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Six More Sentenced in Eastern Panhandle Fentanyl Drug Trafficking Operation

Source: US FBI

MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Six more people have been sentenced for their roles in a major drug trafficking organization responsible for the distribution of large quantities of illegal drugs in Berkeley and Jefferson Counties.

Gary Brown, Jr., age 39, of Baltimore, Maryland, was the leader of the operation. He was sentenced today to 327 months in prison and fined $1,000,000. The indictment, returned in January 2024 against Brown, Jr., and eighty-one others, charged that the defendants caused substantial amounts of fentanyl, methamphetamine, and cocaine to be distributed in Berkeley and Jefferson Counties.

Others sentenced this week include:

  • Linda Abshire, age 33, of Martinsburg, West Virginia, was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison.
  • Christopher Sterling Cogle, age 42, of Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, was sentenced to 96 months.
  • Saul Percy Powell, Jr., age 56, of Baltimore, Maryland, was sentenced to 180 months in federal prison.
  • Nathaniel Frederick Downing, Jr., age 69, of Charles Town, West Virginia, was sentenced to 18 months.
  • James Sanford, age 40, of Martinsburg, West Virginia, was sentenced to 60 months in prison.

Of the 82 defendants, 80 have been convicted. Including today’s six, 59 defendants have been sentenced. One defendant, Charles Delroy Singletary, age 44, of Baltimore, Maryland, remains a fugitive.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lara Omps-Botteicher and Kyle Kane prosecuted the cases on behalf of the government.

U.S. District Judge Gina M. Groh presided.

Investigative agencies include the Federal Bureau of Investigation (Pittsburgh Field Division and Baltimore Field Division); the Drug Enforcement Administration; the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Investigations; the United States Postal Inspection Service; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; the United States Marshals Service;  the Eastern Panhandle Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative; the West Virginia State Police; the West Virginia Air National Guard; the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office; the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office; Ranson Police Department; Martinsburg Police Department; Charles Town Police Department; the Berkeley County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office;  Stafford County Sheriff’s Office (Virginia); Frederick County Sheriff’s Office (Maryland); Frederick County Sheriff’s Office (Virginia); Winchester Police Department; and the Clarke County Sheriff’s Office (Virginia).

This investigation is 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).

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Pennsylvania Woman Charged in D.C. with Distributing Child Pornography

Source: US FBI

WASHINGTON – Jamie Greer Spies, 24, of Reading, Pennsylvania, was arrested on May 2, 2025, and federally charged with distributing child sexual abuse materials.

The criminal complaint was announced today by U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin Jr., FBI Special Agent in Chief Sean Ryan of the Washington Field Office Criminal and Cyber Division, and Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

Spies is charged with distribution of child pornography.

According to court documents, an undercover officer working with the MPD-FBI Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force was monitoring an online group

where people meet to discuss and trade original images and videos of underage children. While in the group, an individual later identified as Spies messaged the undercover officer indicating that she was interested in images that portrayed the sexual abuse of young children.

Spies subsequently distributed multiple images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children, including the abuse of infants and toddlers.

This case is being investigated by the MPD-FBI Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force. Valuable assistance was provided by the FBI’s Philadelphia Field Office, Allentown Resident Agency. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jocelyn Bond.

This case was brought as part of the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood initiative. In February 2006, the Attorney General created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices, 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 identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

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Walnut Ridge Man Sentenced to More Than 21 Years in Federal Prison for Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine and Being a Felon in Possession of 26 Firearms

Source: US FBI

      JONESBORO—Terry Duane Qualls, a multi-convicted felon, will spend the next 262 months in federal prison for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Jonathan D. Ross, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, announced the sentence, which was handed today by United States District Judge Lee P. Rudofsky.

      On September 20, 2024, Qualls, 37, of Walnut Ridge, Arkansas, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and being a felon in possession of firearms. Qualls was indicted on April 5, 2024, in a superseding indictment, on one count of conspiracy to possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine (actual), two counts of possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine (actual), one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, one count of possession with intent to distribute marijuana, one count of being a felon in possession of 26 firearms, and one count of possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking.

