Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

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New Britain Man Sentenced to 12 Years in Federal Prison for Trafficking Fentanyl

Source: US FBI

Marc H. Silverman, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that EDDIE LIMAS, 35, of New Britain, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Sarala V. Nagala in Hartford to 144 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for trafficking fentanyl.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in 2022, the FBI’s Northern Connecticut Gang Task Force received information that Limas and others were receiving kilogram quantities of fentanyl from sources in the Dominican Republic, storing the drug at a stash house in the Bronx, New York, and distributing it in central Connecticut.  Between January and April 2022, investigators made five controlled purchases of distribution quantities of fentanyl from Limas.

On May 13, 2022, Connecticut State Police stopped a vehicle driven by Limas’ uncle, Hector Limas, on I-84 in Danbury after investigators suspected that he had delivered narcotics to Eddie Limas’ residence on Chapman Street in New Britain.  A search of the vehicle revealed approximately 700 grams of fentanyl and approximately $19,000 in cash.

Also on May 13, 2022, law enforcement attempted to arrest Eddie Limas in Hartford, but he crashed his vehicle into a Hartford police cruiser and fled at a high rate of speed.  At the same time, investigators maintaining surveillance at Eddie Limas’ residence saw a neighbor remove bags and boxes from the residence, lock them in a car that was parked in front, and give the key fob to Carmen Hernandez, who had also exited the residence.  A search of the car revealed more than two kilograms of fentanyl, more than 300 grams of cocaine, approximately one kilogram of marijuana, items used to process and package narcotics, and a .380 caliber pistol.  Hernandez also possessed a quantity of fentanyl, and a search of Limas’ residence revealed a loaded .40 caliber pistol and additional narcotics.

Eddie Limas eluded capture until May 9, 2023, when he was arrested in New Britain after conducting additional drug sales.  He has been detained since his arrest.  On September 18, 2024, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute, and to possess with intent to distribute, 400 grams or more of fentanyl.

Hector Limas, 59, of the Bronx, and Hernandez, 61, of Hartford, pleaded guilty to related charges.  On November 8, 2023, Hector Limas was sentenced to 90 months of imprisonment, and on January 14, 2025, Hernandez was sentenced to 24 months of imprisonment.

This matter was investigated by the FBI’s Northern Connecticut Gang Task Force, the Hartford Police Department, the East Hartford Police Department, the New Britain Police Department, and the Connecticut State Police.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney A. Reed Durham.

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New Haven Gang Member Sentenced to 22 Years in Federal Prison for Murders, Additional Shootings

Source: US FBI

TYJON PRESTON, also known as “TJ,” 22, of New Haven, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in New Haven to 264 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for his involvement in a violent New Haven street gang, including two murders and additional shootings.

Today’s announcement was made by Marc H. Silverman, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut; John P. Doyle, Jr., State’s Attorney for the New Haven Judicial District; James Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge, ATF Boston Field Division; Anish Shukla, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Stephen Belleau, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for New England; and New Haven Police Chief Karl Jacobson.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in an effort to address violence in New Haven, the ATF, FBI, DEA and New Haven Police Department, working closely with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and New Haven State’s Attorney’s Office, have been investigating a gang war between members and associates of the Exit 8 street gang and rival gangs in the Hill section and other areas of the city.  The Exit 8 gang is named after the geographic area accessed by exiting Interstate 91 at Exit 8 in New Haven.  Recently, younger members of Exit 8 are identifying themselves with the word “Honcho,” which is derived from the street name of an Exit 8 member who was murdered on Quinnipiac Avenue in February 2020.

The investigation revealed that Preston and other members of the Exit 8 gang engaged in drug trafficking, used and shared firearms, and, since June 2018, have committed at least three murders and 16 attempted murders.  Exit 8 members and associates also stole vehicles, at times from outside of the state, and used those stolen vehicles when committing acts of violence.  Gang members also promoted, coordinated, facilitated, and celebrated their narcotics distribution and acts of violence through text messaging and the use of social media applications and websites including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and YouTube.

On April 24, 2024, Preston pleaded guilty to conspiracy to engage in a pattern of racketeering activity, and specifically admitted that on April 27, 2021, he and other Exit 8 members attempted to kill a rival gang member and shot him in the leg; on May 19, 2021, he and other Exit 8 members conspired to kill rival gang members, and shot and killed an associate of a rival gang; on May 20, 2021, he and other Exit 8 members shot and attempted to kill rival gang members; and on July 5, 2021, he and another Exit 8 member shot and killed a 22-year-old woman after she made a rap song containing derogatory comments about Exit 8.

