Source: United States Department of Justice
Marvin Flowers was sentenced to over seven years in federal prison for conspiracy to aid and abet, and to attempt to aid and abet, the possession, transportation and distribution of illegal narcotics. At the time of the offense, Flowers received multiple bribes while being employed as a law enforcement officer with the Sunflower County Sheriff’s Office.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
A Forsyth man who was messaging boys over social media and requesting nude images was sentenced today to 27 years in prison, followed by 10 years of supervised release, Acting U.S. Attorney Mark Steger Smith said. Schifferns was also ordered to pay a total of $40,200 in special assessments and $15,000 in restitution.
Source: United States Department of Justice
ALBANY, Ga. – A Valdosta resident with more than a dozen prior felony convictions in Georgia and Florida was sentenced to prison for illegally possessing a firearm after police responded to a victim who was beaten and pistol-whipped by the defendant.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
Access DX Laboratory (“Access DX”), its former CEO Michael Stewart, and Florida businessman Harold Shatz will pay a combined total of $36.4 million to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by paying kickbacks and billing Medicare and Medicaid for medically unnecessary genetic testing.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
Two South Florida men, a healthcare executive and a telemarketing company owner, have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in a scheme that resulted in the submission of approximately $35 million in false and fraudulent claims to Medicare Advantage plans for medically unnecessary durable medical equipment, including back, knee, shoulder, and ankle braces.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
Access DX Laboratory, located in Houston, Texas, its former CEO Michael Stewart, and Florida businessman Harold Shatz, have each entered into settlements and will pay a combined total of $36.4 million to the United States to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act (FCA) by paying kickbacks and billing Medicare and Medicaid for medically unnecessary genetic testing.
The United States alleged that, from January 2018 through January 2020, Access DX, Stewart, and Shatz paid kickbacks to marketers in return for referrals of patients for genetic testing, unbundled billing codes for genetic testing, paid telemedicine providers for false and fraudulent doctors’ orders, and submitted and caused the submission of false claims for genetic testing.
“Healthcare referrals must reflect the best decision for patients, not the influence of kickbacks,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “This resolution demonstrates the Department’s commitment to hold accountable both corporations and individuals who profit from improper kickback arrangements and who burden federal healthcare programs with claims for medically unnecessary services.”
“This settlement sends a clear message that we will not tolerate fraudulent schemes that waste taxpayer dollars and undermine trust in our medical system,” said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg for the Northern District of Georgia. “We will aggressively pursue any provider or entity that seeks to exploit federal programs through excessive billing and illegal kickbacks.”
“Kickbacks and medically unnecessary genetic testing schemes not only drain taxpayer-funded federal health care programs, but undermine the integrity of our U.S. health care system and drive up health care costs for all of us,” said Acting Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Miranda L. Bennett of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “HHS OIG will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to aggressively pursue health care fraud and protect Medicare, Medicaid, and the people who rely on them.”
In connection with its settlement, Access DX entered into a five-year Corporate Integrity Agreement (CIA) with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). The CIA requires Access DX to implement auditing and accountability provisions, including implementation of a robust compliance program, training and education requirements, and a review of arrangements with referral sources.
On June 24, Stewart agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States and to pay and receive health care kickbacks in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371. United States v. Stewart, Case No. 4:22-cr-328 (S.D. Tex.). On Oct. 15, 2025, Shatz agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States and to pay and receive health care kickbacks in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371. United States v. Shatz, No. 4:24-cr-330 (S.D. Tex.). Both men entered into civil FCA settlements at the time of their pleas.
The civil settlements include the resolution of claims brought under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act by Douglas Green, president of a Massachusetts marketing company hired to market genetic testing to Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries. Under those provisions, a private party can file an action on behalf of the United States and receive a portion of any recovery. The qui tam case is captioned U.S. ex rel. Green v. Access DX Lab LLC, et al., No. 1:19-cv-2845 (N.D. Ga.). The settlements provide for the whistleblower to receive a $7.2 million share of the total settlement amount.
The resolution obtained in this matter was the result of a coordinated effort between the Justice Department’s Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section, and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia, with assistance from HHS-OIG.
The matter was handled by Fraud Section Senior Litigation Counsel Laurie A. Oberembt of the Justice Department’s Civil Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Neeli Ben-David for the Northern District of Georgia.
