Category: Security

Source: US FBI

PORTLAND, Ore.—A local man was sentenced to federal prison today for distributing counterfeit Oxycodone pills containing fentanyl in and around Portland and stealing federal funds intended to help small businesses during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Yuriy Viktorovich Vasilchuk, 33, a Portland resident, was sentenced to 49 months in federal prison and three years’ supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $32,855 in restitution to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).

According to court documents, in early 2021, special agents from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) identified Vasilchuk as a Portland area source of supply for counterfeit Oxycodone pills containing fentanyl. In December 2021, Vasilchuk was located in a stolen vehicle. He was arrested with 88 counterfeit Oxycodone pills and later released.

On May 3, 2022, a federal grand jury in Portland returned an indictment charging Vasilchuk with one count of possessing with intent to distribute fentanyl. Following his indictment, HSI special agents and probation officers from the Multnomah County Department of Community Justice (DCJ) attempted to arrest Vasilchuk who was again located in a stolen vehicle. As the probation officers approached Vasilchuk’s stolen vehicle, Vasilchuk sped off, nearly striking a nearby probation officer. After fleeing for several miles and causing multiple accidents, Vasilchuk’s vehicle became inoperable and he fled on foot. Soon after, investigators located Vasilchuk hiding in an abandoned RV and placed him under arrest.

Following his arrest, investigators obtained evidence that, between March and November of 2021, while he was actively distributing fentanyl, Vasilchuk applied to receive Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) from the SBA. In his applications, Vasilchuk falsely stated that he had not, within the past five years, been convicted of or pleaded guilty to a felony involving fraud, bribery, embezzlement, or making a false statement on a loan application. Based on the false information provided, the SBA disbursed more than $32,000 to Vasilchuk, which he in turn spent on various personal expenses.

On August 22, 2023, Vasilchuk was charged by criminal information with wire fraud. On March 11, 2024, he pleaded to one count each of wire fraud and possessing with intent to distribute fentanyl, resolving both of his criminal cases.

These cases were investigated by HSI, the Westside Interagency Narcotics Team (WIN), and the SBA Office of Inspector General with assistance from the Portland Police Bureau and DCJ. They were prosecuted by Cassady A. Adams and Rachel K. Sowray, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Oregon.

WIN is a Washington County, Oregon-based multi-jurisdictional narcotics task force supported by the Oregon-Idaho High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) program that includes members from the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, Beaverton and Hillsboro Police Departments, Oregon National Guard Counter Drug Program, FBI, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

The Oregon-Idaho HIDTA program is an Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) sponsored counterdrug grant program that coordinates with and provides funding resources to multi-agency drug enforcement initiatives.

Source: US FBI

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced today that Kendall Lee Forrester, age 35, of Wister, Oklahoma, was found guilty by a federal jury of one count of First Degree Murder in Indian Country, one count of Use, Carry, Brandish and Discharge of a Firearm During and in Relation to a Crime of Violence, and one count of Causing the Death of a Person in the Course of a Violation of Title 18 United States Code Section 924(c).

The jury trial began with testimony on February 24, 2025, and concluded on February 27, 2025, with the guilty verdicts.

During the trial, the United States presented evidence that on the morning of October 31, 2023, Forrester shot and killed the victim with a single gunshot wound to the head.  On November 1, 2023, the victim’s body and a set of bloody towels were discovered wrapped in plastic sheeting inside a hope chest in the back of the victim’s vehicle.  At trial, the United States presented evidence from the officers who conducted a traffic stop on Forrester that while inventorying Forrester’s vehicle they discovered a 9mm handgun, one 9mm magazine loaded with 9 rounds ammunition, and a trash bag of freshly washed clothes and towels.  Investigators also testified that a search of Forrester’s Wister residence a few hours later uncovered more towels appearing to be from the same set and a roll of plastic sheeting matching the plastic wrapped around the victim’s body.  Additionally, a fingerprint comparison expert testified that a latent print found on the sheeting around the victim’s body matched Forrester’s prints.  The United States also presented evidence that the chest had been in Forrester’s living room only hours before.

The guilty verdicts were the result of investigations by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Choctaw Nation Lighthorse Police, and the Heavener Police.

The crimes occurred in LeFlore County, within the boundaries of the Choctaw Nation Reservation of Oklahoma, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma.

The Honorable Ronald A. White, Chief U.S. District Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, presided over the trial and ordered the completion of a presentence report.  The sentencing will be scheduled following completion of the report.  Forrester will remain in the custody of the United States Marshals until sentencing.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jordan Howanitz and Dean Burris represented the United States.

Source: US FBI

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Dylan Hansen Yazzie, age 28, of Broken Bow, Oklahoma, entered a guilty plea to one count of Sexual Exploitation of a Child/Use of a Child to Produce a Visual Depiction.