Preston has been detained since September 9, 2021.

This investigation has been conducted by the ATF, the FBI, the DEA, the New Haven Police Department, the Hamden Police Department, and the New Haven State’s Attorney’s Office, with the assistance of the Connecticut State Police and the Connecticut Forensic Science Laboratory.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jocelyn C. Kaoutzanis.

This prosecution is a part of the Justice’s Department’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), Project Longevity and Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) programs.

PSN is a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone.  For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit www.justice.gov/psn.

Project Longevity is a comprehensive initiative to reduce gun violence in Connecticut’s major cities.  Through Project Longevity, community members and law enforcement directly engage with members of groups that are prone to commit violence and deliver a community message against violence, a law enforcement message about the consequences of further violence and an offer of help for those who want it.

OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies.  Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

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Indictment Charges Hartford Man with Drug Distribution and Firearm Possession Offenses

Source: US FBI

Marc H. Silverman, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Anish Shukla, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, today announced that a federal grand jury in Hartford has returned an indictment charging RAMON LUIS GUZMAN, 54, of Hartford, with drug possession and firearm possession offenses.

The indictment was returned on March 13, 2025, and Guzman was arrested yesterday.  He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Thomas O. Farrish in Hartford, pleaded not guilty to the charges, and was ordered detained.

As alleged in court documents and statements made in court, on September 27, 2024, a court-authorized search of Guzman’s residence on Haddam Street in Hartford revealed distribution quantities of fentanyl, phencyclidine (“PCP”), and cocaine; a Sig Sauer .40 caliber pistol; a Glock 9mm pistol affixed with a laser site; a Springfield Armory .45 caliber pistol; and three loaded firearm magazines.  Hartford Police arrested Guzman on state charges on that date.

It is further alleged that Guzman’s criminal history includes state felony convictions in Connecticut for multiple drug offenses and a robbery offense.  It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm or ammunition that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce.

The indictment charges Guzman with one count of possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl and quantities of PCP and cocaine, an offense that a carries a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of five years and a maximum term of imprisonment of 40 years, and one count of possession of firearms and ammunition by a felon, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 15 years.

Acting U.S. Attorney Silverman stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt.  Charges are only allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Hartford Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean P. Mahard.

This case 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 (OCDETF) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

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FBI’s Deceased Persons Identification Services Demonstrate Value at Las Vegas Symposium

Source: US FBI

A team of employees from the FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) Division and the Laboratory Division provided onsite case assistance at the International Association of Coroners and Medical Examiners (IACME) 2024 Training Symposium in Las Vegas to help identify unknown deceased persons. The team, with support from employees at the CJIS Division, processed fingerprints related to 30 cases for 21 different agencies and successfully identified seven unknown deceased individuals. Several cases are still under review.

After a discussion between an FBI employee and an IACME member at IACME’s 2023 Symposium led to a successful identification, the FBI worked with IACME representatives to promote the service at this year’s event. Attendees were encouraged to bring active and cold cases to the conference for the FBI to attempt to resolve in real time.

The FBI’s Deceased Persons Identification (DPI) Services, based at the CJIS Division, provides fingerprint-based deceased identification for active and cold cases. Federal, state, territorial, local, tribal, and international law enforcement agencies, as well as authorized medical examiners and coroners, may submit fingerprints to DPI Services. The team then searches the prints against multiple federal biometric systems, including the Next Generation Identification (NGI) System, to attempt to match the fingerprints with a known identity. When an identification occurs, the FBI staff advises the submitting agency and searches missing person entries in the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) for possible matches. If a match is located, the FBI notifies the NCIC record submitting agency.

“It was important for us to take this service directly to our customers,” said CJIS Division Acting Assistant Director Timothy Ferguson. “Thousands of people die without an identification each year, and our team works diligently to help our partners identify these individuals. We wanted the coroner and medical examiner community to better understand our service and know we are here to help.”  

DPI Services assist law enforcement further a case and provide families resolution. Updating identities with an individual’s date of death helps reduce fraud and identity theft.   

To learn more about DPI Services or other CJIS Division programs, visit le.fbi.gov/cjis-division.

