Category: MIL-OSI

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Fort Myers, Florida – Clarence Black, Jr. (50, Tampa) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell to 20 years and 6 months years in federal prison for drug trafficking conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl while being on federal supervised release. Judge Chappell also sentenced Jarrek Fabrion Myrick (40, Fort Myers) to 15 years and 6 months in federal prison for drug trafficking conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl. 

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Last week, the U.S. District Court for the District of Idaho denied a motion for a preliminary injunction to halt construction of the Stibnite Gold Project. Among other things, the project will establish a domestic source of the mineral antimony, which has an essential use in a range of defense applications, including munitions and military-grade antimony trisulfide, lead-acid batteries, advanced sensor and radar materials, and flame retardants. Historically, the United States has been dependent on foreign sources of antimony. China is the largest historical supplier and has restricted exports to the United States. This has left the National Defense Stockpile depleted.

“Antimony is among the minerals most vital to our national defense, and for too long the United States has relied on foreign adversaries to supply it,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD). “This decision allows construction to move forward on the most significant domestic source of antimony, and it reflects the Department’s commitment to defending  projects critical to America’s national security.”

After years of environmental reviews, the U.S. Forest Service in January 2025 approved the Stibnite project, which is located in the Boise and Payette National Forests in central Idaho. A coalition of environmental groups challenged the approval and asked the court, before scheduled construction began, to halt work on the project’s access route and related facilities. The court denied that motion because plaintiffs had not made the required clear showing of imminent, irreparable harm. The ruling allows the authorized construction to proceed while the litigation continues.

Defense officials have identified the Stibnite project as the only domestic mine source capable of producing antimony in sufficient quantities to meet U.S. defense requirements in the near term. Over its life, the project is projected to produce roughly 115 million pounds of antimony, along with 4.2 million ounces of gold and 1.7 million ounces of silver. It will also reclaim a site disturbed by more than a century of historical mining, removing legacy mine tailings and restoring fish passage on the East Fork of the South Fork Salmon River.

Attorneys with ENRD’s Natural Resources Section and Wildlife and Marine Resources Section, together with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Idaho, are handling this matter.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – On May 28, 2026, a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico returned an 8-count indictment charging Jackeline Correa-Vázquez, 45 years old, with tampering with fentanyl, announced W. Stephen Muldrow, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

A fourth family member was sentenced to 90 months in prison on May 28 following a jury trial that resulted in convictions of four men for a multimillion-dollar tax refund fraud scheme. Brandon Hunt was sentenced to 90 months in prison for orchestrating a scheme to file false tax returns in the names of purported trusts. Brandon Hunt’s father David Hunt, his twin brother Baylon Hunt, and his half-brother Corey Burt were previously sentenced to 92 months, 38 months, and 94 months in prison, respectively.

According to statements made in court and evidence presented at trial, the Hunts, of Arlington, Texas, and Burt, formerly of Long Beach, Mississippi, executed a scheme to file false claims for tax refunds in the names of trusts they controlled. In total, they sought more than $8.5 million in tax refunds that the trusts were not entitled to receive. Brandon Hunt also filed multiple false returns in his own name that sought tax refunds he was not entitled to receive. As part of their scheme, the family members also submitted additional fake documents to the IRS including falsified financial instruments and altered money orders. Even after receiving warning letters to discontinue their fraudulent submissions, they continued filing false returns and other documents with the IRS.

As a result of the scheme, the co-conspirators received over $1.7 million in fraudulent proceeds from the IRS, which they shared and used to purchase luxury goods, furniture, cryptocurrency, a Cadillac Escalade and a house in Mississippi.

All four defendants were convicted at trial of conspiracy to defraud the United States. Brandon Hunt, David Hunt, and Corey Burt were also convicted of multiple counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns. Baylon Hunt was acquitted of two counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns. 

In addition to the terms of imprisonment, Brandon Hunt was ordered to pay $1,774,864 in restitution to the United States.

Assistant Attorney General Colin McDonald of the Justice Department’s National Fraud Enforcement Division and U.S. Attorney Ryan Raybould for the Northern District of Texas made the announcement. 

IRS Criminal Investigation investigated the case. The U.S. Marshals Service rendered valuable assistance in apprehending Brandon, Baylon and David Hunt after they failed to appear for the second day of trial.

Trial Attorneys Melissa Siskind and Daniel Lipkowitz of the Criminal Division’s Tax Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark McDonald of the Northern District of Texas prosecuted the case.

On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division (“Fraud Division”). The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Orlando, FL – United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe announces that Officium Global LLC and Loyal Source Government Services LLC have agreed to pay a total of over $3.6 million resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act and Contract Disputes Act, respectively. 

