Category: Security

Source: US FBI

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has named Rachel A. Byrd as the special agent in charge of the Mobile Field Office. Ms. Byrd most recently served as the section chief of Investigation and Operations in the Weapons of Mass Destruction Directorate (WMDD).

Ms. Byrd entered on duty as a special agent with the FBI in 2004. Her first assignment was to the Honolulu Field Office, working criminal matters related to violent crimes, drugs and gangs. In 2010, Ms. Byrd was promoted to supervisory special agent in the Laboratory Division, Evidence Response Team. While in the Laboratory Division, Ms. Byrd served as the program manager of the training program in support of over 1200 field ERT personnel. In addition, Ms. Byrd provided support for policy development and multiple field operational matters.

In 2014, Ms. Byrd became the supervisory senior resident agent in the Jackson Field Office in Mississippi. She oversaw various resident agencies and criminal matters including gangs, drugs, violent crime, and health care fraud.

In 2017, Ms. Byrd was promoted to assistant special agent in charge of the Criminal Branch in the Mobile Field Office and later covered the National Security Branch as well. Ms. Byrd was promoted to section chief of Investigation and Operations for the WMDD in 2019.

Prior to the FBI, Ms. Byrd was a special agent with the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation and a Medicolegal Death Investigator/Autopsy Supervisor with the North Carolina Medical Examiner’s Office in Greenville, NC. Ms. Byrd earned a bachelor’s degree in biology from Fayetteville State University and a master’s degree in forensic toxicology from the University of Florida.

Source: US FBI

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Robert M. Harvey, 48, a registered sex offender, pleaded guilty today to possession of child pornography.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on June 29, 2022, Harvey was at Dismas Charities Inc., a Bureau of Prisons residential reentry facility in St. Albans, when facility staff found Harvey in possession of a cell phone. Harvey was not allowed to possess a cell phone without the approval of his probation officer, and any cell phone he possessed was subject to search and seizure.

Law enforcement analyzed Harvey’s cell phone and found it contained images and videos of child pornography. As part of his guilty plea, Harvey admitted that these images and videos include depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

Harvey is scheduled to be sentenced on August 25, 2025, and faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years and up to 20 in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.

At the time of this offense, Harvey was on supervised release as a result of his conviction for receipt of child pornography in United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia on March 12, 2007. Harvey was sentenced to 17 years and six months in prison, to be followed by a lifetime of supervised release, for that offense. On August 17, 2022, Harvey was sentenced to three years in prison for committing a crime while on supervised release.

Acting United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer Rada Herrald is prosecuting the case.

This case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative of the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:25-cr-69.

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Source: US FBI

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that Zyair Dangerfield-Hill, 23, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was convicted Thursday at trial of participating in the gunpoint carjacking of a 73-year-old man in April 2021.

The defendant was charged by indictment in July of that year with one count of carjacking and aiding and abetting, and one count of carrying and using a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence and aiding and abetting, and was found guilty of both.

As proven at trial, just after 3 p.m. on Wednesday, April 21, 2021, the victim was walking his dog on Pine Street, in the Spruce Hill neighborhood of West Philadelphia, and had stopped to put something in his parked vehicle, when the defendant and his associate walked up and pointed loaded handguns at the victim. They demanded the victim’s car keys, cell phone, and wallet, and threatened to shoot him if he didn’t comply.

The victim told them that he didn’t have his wallet or phone on him, and handed over a $20 bill and his car keys. At that time, two other males approached, also pointing their guns at the victim. All four of the carjackers then jumped into the victim’s vehicle, with the defendant in the front passenger seat, and drove away.

The Philadelphia Police Department was alerted about the carjacking, with officers arriving on scene a few minutes later. They broadcast over police radio a description of the victim’s vehicle, the four carjackers, and their direction of travel, and two officers on patrol spotted a car matching that description about a mile from the carjacking scene.