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Federal Jury Convicts New York Resident of Acting as a Covert Chinese Agent

Source: US FBI

Defendant Pretended to Be Opposed to the Chinese Government So He Could Get Close to Prominent Activists Seeking to Bring Democracy, Reform and Human Rights to China

Shujun Wang, 75, a naturalized U.S. citizen of Chinese descent, an academic and author who helped start a pro-democracy organization in Queens, New York, that opposes the current communist regime in the People’s Republic of China (PRC), was convicted today on all four counts of an indictment charging him with acting and conspiring to act as an agent of a foreign government without prior notification to the U.S. Attorney General, criminal use of identification and making false statements to law enforcement.

“This defendant infiltrated a New York-based advocacy group by masquerading as a pro-democracy activist all while covertly collecting and reporting sensitive information about its members to the PRC’s intelligence service,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “Today’s verdict demonstrates that those who would seek to advance the Chinese government’s agenda of transnational repression will be held accountable.”

“The indictment could have been the plot of a John LeCarre or Graham Greene spy novel, but the evidence is shockingly real that the defendant led a double life, pretending for years to be an activist for democracy while he was secretly passing information to the Chinese government,” said U.S. Attorney Breon Peace for the Eastern District of New York. “The defendant was a perfect stooge for the PRC, a well-known academic and founder of a pro-democracy organization who was willing to betray those who respected and trusted him. When confronted with his shameful conduct, Wang lied to the FBI, but today’s verdict revealed the truth of his crimes and now he will face the consequences.”

“This conviction underscores the FBI’s commitment to countering espionage schemes by holding those accountable who collect U.S. activist information for the benefit of China,” said Executive Assistant Director Robert Wells of the FBI’s National Security Branch. “Any support for transnational repression is unacceptable, and the FBI works diligently with its partners to seek out and bring to justice those who support such activities.”

Wang is one of the founders of the pro-democracy Hu Yaobang and Zhao Ziyang Memorial Foundation, an organization located in Flushing, Queens, whose members are well-known pro-democracy dissidents who oppose the current government of the PRC. But instead of promoting democracy in the PRC, Wang, at the direction of PRC government officials, used his position within the Memorial Foundation and his status within the Chinese diaspora community to collect information about prominent activists, academics and dissidents, and reported that information to the PRC government.

According to court documents, since at least 2006, Wang operated under the direction and control of his co-defendants – four officials of China’s Ministry of State Security, which is responsible for the PRC’s foreign intelligence collection. At the MSS’ direction, Wang gathered information on people and groups that the PRC considers subversive, such as Hong Kong democracy protestors, advocates for Taiwanese independence and Uyghur and Tibetan activists, both in the United States and abroad. Wang conducted face-to-face meetings with MSS officials while on trips to the PRC and used an encrypted messaging application to receive taskings from his co-defendants and to send and receive written messages and files.

Wang often memorialized the information he collected in email “diaries” to be accessed by the MSS. These “diaries” included details about Wang’s private conversations with prominent dissidents, as well as the activities of pro-democracy activists and human rights organizations. Law enforcement recovered from Wang’s residence approximately 163 “diary” entries that he wrote to He, Ji, Li and Lu and other MSS officials. Additionally, in connection with his work for the MSS, Wang possessed telephone numbers and contact information belonging to Chinese dissidents.

Wang made materially false statements to federal law enforcement, falsely denying that he had contacts with PRC officials or the MSS. Over the course of three separate interviews, between 2017 to 2021, Wang repeatedly denied having any contact with individuals from the Chinese intelligence agency. During one of the interviews, in 2019, Wang was interviewed by federal law enforcement agents at John F. Kennedy Internation Airport in Queens, after he returned from China. Wang falsely stated that he had no contact with anyone from the Chinese government and that he had no Chinese government contact information. 

The verdict followed a one-week trial. Wang’s co-defendants in the espionage and transnational repression scheme, Feng He, Jie Ji, Ming Li and Keqing Lu are MSS officials who remain at large. Wang is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 9, 2025 and faces up to 25 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ellen Sise and Nina Gupta for the Eastern District of New York and Trial Attorney Garrett Coyle of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section prosecuted the case. 

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Douglas S. DePodesta Named Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago Field Office

Source: US FBI

Director Christopher Wray has named Douglas S. DePodesta as the special agent in charge of the Chicago Field Office. Mr. DePodesta most recently served as the interim special in charge of the Memphis Field Office in Tennessee.

Mr. DePodesta joined the FBI as a special agent in 2002 and was assigned to the Chicago Field Office, where he worked narcotics investigations. In 2006, he transferred to Chicago’s Technical Program and worked a range of investigations, including gang, drug, public-corruption, counterterrorism, and foreign-counterintelligence matters.