The indictment alleged that between July of 2023 and September of 2023, Yazzie coerced or induced a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction to transmit in interstate or foreign commerce.  The crime occurred in McCurtain County, within the boundaries of the Choctaw Nation Reservation, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma.

The charge arose from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Broken Bow Police Department.

The Honorable Gerald L. Jackson, U.S. Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, accepted the plea and ordered the completion of a presentence investigation report.  Yazzie will remain in the custody of the United States Marshals Service pending sentencing.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Caila M. Cleary represented the United States.

Source: US FBI

Co-Defendant Previously Sentenced to Serve 96 Months for Accessory After the Fact to Murder

OKLAHOMA CITY – TEVIN TERRELL SEMIEN, 30, of Lawton, has been sentenced to serve life in federal prison for second-degree murder and illegal possession of a firearm after a previous felony conviction, announced U.S. Attorney Robert J. Troester.

According to public record, on May 17, 2023, Karon “Dinkers” Conneywerdy Smith, 68, was found dead in the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge. Investigators searched Smith’s home, which was within Indian Country, and observed blood consistent with a violent struggle. Smith’s vehicle was missing as well. On May 21, 2023, Texas law enforcement observed Smith’s vehicle driving south of Dallas, Texas. Officers attempted to pull the vehicle over, but the vehicle fled at a high speed and eventually crashed into a lake. The two occupants of the vehicle, later identified as Semien and Nicole Leigh Logsdon, attempted to flee on foot but were apprehended.

On October 17, 2023, a federal grand jury returned a four-count Indictment against Semien and co-defendant Nicole Leigh Logsdon, 25, also of Lawton. The Indictment charged Semien with one count of first-degree premeditated murder, one alternative count of second-degree murder, and one count of illegally possessing a firearm after a previous felony conviction. Logsdon was separately charged with accessory after the fact to murder.

On April 22, 2024, Semien pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and being a felon in possession of a firearm. As part of his plea, Semien admitted to deliberately and intentionally killing Smith.

On January 10, 2024, Logsdon pleaded guilty to accessory after the fact to murder and admitted to helping Semien in his attempt to avoid arrest and prosecution. On July 15, 2024, Logsdon was sentenced to serve 96 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release.

At the sentencing hearing on February 3, 2025, U.S. District Judge Stephen P. Friot sentenced Semien to serve life in federal prison. In announcing his sentence, Judge Friot noted the nature and circumstances of the offense, pointing out that Semien’s choices and conduct amounted to an “unfathomably cruel and depraved murder.” Judge Friot also noted Semien’s criminal history.  Public record further reflects that Semien has previous felony convictions which include burglary in Jefferson County, Texas, and conspiracy to commit second degree burglary in Comanche County District Court case number CF-2022-292.

This case is in federal court because Smith and Logsdon are enrolled members of the Comanche Nation and the murder occurred within Indian Country.

This case is a result of an investigation by the FBI Oklahoma City, Dallas, and New Orleans field offices; the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation; the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; the Comanche Nation Police Department; the Comanche County Sheriff’s Office; the Lawton Police Department; the U.S. Marshals Service; the Rice, Texas Police Department; and the Navarro County, Texas Sheriff’s Office. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kaleigh Blackwell and Trial Attorney Mark Stoneman with DOJ’s Criminal Division (former AUSA with the Western District of Oklahoma) prosecuted the case.

The case furthers the Department of Justice’s Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons efforts to address violence against Native American individuals. More information about this initiative is at https://www.justice.gov/tribal/mmip.

Reference is made to public filings for more information. 

Source: US FBI

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Gregory Dwayne Guinn, a/k/a Gregory Dewayne Guinn, age 23, of Okemah, Oklahoma, entered a guilty plea to one count of Assault with a Dangerous Weapon with Intent to Do Bodily Harm in Indian Country, and one count of Use, Carry, Brandish, and Discharge of a Firearm During and In Relation to a Crime of Violence.

The Indictment alleged that on January 15, 2024, Guinn assaulted an individual with a dangerous weapon, with intent to do bodily harm.  The Indictment also alleged that on that day, Guinn knowingly used, carried, brandished, and discharged a firearm during and in relation to that crime of violence.

The crimes occurred in Okfuskee County, within the boundaries of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Reservation, in the Eastern District of Oklahoma.

The charges arose from an investigation by the Okfuskee County Sheriff’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The Honorable Jason A. Robertson, U.S. Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, accepted the plea and ordered the completion of a presentence investigation report.  Guinn will remain in the custody of the United States Marshals Service pending sentencing.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jacob R. Parker and Patrick M. Flanigan represented the United States.

Source: US FBI

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Nnamdi Felix Udeagha, age 39, of Humble, Texas, entered a guilty plea to one count of Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud.