The officers turned on their lights and sirens and pursued the stolen car, which was driving erratically and at a high rate of speed, soon crashing into yellow metal pillars at 52nd Street and Paschall Avenue. Four males jumped out of the car and took off running, with the officers giving chase on foot. A short time later, the defendant was found hiding behind a motorcycle about three and a half blocks from the crash scene. DNA, latent prints, location data, and other evidence subsequently linked the defendant to the crime.

Dangerfield-Hill is scheduled to be sentenced on August 14 and faces a mandatory minimum of seven years in prison and a maximum possible term of life imprisonment.

“It is tough to imagine yourself surrounded by armed strangers pointing their guns right at you,” said U.S. Attorney Metcalf. “Zyair Dangerfield-Hill used a firearm to terrorize an innocent 73-year-old man, in the middle of the afternoon on a residential block. We are committed to stopping such senseless acts of violence, which undermine Philadelphians’ public safety and quality of life. The jury’s verdict holds the defendant accountable and keeps him safely behind bars.”

“Carjackings are not just property crimes — they are dangerous acts that put innocent lives at risk,” said Wayne A. Jacobs, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Philadelphia. “Together with our law enforcement partners, we will continue to pursue those who endanger public safety with relentless determination.”

The case was investigated by the Philadelphia Police Department and the FBI and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney J. Jeanette Kang and Special Assistant United States Attorney David Weisberg.

Source: US FBI

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that Rodney Ermel, 71, of Colorado entered a plea of guilty today before United States District Court Judge Mark Kearney on charges of tax evasion and conspiracy to defraud the United States.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Ermel owned and managed a Colorado-based accounting firm. Along with co-defendant Kenneth Bacon, Ermel provided accounting and tax preparation services for co-defendant Joseph LaForte, LaForte’s wife and co-defendant Lisa McElhone, and their business entities. Ermel conspired with LaForte, Bacon, and others to hide approximately $20 million in income.

He did this through various fraudulent accounting practices, such as fabricating shareholder loans and “bad debt” deductions. Ermel also filed tax returns which he knew underreported taxable income by over $20 million between 2016 and 2018. Ermel’s fraud caused a loss to the United States of over $8 million.

Ermel is the fourth defendant to plead guilty to criminal conduct related to this tax scheme. Sentencing is scheduled for September 3.

The FBI, IRS Criminal Investigation, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Office of Inspector General are investigating the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew Newcomer and John J. Boscia for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and Trial Attorney Ezra Spiro of the Justice Department’s Tax Division are prosecuting the case.

Source: US FBI

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that Alan Kane, 60, of Jamison, Pennsylvania, was sentenced today by United States District Court Judge Michael M. Baylson to 12 months and a day in prison and three years of supervised release for his actions linked to multiple fraud schemes. The defendant was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $160,072 and a $1,000 fine.

In September, a federal jury convicted Kane, an attorney, on two counts of bankruptcy fraud, one count of filing a false claim in a bankruptcy proceeding, and one count of making a false statement to the FBI.

Kane and two co-defendants were charged in a 12-count indictment in January 2024 that laid out three different fraud schemes: (1) a scheme to steal a house from a dead man’s family; (2) a scheme to defraud the City of Philadelphia out of property taxes that were due on the stolen house; and (3) a scheme to defraud co-defendant Jonathan Barger’s creditors through bankruptcy.

In a suit filed by the family to get their house back, Kane represented the party who had stolen the house, Joseph Ruggiero[1], and made repeated false statements supporting Ruggiero’s claim to good title, despite knowing that the deeds transferring the property away from the family were fraudulent. Kane also filed a false counterclaim against the family, claiming Barger’s company was entitled to more than $133,000 for work purportedly done to improve the house after it had been stolen.

After claiming in the state court suit that Ruggiero had good title to the house, Kane represented Ruggiero before the Social Security Administration and represented that Ruggiero did not own the house because the deeds were fraudulent. This was done to ensure Ruggiero would still receive SSI benefits.

Kane next filed a bankruptcy for Ruggiero, in which they claimed that Ruggiero had valid title to the house. The bankruptcy served to stay the family’s state court suit and prevent them from winning back the house. Kane then filed a false claim against Ruggiero in the bankruptcy, on behalf of Barger’s company, in an effort to steal some of the equity in the house for Barger in the event that Ruggiero lost the house to the family.