In 2013, Mr. DePodesta was promoted to supervisor of Chicago’s Technical Program. Mr. DePodesta managed all technical matters in the Chicago Field Office.

Mr. DePodesta was promoted in 2016 to chief of the Sensitive Operations Support Unit in the Operational Technology Division at FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C. He was promoted in 2019 to assistant special agent in charge of the Detroit Field Office, responsible for managing all violent crime, gang, and drug investigations in Michigan.

In 2021, Mr. DePodesta was promoted to section chief in the Finance and Facilities Division at FBI Headquarters, where he was responsible for the portfolio covering field office facilities and for the FBI’s vehicle fleet. He was named interim special agent in charge of the Memphis Field Office in 2023.

Prior to joining the FBI, Mr. DePodesta served nine years as a police officer with the Cincinnati Police Department.

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Director Wray Visits FBI Offices in Memphis, Knoxville, and Nashville

Source: US FBI

This week, FBI Director Christopher Wray visited the Memphis and Knoxville Field Offices and the Nashville Resident Agency. He met with employees, as well as a number of key law enforcement partners across the state, to discuss the Bureau’s work in Tennessee and affirm our continued commitment to working with our partners.  

Director Wray praised the great working relationships between the FBI and the state’s law enforcement community. While acknowledging the FBI’s commitment to partnerships and affirming the value of task forces, he also discussed the country’s evolving national security threat environment and expressed his dedication to supporting the fight against crime throughout the area.  

“Keeping our communities safe is the most fundamental duty of all law enforcement, and it’s something the FBI cannot do alone,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “I’m grateful for the strong, collaborative partnerships we have across the state of Tennessee, and I look forward to continuing to find innovative ways to support each other and the community.”

FBI Director Christopher Wray meets with the U.S. attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee and local law enforcement partners at FBI Memphis’ Nashville Resident Agency in August 2024.

Another key point discussed by the Director was the anticipated consolidation of the Memphis and Knoxville Field Offices. Beginning October 1, the Nashville Resident Agency will become the Nashville Field Office. With the reorganization, the Memphis and Knoxville offices will become resident agencies. The state will then have one main office and nine resident agencies. 

“I’m excited about what the new Nashville Field Office means for the Bureau and for the people of Tennessee,” said Wray. “The FBI will maintain a strong presence in both Memphis and Knoxville, as well as our existing locations throughout Tennessee, and centralizing in Nashville will put the right people in the right places to best meet the needs of our workforce and the communities we serve.”

Director Wray makes regular visits to the FBI’s 56 field offices and legal attachés to meet with employees and get briefed on local issues and crime trends, as well as to collaborate with partners.

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FBI Releases Human Trafficking and Drug Offenses 2013—2022 Special Report

Source: US FBI

WASHINGTON, DC—On July 30, 2024, the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program released the special report, Human Trafficking and Drug Offenses 2013-2022, on the FBI’s Crime Data Explorer at https://cde.ucr.cjis.gov. For this special report, UCR Program staff examined drug offenses in connection to human trafficking incidents compared to the number of human trafficking incidents per year.

The UCR Program started collecting data on human trafficking in January 2013. The data are collected through the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) and the Summary Reporting System (SRS). Because of the hierarchy reporting method used in SRS, only NIBRS data were used in this analysis. NIBRS allows additional offenses to be reported that are connected to an incident, creating more detail-rich data.

Participation in the FBI’s UCR Program is voluntary for state, county, city, territorial, university/college, and tribal law enforcement agencies, but federal law enforcement agencies are mandated to participate. From 2013 to 2022, an average of 86 percent of agencies participated in the UCR Program, and the average population covered by the UCR Program was 94 percent.

More than 8,700 reported incidents involved human trafficking from 2013 to 2022. Since 2013, the number of reported human trafficking incidents, offenses, and victims has increased. The number of incidents is nearly a linear increase each year, which is expected as participation in NIBRS increases.

Although the FBI does not have a specific drug trafficking offense, it does have offenses for drug abuse violations. Therefore, drug offenses in connection to human trafficking incidents were compared to the number of human trafficking incidents per year. This comparison revealed the South region had a rate of over 57 drug offenses per 100 human trafficking incidents, which was the highest rate of the four regions. The South region is the largest region in both agency count and population. The West region had a rate of nearly 22 drug offenses per 100 human trafficking incidents, which was the second highest rate.