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Yesterday a federal jury in Los Angeles convicted an activist short seller of securities fraud for a long-running market manipulation scheme reaping profits of more than $21 million. 

“Andrew Left used his expertise to profit at the expense of retail investors, ordinary people who owned the stocks he targeted. He callously boasted that it was like ‘taking candy from a baby,’” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Egregious schemes like this strike at the heart of free, fair and open markets, and warrant prosecution when they involve criminal manipulation. Investors should have confidence that U.S. markets are safe and free from the type of deliberate manipulation that Left engaged in to enrich himself at the expense of American investors.”

“Left used his TV appearances to disguise his intentions, manipulate the stock market, and pad his pockets,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli for the Central District of California. “A fair and transparent securities market is a foundation of our nation’s financial system. We will continue to bring to justice individuals who abuse the public trust placed in financial advisors.”

“Andrew Left abused his position and influence when he devised a scheme known as ‘Short-and-Distort,’ to manipulate the market for personal gain,” said Inspector in Charge Eric Shen of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS). “Now he’s facing the consequences. Postal inspectors and our federal counterparts continue to partner to ensure spreading misleading or false material to the investing public has only one result: jail time.” 

“Frauds such as the one perpetrated by Left can erode investor confidence which impacts our capital markets,” said Assistant Director in Charge Patrick Grandy of the FBI Los Angeles Field Office. “While this conviction cannot make up for the significant and emotional harm he inflicted upon his unwitting investors, it does send a message to those who may be looking to profit from similar schemes – think twice because the FBI has a proven track record of rooting out fraudsters who illegally tilt the playing field against honest investors and undermine confidence in our markets.” 

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Andrew Left, 55, of Boca Raton, Florida, was a securities analyst, trader, and frequent guest commentator on cable news channels who manipulated the price of publicly traded securities so that he could profit off of investors who trusted him. As part of his scheme, Left made false and misleading statements — in the form of online posts and public reports — concerning publicly traded companies, asserting that the market incorrectly valued a company’s stock and advocating that the current price was too high or too low. Left knowingly exploited his ability to move stock prices by targeting stocks popular with retail investors and posting recommendations on social media to manipulate the market and make fast, easy money. 

In anticipation of his public commentary, Left established long or short positions in the public company on which he was commenting and prepared to quickly close those positions post-publication and take profits on the short-term price movement caused by his commentary. In advance of his tweets and reports, Left would enter limit orders to trade in the opposite direction of his public recommendations. Furthermore, Left used his advance knowledge and control over the timing of a market-moving event to build his positions using inexpensive, short-dated options contracts that expired from the same day that he published his commentary to within five days. To further the scheme, Left advanced the false pretense that his investment recommendations were credible because he was independent and free from any financial conflicts of interest. 

Left was convicted of one count of participating in a securities fraud scheme and 12 counts of securities fraud. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 31. He faces a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

USPIS and the FBI investigated the case. The Justice Department appreciates the substantial assistance of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA)’s Criminal Prosecution Assistance Group.

Acting Assistant Chief Matthew Reilly of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Benedetto L. Balding and Andrew Roach for the Central District of California are prosecuting the case.  Paralegals Mika Gothard, Ellen Kiernan, and Lanie Kirby provided substantial assistance.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

A California man who was a co-founder and former board member of Aspiration Partners, Inc., a financial technology and sustainability services company, was sentenced yesterday to 14 years in prison for a five-year scheme to defraud multiple lenders and investors of at least $248 million. 

“Joseph Sanberg preyed on investors and lenders who believed in his vision of environmentally conscious fintech,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Instead of delivering on Aspiration’s promises, he orchestrated a multi-year scheme involving fake clients, sham payments, and deceptive loan collateral that caused at least $248 million in losses to numerous victims. This sentence holds him accountable and serves as a clear warning to others who abuse trust for personal gain and obtain loans from the financial industry based on lies and misrepresentations.” 

“This serial fraudster used his Cinderella-like background, impressive educational credentials, and virtue signaling skills to swindle investors and lenders out of hundreds of millions of dollars,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli of the Central District of California. “This criminal case serves as a warning: Anyone can get duped by a con man.”

“As evidenced by this case, Mr. Sanberg selfishly put businesses and clients at risk who expected him to provide a valuable service to protect their interests” said Assistant Director in Charge Patrick Grandy of the FBI Los Angeles Field Office. “Along with our law enforcement partners, the FBI will continue to allocate expert resources to investigate and prosecute all those who take advantage of a position of trust to defraud American businesses.” 

“Yesterday’s sentencing reflects our commitment to the public,” said Inspector in Charge Eric Shen of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) Criminal Investigations Group. “The reward for lying, stealing, and falsifying records, is jail time.” 