      In addition to the sentence, which equals 21 years and 10 months, Judge Rudofsky also sentenced Qualls to five years supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.

      In the spring of 2021, law enforcement received information that Qualls was a multi-pound distributor of methamphetamine, and also a distributor of marijuana, heroin, fentanyl, LSD, and ecstasy in the northeast Arkansas area. Law enforcement arrested Qualls twice in the following months, finding him in possession of drugs and drug proceeds. Law enforcement also conducted a controlled purchase of methamphetamine from Qualls. The investigation led to the execution of a search warrant on sprawling property off Greene 707 Road, which was occupied by Qualls. Law enforcement located several stolen vehicles and a marijuana grow on the property.

      Inside of a camper where Qualls resided, law enforcement located 26 firearms, body armor, 25 additional magazines, and five full cans of ammunition. Law enforcement also located approximately 340 grams of methamphetamine in multiple baggies, over 3,000 grams of marijuana, cocaine, ecstasy, suboxone, LSD, mushrooms, alprazolam, clonazepam, THC wax, 60 sudephedrine tablets, and steroids, along with a plastic bin full of syringes, five digital scales, 13 pipes, and a marijuana grinder.

      Qualls was sentenced as a career offender on the drug conviction due to his criminal history that includes three serious drug convictions. Qualls was sentenced as an armed career criminal on the gun conviction due to his criminal history as well.

      This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

      The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the Second Judicial Drug Task Force, Greene County Sheriff’s Office, Craighead County Sheriff’s Office, and Jonesboro Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Erin O’Leary.

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Additional information about the office of the

United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, is available online at

https://www.justice.gov/edar

X (formerly known as Twitter):

@USAO_EDAR 

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Connecticut Brother and Sister Charged with Fraudulently Obtaining $1.2 Million in Unclaimed Property

Source: US FBI

HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Henry J. White, Jr, age 75, and Patricia A. White, age 69, were both charged with conspiracy for agreeing to submit false and fraudulent claims for unclaimed property to state treasuries.

According to Acting United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, White and White, who are siblings and residents of Old Greenwich, CT, allegedly agreed and worked together to submit over $1.2 million in false and fraudulent claims for unclaimed property from state treasuries around the United States.  Henry J. White, Jr., using the names of corporate entities with which he was not affiliated and which he had no lawful authority to use, allegedly applied for and received unclaimed property from state treasuries throughout the United States. State treasuries, relying on the certifications provided by Henry J. White, Jr., under penalty of perjury, issued payment checks, which were generally sent by U.S. mail to the shared home address of both defendants.

From there, White and White allegedly deposited and cashed these fraudulently obtained payment checks, and these funds were then used for personal expenses, including for mortgage payments for their shared home in Connecticut.

The case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ravi Romel Sharma is prosecuting the case.

The maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is five years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.

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Morrilton Man Sentenced to 30 Years in Federal Prison for Production of Child Sexual Abuse Material

Source: US FBI

      LITTLE ROCK—Timothy Lee Highfield will spend 30 years in federal prison for production of child sexual abuse material. Jonathan D. Ross, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, announced the sentence, which was handed down today by Chief United States District Judge Kristine G. Baker.

      On June 8, 2022, Highfield, 46, of Morrilton, Arkansas, was indicted by a federal grand jury on one count of production of child pornography. On January 9, 2024, Highfield pleaded guilty to the count in the Indictment. Chief Judge Baker sentenced Highfield to 360 months in federal prison a lifetime of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.

      On approximately December 17, 2021, a citizen brought a phone containing child sexual abuse material to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). An investigation revealed the phone previously belonged to Highfield. During a search of the phone by FBI, a video made by Highfield was located on the phone. The video depicted a minor, believed to be less than seven years of age, performing oral sex on Highfield. The phone also contained multiple videos and images of child sexual abuse material and adults performing sexual acts with minors.