Barger was implicated in all three schemes and pleaded guilty in June of last year to all counts with which he was charged. He is scheduled to be sentenced on May 12.

“As officers of the court, attorneys have an ethical and professional obligation to uphold the law,” said U.S. Attorney Metcalf. “Instead, Alan Kane used his law license to help three clients commit federal crimes. Today’s sentence holds Kane responsible for his outrageous conduct and underscores the importance of respect for the rule of law.”

“White-collar crimes may not involve physical violence, but they are far from victimless,” said Wayne A. Jacobs, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Philadelphia. “Crimes like bankruptcy fraud undermine trust in our financial systems and harm individuals, businesses, and communities alike. The FBI, working alongside our partners at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, is firmly committed to protecting the integrity of our financial institutions and holding accountable those who manipulate, deceive, and defraud the public through complex and deceptive schemes.”

The case was investigated by the FBI and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark Dubnoff and Special Assistant United States Attorney Hannah McCollum.

[1] Mr. Ruggiero died in June 2020.

Source: US FBI

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that Mark Snedden, 69, of Munster, Indiana, entered a plea of guilty today before United States District Court Judge Wendy Beetlestone to conspiracy to commit federal program bribery and making and presenting a false claim.

The defendant was charged by information with those offenses last month.

As presented in the information, on or about December 10, 2015, a masonry restoration contractor (the “Contractor”) was awarded a $58,473,000 contract by Amtrak to be the main contractor on a façade repair and restoration project at Amtrak’s 30th Street Station in Philadelphia.

Federal funding supplied approximately 90 percent of the money Amtrak used to pay the Contractor for the repair and restoration of the 30th Street Station façade.

The defendant was the sole owner and President of the Contractor with responsibility to provide executive oversight of the Vice Presidents of the Contractor and the Contractor’s performance on the 30th Street Station façade project.

Donald Seefeldt, Lee Maniatis, and Khaled Dallo, each charged elsewhere, were Vice Presidents of the Contractor, with responsibility to supervise the Contractor’s performance on the 30th Street Station façade project.

Amtrak Employee #1 was employed by Amtrak as the Project Manager on the repair and restoration project. In that capacity, Amtrak Employee #1 was responsible for communicating with the Contractor about the work being done on 30th Street Station. Amtrak Employee #1 was also responsible for reviewing the invoices, change orders, and requests for payment that the Contractor submitted to Amtrak. Amtrak Employee #1 had the power to approve or reject these invoices, change orders, and requests for payment. Although Amtrak Employee #1 did not have the singular authority to approve Amtrak payments to the Contractor, his approval was a critical step in that process.

The contract between Amtrak and the Contractor prohibited Snedden and other Contractor officials from “offer[ing] to any Amtrak employee, agent, or representative any cash, gift, entertainment, commission, or kickback for the purpose of securing favorable treatment with regard to award or performance of any contract or agreement.”

As detailed in the information and admitted to by the defendant, from in or about May 2016 through in or about November 2019, in Philadelphia, in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and elsewhere, the defendant conspired and agreed with others known and unknown to the United States Attorney, including Amtrak Employee #1, Lee Maniatis, Khaled Dallo, and Donald Seefeldt, to commit an offense against the United States, that is, to knowingly and corruptly give, offer, and agree to give, a thing of value to Amtrak Employee #1, intending to influence and reward Amtrak Employee #1 in connection with any business, transaction and series of transactions.

Specifically, the information alleges, Donald Seefeldt, Lee Maniatis, Khaled Dallo, and others known to the United States Attorney, with Snedden’s knowledge and agreement, provided Amtrak Employee #1 with gifts and other things of value totaling approximately $323,686, including, among other things, paid vacations, jewelry, cash, dinners, entertainment, a dog, training for that dog, and transportation, to ensure that Amtrak Employee #1 used his power and influence to benefit the Contractor during the performance of the 30th Street Station Repair and Restoration Project.

