansas, Missouri, and Pennsylvania. The indictment alleges that as a result of the scheme to defraud, the defendants fraudulently withdrew in excess of $175,543.00 The charges in the indictment are merely accusations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Each of the fraud counts in the indictment carries a maximum sentence of 30 years’ imprisonment and a $1 million fine. The maximum sentence for aggravated identity theft is a mandatory consecutive 2 years’ imprisonment. The charges also carry a term of supervised release of up to 5 years. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors.

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is investigating the case, with assistance from the New York State Police, Pennsylvania State Police, Town of Cicero Police Department, City of Auburn Police Department, Leavenworth, Kansas Police Department, St. Charles City, Missouri Police Department, and the St. Peters, Missouri Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew J. McCrobie and Paul Tuck are prosecuting the case.

Source: US FBI

Burlington, Vermont – The United States Attorney’s Office stated that James Plunkett, 39, of Burlington, Vermont, has been charged by criminal complaint with bank robbery.

On November 4, 2024, Plunkett appeared before United States Magistrate Judge Kevin J. Doyle, who ordered Plunkett detained during the pendency of this matter.

According to court records, on the morning of October 26, 2024, Plunkett is alleged to have robbed the M&T Bank on Pine Street in Burlington. Plunkett is alleged to have entered the bank, told the bank tellers that he had a bomb in his fanny pack, and ordered them to give him money. Plunkett did not conceal his face during the robbery. Plunkett received $683.00 in cash and left the area.

Plunkett was identified from the M&T bank robbery video footage after review by law enforcement and community members who knew Plunkett and provided tips to law enforcement.

The United States Attorney’s Office emphasizes that the complaint contains allegations only and that Plunkett is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. Plunkett faces up to 20 years if convicted. The actual sentence, however, would be determined by the District Court with guidance from the advisory United States Sentencing Guidelines and the statutory sentencing factors.

United States Attorney Nikolas P. Kerest commended the investigatory efforts of the Burlington Police Department, the Winooski Police Department, the South Burlington Police Department, the Vermont State Police’s Northern Vermont Drug Task Force, the Colchester Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Milton Police Department.

The prosecutor is Assistant United States Attorney Thomas J. Aliberti. Plunkett is represented by Assistant Federal Public Defender Steven Barth.

Source: US FBI

Rutland, Vermont – The United States Attorney for the District of Vermont announced that on Friday, November 1, 2024, Nasir Hussain, also known as “Sonu”, 31, of Orlando, Florida was convicted in U.S. District Court in Rutland of wire fraud conspiracy after a four-day jury trial. U.S. District Judge Joseph N. Laplante ordered that Hussain remain in jail pending sentencing, which has not been scheduled. Hussain has been held without bail since his arrest in July 2023.

According to court records and evidence presented at trial, Hussain recruited a number of people to open bank accounts using false information. Those bank accounts were used to funnel proceeds from defrauded victims who lived in Vermont, California, and elsewhere in the United States. Under the fraud scheme, the victim would receive calls, emails or both – purportedly from well-known retail establishments about charges to the victim’s account. The victim was asked to call a certain number and eventually download software to enable the caller to view the screen of the victim’s computer to “refund” the charge if the victim desired.

In reality, however, that software enabled the caller to access the victim’s computer remotely – not just view the screen. The caller then pretended to cancel the requested service at the victim’s request and provide the requested refund. The caller made it look like they had provided too large of a refund, often by moving around money from the victim’s own accounts. When the victim went to return what they thought was the over-refund, they were actually giving away their own money. The callers told their victims to send their money to the bank accounts that Hussain and his conspirators had opened. From there, Hussain and his conspirators funneled the victims’ funds to various individuals in India.

Based on the jury’s verdict, Hussain faces a maximum of 20 years in prison. In a separate case still pending, Hussain faces charges of knowingly making false statements in connection with his application for permanent residence status. Hussain faces a maximum of 10 years in prison on that charge. The actual sentence will be determined with reference to Federal Sentencing Guidelines and the statutory sentencing factors.