The data also revealed drug/narcotic violations ranked fourth in additional offenses associated with human trafficking. The three most common additional offenses—promoting/assisting prostitution, rape, and pornography/obscene material—were expected as 84 percent of human trafficking incidents were reported as commercial sex acts.

The data cannot determine if drug trafficking often occurs in conjunction with human trafficking, nor can it be determined that human trafficking is the cause of drug trafficking or vice versa. However, it can be determined that as reports of human trafficking increase, reported victims, offenders, and drug offenses also increase.

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Christopher J.S. Johnson Named Special Agent in Charge of the Springfield Field Office

Source: US FBI

Director Christopher Wray has named Christopher J.S. Johnson as the special agent in charge of the Springfield Field Office in Illinois. Mr. Johnson most recently served as an inspector in the Inspection Division at FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C.

Mr. Johnson joined the FBI as a special agent in 2004 and was first assigned to the Detroit Field Office, working violent crimes and crimes against children. In 2009, Mr. Johnson was promoted to supervisory special agent and worked in the Crimes Against Children Unit in the Criminal Investigative Division at FBI Headquarters.

In 2010, Mr. Johnson transferred to the St. Louis Field Office, where he continued to work violent crime and crimes against children, as well as issues related to violent gangs. The next year, Mr. Johnson joined the FBI’s Child Abduction Rapid Deployment Team.

The CARD Team currently includes 75 agents, analysts, and other Bureau personnel from across the country, and teaches local law enforcement officers how to respond to child abductions. Local law enforcement can also contact their local FBI office and ask for assistance from the CARD team when a child disappears. Mr. Johnson eventually became a CARD Team leader for the North Central and South Central regions.

Mr. Johnson returned to the St. Louis Field Office in 2014 and supervised a squad that investigated violent gangs and transnational organized crime matters. In 2017, while still in St. Louis, Mr. Johnson supervised another squad that investigated violent crime, violent crimes against children, and transnational organized crime from a different region.

In 2020, Mr. Johnson was promoted to assistant special agent in charge of the Detroit Field Office’s Mission Services and Administrative Branch. In 2022, Mr. Johnson was selected to serve as an inspector in the Inspection Division at Headquarters.

Prior to joining the FBI, Mr. Johnson worked as a police officer in the St. Louis metropolitan area in Missouri. He earned bachelor’s degrees in criminal justice and in psychology from Saint Louis University and a master’s of management degree from Webster University in Missouri.

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Cindy Hall Named Assistant Director of the Office of Internal Auditing

Source: US FBI

Director Christopher Wray has named Cindy Hall as the assistant director of the Office of Internal Auditing at FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C. Ms. Hall most recently served as the acting deputy assistant director of the Inspection Division at Headquarters.

The FBI created the Office of Internal Auditing in 2020 to enhance the compliance, oversight, and accountability of national security activities at the Bureau.

Ms. Hall joined the FBI as a clerk in 1988, supporting the newly created Office of Automation at FBI Headquarters, and became an IT specialist in the Information Technology Division in 1991. Ms. Hall deployed numerous times over the next several years on the Rapid Start Team to support major case operations. She was also responsible for providing IT support to the FBI director and his staff.

In 2006, Ms. Hall was promoted to chief of the Field IT Services Unit at Headquarters and helped develop, implement, and coordinate polices, training, and administrative action for field office IT specialists. She also created the regional program manager position for IT specialists and established the staffing baseline for IT specialists across the Bureau.

Ms. Hall transferred to the Inspection Division in 2009 to serve as chief of the Inspection Management Unit. As unit chief, Ms. Hall contributed to the comprehensive review of administrative and investigative programs and national initiatives. She also ensured compliance with instructions and recommendations issued through the inspection process.

In 2017, Ms. Hall was promoted to inspector, the first FBI professional staff employee to hold the position. She was responsible for the oversight of administrative- and support-service compliance and for related national reviews. In addition, Ms. Hall was responsible for certain inspections the assistant director of the Inspection Division deemed necessary. 

Ms. Hall transitioned in 2019 to section chief of the Inspection Strategic Analysis Section. In 2022, Ms. Hall served as the acting deputy assistant director of the Inspection Division. The division conducts internal investigations, reviews operational performance and use-of-enforcement authorities in all investigative programs, and conducts special inquiries.

Ms. Hall was named acting assistant director of the Office of Internal Auditing in 2023.