In return for these gifts and other things of value, Amtrak Employee #1 used his position at Amtrak to access internal agency information available only to Amtrak employees about the 30th Street Station Project and shared this internal information with the defendant and other officials with the Contractor.

The information further alleges that Amtrak Employee #1 used his position at Amtrak to approve additional, more expensive changes to the 30th Street Station Repair and Restoration Project, thereby increasing the amount and value of the work to be performed by the Contractor. These additional expenses were reflected in a series of change orders or contract modifications. In total, Amtrak Employee #1 approved over $52 million of additional payments from Amtrak to the Contractor. Amtrak Employee #1 and officials with the Contractor falsely inflated the true costs of some of the work to be performed by the Contractor under these change orders, causing Amtrak to be substantially overbilled by over $2 million for the completion of the 30th Street Station Repair and Restoration Project.

Snedden is scheduled to be sentenced on August 13 and faces a maximum possible term of 10 years’ imprisonment.

The case was investigated by the FBI, the Amtrak Office of Inspector General, and the Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jason Grenell.

Source: US FBI

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that Brian Zenszer, 44, of Warminster, Pennsylvania, entered a plea of guilty today before United States District Court Judge Harvey Bartle III on one count of distribution of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography.

Zenszer was charged by indictment in December of last year.

As presented in court filings and admitted to by the defendant, on or about July 21, 2024, Zenszer knowingly distributed a visual depiction of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct, and, on or about November 6, 2024, possessed a Samsung cellular phone containing visual depictions of minors, including one or more prepubescent minors who had not attained 12 years of age, engaging in sexually explicit conduct.

The charges arose from two CyberTips reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) regarding two accounts on the Kik messaging app that had uploaded suspected files of child pornography. Investigators determined both accounts belonged to Zenszer.

The defendant is scheduled to be sentenced on July 29 and faces a maximum possible term of 40 years’ imprisonment and a mandatory minimum term of five years in prison.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), 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 to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit projectsafechildhood.gov.

The case was investigated by the FBI and the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Maureen McCartney.

Source: US FBI

EUGENE, Ore.—A Junction City, Oregon man with two prior child pornography convictions was sentenced to federal prison today for repeatedly possessing and distributing child pornography online.

Christopher Lyn Sparks, 59, was sentenced to 210 months in federal prison and a lifetime term of supervised release.

According to court documents, in 2006 and 2013, Sparks was convicted of federal child pornography charges and violating the terms of his supervised release. In November 2023, following his second release from prison, Sparks was required to serve a lifetime term of supervised release.

In May 2024, officers with the Portland Police Bureau alerted Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents to a series of CyberTipline reports related to child sex abuse material from several online social media and messaging platforms including Google, X (formerly Twitter), Tumblr, Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, Telegram, and TikTok.

Investigators traced multiple accounts from those CyberTips to Sparks and learned he had resumed distributing child sexual abuse material online through these platforms while still under federal supervision. An HSI agent, posing as a person interested in these materials, contacted Sparks through his Telegram account. Sparks exchanged messages with the agent and discussed sexually exploiting children. The agent discovered that Sparks was openly offering to trade and advertising child pornography using his Telegram account.  On June 11, 2024, Sparks was arrested after agents executed a federal search warrant and seized his phone, which contained child pornography.

On July 9, 2024, Sparks was charged by criminal information with possessing and distributing child pornography. On December 11, 2024, he pleaded guilty to both charges.

This case was investigated by HSI with assistance from the FBI and the Portland Police Bureau. It was prosecuted by William M. McLaren, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

Anyone who has information about the physical or online exploitation of children are encouraged to contact HSI at (866) 347-2423 or submit a tip online at report.cybertip.org.

Federal law defines child pornography as any visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct involving a minor. It is important to remember child sexual abuse material depicts actual crimes being committed against children. Not only do these images and videos document the victims’ exploitation and abuse, but when shared across the internet, re-victimize and re-traumatize the child victims each time their abuse is viewed. To learn more, please visit the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at www.missingkids.org.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Source: US FBI

EUGENE, Ore.—A Eugene man was sentenced to federal probation Wednesday for posting violent threats on Facebook.