      The investigation was conducted by the FBI. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kristin Bryant.

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Additional information about the office of the

United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, is available online at

https://www.justice.gov/edar

X (formerly known as Twitter):

@USAO_EDAR 

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U.S. Attorney’s Office Charges 329 Individuals for Immigration-Related Criminal Conduct in Arizona this Week

Source: US FBI

PHOENIX, Ariz. – During this week of enforcement operations from April 12, 2025, through April 18, 2025, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona brought immigration-related criminal charges against 329 defendants. Specifically, the United States filed 130 cases in which aliens illegally re-entered the United States, and the United States also charged 179 aliens for illegally entering the United States.  In its ongoing effort to deter unlawful immigration, the United States filed 16 cases against 18 individuals responsible for smuggling illegal aliens into and within the District of Arizona. The United States also charged one individual with failing to register, as required by law. 

These cases were referred or supported by federal law enforcement partners, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ICE ERO), ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

Recent matters of interest include:

United States v. Manuel Ivan Rodriguez-Loya: On April 13, 2025, Manuel Ivan Rodriguez-Loya was arrested for Transportation of Illegal Aliens for Profit. Border Patrol agents from the Lordsburg, New Mexico Station attempted to stop Rodriguez-Loya’s vehicle, but he failed to yield, leading agents on a high-speed chase into Arizona. Agents from the Willcox, Arizona Station then positioned themselves to intercept the vehicle and eventually caught Rodriguez-Loya. He was found to be transporting eight illegal aliens at the time, including citizens of Mexico, Guatemala, and El Salvador. [Case Number: MJ-25-00365-TUC-BGM]

United States v. Emilio Escobar-Escalante: On April 15, 2025, Emilio Escobar-Escalante was sentenced to 37 months in prison for Reentry of Removed Alien. Border Patrol agents discovered Escobar-Escalante in the desert near Vamori, Arizona on January 10, 2024. He initially gave a false name but was ultimately identified as Escobar-Escalante. His identity revealed that he is a documented member of the Latin Kings and MS-13 criminal gangs. Immigration records showed that Escobar-Escalante has been removed from the United States seven times. Escobar-Escalante has previous convictions for illegal reentry, as well as racketeering conspiracy and conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. [Case Number: CR-24-00541-TUC-CKJ]

United States v. Antonio Terrell Gaither: On April 15, 2025, Antonio Terrell Gaither was indicted for Conspiracy to Transport Illegal Aliens and Bringing an Illegal Alien to the United States for Profit. According to the criminal complaint, Gaither admitted to using Telegram and burner phones to recruit others to travel to the southern border to pick up illegal aliens before transporting them to Phoenix, Arizona. [Case Number: CR-25-00566-PHX-KLM]

United States v. Felipe Alonso-Cabada: On April 17, 2025, Felipe Alonso-Cabada, aka Oscar Sanchez, an illegal alien from Mexico, was charged for Reentry of Removed Alien. According to the criminal complaint, after being arrested on local charges in Phoenix, Arizona, it was determined that Alonso-Cabada had been previously deported after a conviction for trafficking heroin. [Case number: MJ-25-5220-PHX-DMF]

United States v. Eduardo Prado Flores: On April 17, 2025, Eduardo Prado Flores, an alien illegally present in the United States was charged with Failure to Register as an Alien under 8 U.S.C. § 1306(a). Flores, who was removed to Mexico on five occasions, has been living in the United States unlawfully since 2022. On April 16, 2025, Flores was turned over to the Department of Homeland Security after being arrested for Driving Under the Influence. While he was living in the United States from 2022 to 2025, Flores failed to file any immigration paperwork or register as required by law. [Case Number: MJ-25-5225-PHX]

A criminal complaint is simply a method by which a person is charged with criminal activity and raises no inference of guilt. An individual is presumed innocent until evidence is presented to a jury that establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

These cases are 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).                                                                                       

RELEASE NUMBER:    2025-060_April 18 Immigration Enforcement

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For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on X @USAO_AZ for the latest news.