The Indictment alleged that between April and December of 2021, Udeagha knowingly and intentionally conspired with others to devise a scheme to obtain money and property from the Chickasaw Nation Department of Health through materially false and fraudulent pretenses by means of wire communications in interstate commerce.  According to court records, the Chickasaw Nation Department of Health received emails purportedly from a legitimate vendor.  The emails contained instructions to wire funds to certain bank accounts.  It was later determined that the emails were created and sent by a member of the conspiracy, and that the bank accounts were opened by conspirators to receive and distribute the fraudulently obtained funds.

As part of the plea hearing, Udeagha admitted that he facilitated the fraud by communicating the bank account information to the co-conspirator who sent the bogus emails, and that he acted together with the other conspirator for a mutual benefit.

The charge arose from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The Honorable Gerald L. Jackson, U.S. Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, accepted the plea and ordered the completion of a presentence investigation report.  Udeagha will remain in the custody of the United States Marshals Service pending sentencing.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kara Traster and Joshua Satter represented the United States.

Source: US FBI

Defendant Allegedly Created Large “Trump” Sign Used as a Battering Ram Against Police

Source: US FBI

CLEVELAND – United States Attorney Rebecca C. Lutzko has named two Assistant United States Attorneys (AUSAs) as District Election Officers for the U.S. Attorney’s Office (USAO) for the Northern District of Ohio.

AUSAs Megan R. Miller and Ava R. Dustin will lead the USAO’s efforts to implement the Justice Department’s nationwide Election Day Program for the upcoming Nov. 5, 2024, general elections.

These AUSAs will oversee the district’s handling of Election Day complaints in consultation with the Justice Department’s Civil Rights, Criminal, and National Security Divisions in Washington, D.C. The USAO for the Northern District of Ohio serves the 40 northern counties in the state. AUSA Miller covers the Northeastern counties of Ohio, while AUSA Dustin covers the Northwestern counties.

Federal law protects against election-related crimes such as threatening violence against election officials or staff, intimidating or bribing voters, buying and selling votes, impersonating voters, altering vote tallies, stuffing ballot boxes, and marking ballots for voters against their wishes or without their input. It also contains special protections for voters’ rights, to ensure that voters can vote free from interference, including intimidation and other acts designed to prevent or discourage people from voting or voting for the candidate of their choice. The Voting Rights Act also protects the right of voters to mark their own ballot or to be assisted by a person of their choice, for example, if a voter needs assistance because of a disability or inability to read or write in English.

“The right to vote is the cornerstone of American democracy. Every citizen must be able to vote without interference or discrimination, and to have that vote counted in a fair and free election. As it has for years, the Department of Justice will work tirelessly to protect the integrity of our nation’s election process,” said U.S. Attorney Lutzko for the Northern District of Ohio. “We encourage anyone who has specific information about voting-rights concerns, including access or intimidation-related issues, or specific information about fraudulent election activity, to please provide that information to the Department of Justice. Our goal is to ensure that those who wish to vote can freely exercise this right if they choose, and that those who seek to corrupt it are brought to justice.”

The Department’s longstanding Election Day Program furthers these goals and also seeks to ensure public confidence in the electoral process by providing local points of contact within the Department for the public to report possible federal election law violations.

AUSAs Miller and Dustin will be on duty in the Northern District of Ohio while the polls are open Tuesday, Nov. 5. AUSA Miller can be reached at 216-338-4479 and AUSA Dustin at 419-215-5444 to respond to complaints of voting rights concerns or fraudulent election activity. They will ensure that such complaints are directed to the appropriate authorities.

In addition, the FBI will have dedicated special agents, known as Election Crime Coordinators, available in each field office and resident agency throughout the country to receive allegations of election fraud and other election abuses on Election Day. The Election Crime Coordinator for the Cleveland Field Office can be reached at 216-522-1400. Tips also may be submitted online at tips.fbi.gov.

Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws may also be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington at civilrights.justice.gov or by phone at 1-800-253-3931.

In the case of a crime of violence or intimidation, please call 911 immediately and before contacting federal authorities. Please note: State and local police have primary jurisdiction over polling places, and almost always have faster reaction capacity in an emergency. 

Source: US FBI

CLEVELAND – An Ohio man was sentenced yesterday to three years in prison for possessing a green card he illegally obtained by concealing that he had been charged with a war crime in Croatia prior to immigrating to the United States.

According to court documents, Jugoslav Vidic, 56, of Parma Heights, in applying to become a lawful permanent resident of the United States, falsely stated that he had never been charged with breaking any law even though he knew he had been charged in Croatia with a war crime against the civilian population. Vidic also falsely stated that his only past military service was in the Yugoslav Army from 1988 to 1989, when, in fact, he fought with the Serb Army of Krajina and its predecessors during the civil war in the former Yugoslavia from 1991 to 1995. As a result of these materially false statements, Vidic was approved for lawful permanent resident status and received a green card.