Jeffrey Alan Voss, 31, was sentenced to a five-year term of probation in addition to the six months in custody he served prior to sentencing.

According to court documents, between September 24 and 27, 2024, Voss posted several videos of himself online making violent threats, including two in which he was holding a firearm. In another video, Voss discussed becoming the next Kip Kinkel, referring to a school shooter who, in 1998, murdered his parents and then opened fire at a Springfield, Oregon high school, killing two of his classmates and injuring twenty-five others.

Following those videos, on September 27, 2024, a concerned citizen called 911 to report a Facebook Live video Voss posted in which he claimed he was minutes from a specific high school and made violent threats. The Eugene Police Department located and arrested Voss the same day.

On October 1, 2024, the FBI executed a search warrant on Voss’s Eugene residence. Agents located and seized two firearms, one replica firearm, ammunition, body armor, and a handwritten note outlining his desires for vengeance and specifying individuals Voss wished to harm. The same day, upon learning his residence would be searched, Voss attempted to persuade an individual to conceal or remove evidence from his home.

On November 5, 2024, a federal grand jury in Eugene indicted Voss. He made his initial appearance the following day and was ordered detained. On March 6, 2025, Voss pleaded guilty.

This case was investigated by the FBI with assistance from the Eugene Police Department. It was prosecuted by William M. McLaren, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon, in coordination with the Lane County District Attorney’s Office.

Source: US FBI

PORTLAND, Ore.—A Portland man was sentenced to federal prison Thursday for using Instagram, a social media platform, to persuade children to produce and send him sexually explicit images of themselves.

Solomon Dean Cook, 21, was sentenced to 121 months in federal prison and ten years’ supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $103,000 in restitution to his victims.

According to court documents, in January 2022, the parent of a victim in Portland called the FBI’s National Threat Operations Center (NTOC) to report that an Instagram user had persuaded their child to produce and share a sexually explicit photo. The user threatened to distribute the image if the child did not continue producing and sending more images. During follow-up interviews with investigators, the victim identified a second child in Portland that Cook victimized.

Federal agents traced two Instagram accounts to Cook and learned that he posed as a “sugar daddy” online by offering large amounts of money to entice children into sending him sexually explicit photos. Once the victims agreed, Cook’s demands for sexually explicit materials escalated and he threatened to release images of the victims if they did not comply with his demands. Investigators learned that between November 2021 and May 2022, Cook exploited three minor victims in this manner. 

On May 11, 2022, Cook was arrested after agents executed a federal search warrant on his residence. During the search, Cook confessed to enticing the reporting victim into producing a sexually explicit image and to exploiting additional victims in the same manner. Investigators also searched Cook’s phone and found sexually explicit images of five minor victims and several adult victims.

On June 7, 2022, a federal grand jury in Portland returned a four-count indictment charging Cook with sexual exploitation of children, attempted sexual exploitation of children, and receiving and possessing child pornography.

On September 4, 2024, Cook pleaded guilty to three counts of enticing a minor online and one count of possessing child pornography.

This case was investigated by FBI Portland’s Child Exploitation Task Force (CETF). It is being prosecuted by Mira Chernick, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

Anyone who has information about the physical or online exploitation of children are encouraged to call the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324) or submit a tip online at tips.fbi.gov.

The FBI CETF conducts sexual exploitation investigations, many of them undercover, in coordination with federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. CETF is committed to locating and arresting those who prey on children as well as recovering and assisting victims of sex trafficking and child exploitation.

Federal law defines child pornography as any visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct involving a minor. It is important to remember child sexual abuse material depicts actual crimes being committed against children. Not only do these images and videos document the victims’ exploitation and abuse, but when shared across the internet, re-victimize and re-traumatize the child victims each time their abuse is viewed. To learn more, please visit the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at www.missingkids.org.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Justice Department to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.