“Fraud schemes like the one perpetrated by Hussain are complex and tend to prey on vulnerable victims,” said United States Attorney Nikolas P. Kerest. “These fraud schemes are also far too common and require vigilance by community members and law enforcement alike. This case demonstrates that the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our partners hold perpetrators of cybercrime accountable. Moving forward, we will continue to investigate and prosecute these fraud schemes and also provide education to the community on how to avoid becoming a victim.”

“Mr. Hussain is a scam artist involved in a sophisticated criminal network that targeted innocent victims and robbed them of their hard-earned money,” said Craig Tremaroli, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albany Field Office.  “The FBI will continue to work with our partners at the United States Attorney’s Office to identify and disrupt any individual or criminal organization looking to use technology to scam our citizens.”

United States Attorney Nikolas P. Kerest also commended the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and thanked the U.S. Marshals Service for their assistance during trial.

At trial, Assistant U.S. Attorneys Eugenia P. Cowles and Colin Owyang represented the government. Kevin Henry, Esq. of Primmer, Piper, Eggleston & Cramer, PC represented Hussain.

Source: US FBI

ALBUQUERQUE – A Mexican national was extradited from Mexico to the United States to face federal drug trafficking charges in New Mexico.

Guillermo Amaro-Rodriguez, 42, made his initial appearance last week in federal court after being extradited from Mexico on a charge of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.

A federal grand jury indicted Amaro-Rodriguez on October 12, 2022.  According to the indictment, Amaro-Rodriguez conspired with others to distribute methamphetamine in Bernalillo County and elsewhere.

Mexican law enforcement authorities arrested Amaro-Rodriguez at the request of the United States in Chihuahua on October 3, 2024.  The FBI assumed custody of Amaro-Rodriguez from Mexican authorities on March 7, 2025.

“Mexican authorities’ efforts have ensured that the defendant will face justice in the United States for his alleged crimes,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Holland S. Kastrin. “We thank our partners at the Fiscalía General de la República for their commitment to combating drug trafficking and holding those responsible accountable. Our continued collaboration guarantees that international boundaries will not shield criminals from prosecution.”

“The extradition of Mr. Amaro-Rodriguez is an example of how the FBI will pursue justice no matter how long it takes,” said Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office. “Thank you to our determined FBI agents and the help of our federal, local and foreign partners for your hard work to hold this man accountable for his actions.”

Amaro-Rodriguez will remain in custody pending trial, which has not been set. If convicted, Amaro-Rodriguez faces up to life in prison.

Acting U.S. Attorney Holland S. Kastrin and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Drug Enforcement Administration, Albuquerque Police Department and the FBI’s Legal Attaché Office in Mexico City. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs worked with law enforcement partners in Mexico to secure the arrest and extradition of Amaro-Rodriguez. Assistant U.S. Attorney David Hirsch is prosecuting the case as part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Source: US FBI

ALBUQUERQUE – A To’Hajiilee man was sentenced to 72 months in prisonfor voluntary manslaughter in connection with the death of John Doe in May 2022.

There is no parole in the federal system.

According to court documents, on May 27, 2022, Cole Ray Shorty, 21, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, went to John Doe’s residence bringing other people with him including a juvenile. Upon arrival, Shorty found John Doe sitting in his car outside his residence.

Shorty approached Doe’s car and opened the back door. In response, Doe exited the vehicle with a bat and a struggle ensued. Doe was taken to the ground and was disarmed of the bat. Instead of leaving the scene, Shorty struck Doe in the head with the bat, leaving him injured and unconscious at the scene.

John Doe died from their injuries at the University of New Mexico Hospital on May 30, 2022. The Office of the Medical Inspector confirmed that the cause of death was blunt head trauma and classified it as a homicide.

Upon his release from prison, Shorty will be subject to three years of supervised release.

Acting U.S. Attorney Holland S. Kastrin and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today.

The FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Navajo Police Department and Navajo Department of Criminal Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brittany DuChaussee, Zachary Jones, Mark Probasco, and Meg Tomlinson prosecuted the case.