According to court documents, Joseph Neal Sanberg, 46, of Orange, California, devised a scheme that began in 2020 and continued into 2025 to use his significant share of Aspiration stock to defraud various lenders and investors. Between 2020 and 2021, Sanberg and Ibrahim AlHusseini, who were both members of Aspiration’s board of directors, fraudulently obtained $145 million in loans from two lenders by pledging shares of Sanberg’s Aspiration stock. In order to secure the loans, Sanberg and AlHusseini falsified AlHusseini’s bank and brokerage statements to fraudulently inflate AlHusseini’s assets by tens of millions of dollars. 

Beginning in 2021, Sanberg concealed from investors that he was the source of millions of dollars of purported revenue paid to Aspiration through, or purportedly on behalf of, sham customers.  Court documents indicate that Sanberg personally recruited companies and individuals to enter agreements with Aspiration in which they committed to pay tens of thousands of dollars per month for tree planting services. The money for these customers’ payments was supplied by Sanberg himself. Sanberg concealed that these payments came from him rather than from the customers.

Aspiration booked revenue from these sham customers between March 2021 and November 2022, at the same time Sanberg concealed that he was the source of the payments. As a result, Aspiration’s financial statements falsely and fraudulently reflected much higher revenue than the company in fact received. Nonetheless, Sanberg continued to solicit investors to invest in Aspiration securities into 2025.

According to the documents, Sanberg also defrauded other lenders and investors using fraudulent materials describing Aspiration’s financial condition, including a fabricated letter from Aspiration’s audit committee that falsely stated Aspiration had $250 million in available cash and equivalents at a time that Aspiration only had less than $1 million in available cash. Sanberg used these fraudulent financial materials to obtain millions of dollars in additional loans and investments in Aspiration securities. Sanberg’s victims sustained at least $248 million in losses.

Sanberg pleaded guilty in October 2025 to two counts of wire fraud. 

The FBI and USPIS investigated the case.

Trial Attorneys Theodore Kneller and Adam L.D. Stempel of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nisha Chandran and Alexander Su for the Central District of California prosecuted the case.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Jacksonville, Florida – Trey Allan King (32, Jacksonville) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Marcia Morales Howard to 10 years in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and distribution of 50 grams or more of actual methamphetamine. King pleaded guilty on January 31, 2025. 

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

A federal jury in the Middle District of Tennessee convicted a Tennessee woman yesterday for illegally distributing controlled substances.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Heather Marks, 43, of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, was an Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner who was licensed by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to distribute controlled substances. Marks prescribed controlled substances to patients seeking pain treatment at Lifeforce Pain and Wellness (Lifeforce), a pain clinic located in Carthage, Tennessee. Lifeforce was a small, rural clinic that purported to provide pain treatment. From September 2016 through May 2018, Marks and others overprescribed highly addictive opioids, including oxycodone and oxymorphone, to Lifeforce patients. Marks herself prescribed nearly a million opioid pills to almost 1,000 Lifeforce patients over the course of the conspiracy. These patients were often addicted to illegal drugs and the opioids Marks and others prescribed to them at Lifeforce. Marks ignored obvious signs of Lifeforce patients taking illegal drugs at the time she prescribed them opioids, which put these patients in danger of overdosing. Marks further prescribed opioids to Lifeforce patients who she knew were likely selling the opioids on the street. Lifeforce patients would often travel hundreds of miles to obtain opioid prescriptions at Lifeforce because they knew Marks would prescribe the opioids they needed to either abuse or sell on the street.

Lifeforce, the pain clinic in Carthage, Tennessee, where Marks illegally prescribed controlled substances.

The jury convicted Marks of conspiracy to illegally distribute controlled substances and eight counts of illegally distributing controlled substances. She is scheduled to be sentenced on September 1, 2026, and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on each count of conviction. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the Justice Department’s National Fraud Enforcement Division; U.S. Attorney Braden H. Boucek for the Middle District of Tennessee; Special Agent in Charge Terrence G. Reilly of the FBI; Special Agent in Charge Kelly Blackmon of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG); and Special Agent in Charge Chris Ramage of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) made the announcement.

FBI, HHS-OIG, and TBI investigated the case.

Assistant Chief Jim Hayes and Trial Attorneys Lauren Randell and Manu Sebastian of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section prosecuted the case. 

On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division (Fraud Division). The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.

The Department of Justice’s Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program, currently comprised of nine strike forces operating in federal districts across the country, has charged more than 6,200 defendants who collectively billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $45 billion since 2007. In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

A Summit County man has been sentenced to federal prison for committing offenses that involved sexual abuse of children. This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.