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Inmate Sentenced to 72 Months’ Imprisonment for Assault with a Dangerous Weapon

Source: US FBI

SCRANTON – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Victor Blanco, age 42, formerly an inmate at United States Penitentiary Canaan, Waymart, Pennsylvania, was sentenced yesterday to 72 months’ imprisonment by Senior United States District Judge Robert D. Mariani for assaulting another inmate with a dangerous weapon.

According to Acting United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, Blanco was previously found guilty after a bench trial of one count of assault with a dangerous weapon for his role in the stabbing of another inmate using a sharpened piece of metal with a bed sheet handle.  The assault occurred at USP-Canaan’s outdoor recreation yard. A co-defendant, Isaac Carreno, was previously sentenced to 31-months’ incarceration after pleading guilty to the same offense.

The matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Assistant United States Attorneys James Buchanan and Gerard Donahue prosecuted the case.

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Leader of Export Control Evasion Scheme Sentenced to 70 Months in Prison

Source: US FBI

Defendant and Co-Conspirator Both Sentenced to Prison for Conspiring to Send Controlled Aircraft Components to Russia

Oleg Sergeyevhich Patsulya, a Russian national, was sentenced today to 70 months, or nearly six years, in prison for his role in a conspiracy to export controlled aviation technology to Russia and to launder money in connection with the illegal export scheme. In December 2024, Patsulya’s co-conspirator, Russian national Vasilii Sergeyevich Besedin, was sentenced to two years in prison for his role in the scheme.

In April 2024, Patsulya, 46, of Miami-Dade County, Florida, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to export items from the United States without a license in violation of the Export Control Reform Act and conspiracy to commit international money laundering. At today’s sentencing hearing, U.S. District Court Judge Dominic W. Lanza for the District of Arizona. found that Patsulya was an organizer and leader of the conspiracy and that the money laundering scheme – which employed numerous shell companies, offshore accounts, and multi-layered transactions – was sophisticated in nature, which led to the application of sentencing enhancements.

In handing down Patsulya’s 70-month sentence, Judge Lanza emphasized the seriousness of the offense, Patsulya’s leadership role in planning and carrying it out, and the fact that Patsulya committed these crimes not long after being granted the privilege of a visa to enter the United States. “It’s hard to imagine a bigger betrayal of the United States than what you did,” Judge Lanza said. The proceedings also established that Patsulya currently lacks legal status to be present in the United States.

According to court documents, beginning in or about May 2022, Patsulya and Besedin conspired with each other and several others to obtain orders for various aircraft parts and components from Russian buyers – primarily commercial airline companies – and then fulfill those requests by acquiring the parts from the U.S. suppliers and unlawfully exporting the parts to Russia. The defendants admitted to knowing the items were controlled and required a license from the Department of Commerce to export.

As part of the scheme, the defendants conspired to export multiple shipments of a carbon disc brake system used on Boeing 737 aircraft. When they contacted various U.S. suppliers in efforts to obtain the brake system, Besedin and Patsulya provided false information that the parts were intended for countries other than Russia. The United States was able to detain, prior to export, multiple shipments made by the defendants containing units of the brake assembly technology.

As part of their guilty pleas, Besedin and Patsulya admitted that they attempted to conceal the illegal exports and avoid detection by law enforcement, including by making false representations about the identities of their true customers and using straw buyer-companies located overseas to obscure the origin of revenue. For example, on Sept. 8, 2022, Besedin and Patsulya traveled to Arizona to close a deal with a U.S. company, in which the defendants sought to purchase units of the brake assembly technology. During their discussions with the company, the defendants misrepresented that the aircraft parts were going to be exported to Turkey, when they were in fact destined for Russia. The defendants made false statements to the company both orally and in signed export compliance forms. In connection with this transaction, the defendants received money from a Russian airline company to make the purchase. The funds were transferred to Patsulya’s American bank account from a Turkish bank account that had previously received the money from Russia.