“Jugoslav Vidic lied about war crimes charged against him in an attempt to escape his past and live in the United States unlawfully,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Thanks to the dedication of prosecutors, law enforcement, and our international partners, Vidic will serve prison time in the United States followed by his removal. His sentence demonstrates that human rights violators will not be allowed to hide from their crimes in the United States.”

“Vidic committed serious human rights violations and was convicted of war crimes in Croatia as a result. Yet, he lied to U.S. immigration officials about his conviction and participation in a violent military force to claim refugee status and obtain a green card — becoming a permanent legal resident of our country — when he was not eligible to do so,” said U.S. Attorney Rebecca Lutzko for the Northern District of Ohio. “Those who run away from violent crimes they commit elsewhere in the world and then enter our country by brazenly lying about their past will be held to account, as yesterday’s sentence demonstrates. Vidic’s deceitful actions are detestable, and unfairly hurt people in need who legitimately seek refuge to flee real harms in their home countries.”

“Our communities here in Ohio and across the U.S. are not safe havens for war criminals to escape accountability in their home countries,” said Executive Associate Director Katrina W. Berger of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). “It is my hope that this sentencing provides some measure of solace to the victims’ families with the knowledge that despite the passage of time, the U.S. will seek justice.”

“Jugoslav Vidic intentionally circumvented the laws of the United States by lying on his green card application about his war crimes conviction in Croatia,” said Assistant Director Chad Yarbrough of the FBI Criminal Investigative Division. “This case should serve as a warning to others that the FBI will work with our law enforcement partners to identify and hold accountable those like Vidic who seek to violate U.S. law by fraud of any kind.”

“Jugoslav Vidic knowingly avoided the truth of his past to enjoy the freedoms and liberties of the United States for over two and a half decades,” said FBI Cleveland Special Agent in Charge Greg Nelsen. “Yesterday’s sentence underscores the work of the FBI and its local, state, federal, and international partners and sends a clear message that people in the United States who take part in war crimes, regardless of when or where they occurred, or by masking their involvement, will be identified, investigated, and prosecuted.”

Vidic admitted in his plea agreement that he was charged with a war crime in Croatia in 1994 and convicted in absentia in 1998. The Croatian court found that during an attack by ethnic Serb forces in Petrinja, Croatia, on Sept. 16, 1991, Vidic cut off the arm of civilian Stjepan Komes, who died afterward. Vidic further admitted that he knew about the Croatian charges when he immigrated to the United States as a refugee in 1999, applied to become a lawful permanent resident in 2000, and was interviewed by U.S. immigration officials and received his green card in 2005.

Vidic pleaded guilty to one count of possessing an alien registration receipt card knowing it had been procured through materially false statements. As part of the plea agreement, Vidic agreed to the entry of a judicial order of removal from the United States.

HSI and the FBI investigated the case with coordination provided by the Human Rights Violators and War Crimes Center, including the FBI’s International Human Rights Unit. The Justice Department thanks the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Justice and Public Administration of the Republic of Croatia, which were both instrumental in furthering the investigation.

Trial Attorney Patrick Jasperse of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew W. Shepherd and Jerome J. Teresinski for the Northern District of Ohio prosecuted the case. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs also provided assistance.

Members of the public who have information about human rights violators or immigration fraud in the United States are urged to contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or through the FBI online tip form, or HSI at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or through the ICE online tip form. All are staffed around the clock, and tips may be provided anonymously.

Source: US FBI

CLEVELAND – David Johnson, 37, of Euclid, has been sentenced to 37 years in prison by U.S. District Judge Dan Polster after pleading guilty to multiple charges of armed robbery at places of business. Additionally, Johnson pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm due to his previous convictions for involuntary manslaughter and aggravated robbery.

According to court documents, between November 2019 and January 2020, Johnson entered several businesses in Northeast Ohio and threatened employees with a loaded firearm to commit the robberies. The affected business locations were:

• Sunoco gas station, Euclid, Nov. 27, 2019
• BP gas station, Parkman, Jan. 18, 2020
• Dollar General, Chardon, Jan. 18, 2020
• Gas Mart gas station, Euclid, Jan. 25, 2020

During the investigation, law enforcement officials located a stolen vehicle used in the robberies at Johnson’s residence. Clothing and a firearm observed in surveillance videos were recovered during a search warrant execution of his residence.

This case was investigated by the FBI, ATF, Lake County Sheriff’s Office, Geauga County Sheriff’s Office, Geauga County Prosecutor’s Office, Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office, Euclid Police Department, Willoughby Police Department, and the Cleveland Division of Police.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Margaret Kane and Joseph Dangelo for the Northern District of Ohio.