In total, throughout the conspiracy, American bank accounts associated with MIC P&I LLC, Patsulya’s company, received at least $4,582,288.51 sent from Russian airline companies through Turkish bank accounts to purchase aircraft parts and components intended for unlawful export. As part of his plea and sentence, Patsulya is required to forfeit assets, including a luxury car and personal boat, in the amount of $4,582,288.51.

Sue Bai, head of the Justice Department’s National Security Division, U.S. Attorney Timothy Courchaine for the District of Arizona, Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky of the FBI’s Counterintelligence Division, and Special Agent in Charge Richard Fitzpatrick of the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) Phoenix Field Office made the announcement.

The BIS Phoenix Field Office and the FBI Phoenix Field Office investigated the case, with valuable assistance provided by the BIS Boston Field Office, the FBI Miami Field Office, Homeland Security Investigations Phoenix Field Office, Customs and Border Protection-Phoenix Field Office, and the U.S. Marshals Office in Miami.

Trial Attorney Christopher M. Rigali of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney William G. Voit for the District of Arizona prosecuted the case.

This case was coordinated through the Disruptive Technology Strike Force, an interagency law enforcement strike force co-led by the Departments of Justice and Commerce designed to target illicit actors, protect supply chains, and prevent critical technology from being acquired by authoritarian regimes and hostile nation-states. The Strike Force leverages tools and authorities across the U.S. government to enhance the criminal and administrative enforcement of export control laws.

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U.S. Attorney’s Office Charges Over 200 Individuals for Immigration-Related Criminal Conduct in Arizona This Week

Source: US FBI

PHOENIX, Ariz. – During this week of enforcement operations from March 29, 2025, through April 4, 2025, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona has brought immigration-related criminal charges against 204 defendants. Specifically, the United States filed 83 cases in which aliens illegally re-entered the United States, and the United States also charged 107 aliens for illegally entering the United States.  In its ongoing effort to deter unlawful immigration, the United States also filed 13 cases against 14 individuals responsible for smuggling illegal aliens into and within the District of Arizona.

These cases were referred or supported by federal law enforcement partners, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ICE ERO), ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

Recent matters of interest include:

United States v. Ivan Mauricio Hernandez-Mosqueda: On April 2, 2025, Ivan Mauricio Hernandez-Mosqueda, a Mexica national, was sentenced to 46 months in prison for Conspiracy to Encourage and Induce an Alien to Unlawfully Enter the United States. In 2023 through his arrest in May of 2024, Hernandez-Mosqueda coordinated the smuggling of over 100 illegal aliens to the United States. Many of the illegal aliens were coached by Hernandez-Mosqueda to illegally enter the United States and claim asylum under false pretenses. Case No. CR-24-00820-PHX-KML.

United States v. Gabriel Santiago-Ramirez: On April 1, 2025, Gabriel Santiago-Ramirez was driving a silver SUV near Kingman, Arizona. A United States Border Patrol agent, while driving behind the SUV, observed the SUV pull off onto the shoulder of the road on Interstate 40 (I-40). The driver, Santiago-Ramirez, later identified as being in the United States illegally, fled across I-40 into the desert. Border Patrol arrested three illegal aliens inside the SUV and followed Santiago-Ramirez’s foot signs into the desert, arresting him for Transportation of Illegal Aliens. Santiago-Ramirez was charged by criminal complaint on April 3, 2025. Case No. 25-MJ-01441-JFM.

A criminal complaint and criminal indictment are simply methods by which a person is charged with criminal activity and raise no inference of guilt.  An individual is presumed innocent until evidence is presented to a jury that establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

CASE NUMBERS:         CR-24-00820-PHX-KML
                                      25-MJ-01441-JFM

RELEASE NUMBER:    2025-050_April 4 Immigration Enforcement

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For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/

Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on X @USAO_AZ for the latest news.