The investigation and resolution of this matter illustrate the government’s emphasis on combating healthcare fraud. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Tips and complaints from all sources about potential fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement, can be reported to the Department of Health and Human Services at 800-HHS-TIPS (800-447-8477).
This year the Administration launched the Task Force to Eliminate Fraud and the National Fraud Enforcement Division to enhance the Administration’s war on fraud, waste, and abuse in federal programs. When unscrupulous actors exploit these programs for their own financial gain, they defraud the government, harm the people these programs are designed to aid and protect, and undermine American businesses that play by the rules. The Civil Division’s FCA enforcement plays a critical role in combatting such fraudulent schemes, recovering billions of dollars for the American taxpayers, and holding wrongdoers accountable. FCA matters will continue to be on the forefront of the battle against fraud, and the Civil Division’s FCA work will support and advance the mission of the Task Force to Eliminate Fraud and the National Fraud Enforcement Division.
Except to the extent admitted by Stewart and Shatz in their plea agreements, the claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
The Justice Department has filed the first-ever case in the U.S. Alien Terrorist Removal Court (ATRC), seeking to remove Nazira Haji Zada, 47, residing in Fort Worth, Texas. Zada, the matriarch of an alien Afghan family, is being removed for her role in a plot to commit an ISIS-inspired mass shooting on Election Day in 2024 for which her son, Abdullah Haji Zada, and son-in-law, Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, were previously arrested and convicted. The application to remove Nazira Haji Zada was filed on July 15. Zada was arrested earlier this week and will appear before the ATRC’s Chief Judge Joan N. Ericksen in Washington, D.C. on Thursday, July 30, at 11:00 a.m.
“Congress created the Alien Terrorist Removal Court three decades ago to remove from the United States alien terrorists who never should have been here in the first place,” said Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche. “The allegations in this case show the matriarch of an ISIS-sympathizing family aiding in a plot to launch a mass casualty attack on American voters on Election Day. The Department’s application in this court makes clear that terrorists have no place in the United States of America.”
“This is a historic step asking this court for the first time to remove an individual from the United States who supported a plot by ISIS-sympathizing family members to commit an act of terrorism in America,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “No one should be allowed to come into our country and then betray it. The FBI and our Justice Department partners will not hesitate to use all available resources to protect the American people.”
“The ATRC embodies the recognition that the government should not have to choose between allowing a dangerous alien to remain in the United States and disclosing sensitive classified information in a traditional removal proceeding,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg. “We will use all the tools at our disposal, including this court, to remove foreign nationals who betray our values and exploit our goodwill by supporting ISIS and terrorist plots.”
Tawhedi and Abdullah Haji Zada were arrested on Oct. 7, 2024, after purchasing the firearms and ammunition to be used in the Election Day attack from an undercover FBI employee. Nazira’s son Abdullah, who was 17 at the time of his arrest, entered his guilty plea as an adult and was sentenced to 15 years in prison. As part of the plea agreement, Abdullah stipulated to the entry of a judicial order of removal from the United States to Afghanistan following his term of incarceration. Abdullah acknowledged that the order of removal would terminate his lawful permanent resident status. Abdullah also waived his right to appeal the conviction except in limited circumstances or seek any form of appeal or relief from his removal and deportation, including but not limited to, seeking asylum.
Tawhedi, 28, pled guilty on June 13, 2025 to two terrorism-related offenses: conspiring and attempting to provide material support and resources to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), a designated foreign terrorist organization, and receiving, attempting to receive, and conspiring to receive firearms and ammunition in furtherance of a federal crime of terrorism, and is awaiting sentencing.
According to court documents, Tawhedi admitted that between June 2024 and October 2024, he conspired with at least one other individual to purchase two AK-47 rifles, 500 rounds of ammunition, and 10 magazines, with the intent to carry out a mass-casualty attack on or around Election Day, Nov. 5, 2024, on behalf of ISIS. According to a criminal complaint affidavit filed in the case, Tawhedi communicated with an ISIS facilitator about his plan to purchase firearms for use in the terror plot, including asking the individual whether 500 rounds of ammunition would be sufficient.
According to the criminal complaint, to raise funds for their attack, in 2024, the family also started selling off their property, including furniture, computers, a mobile phone, and the family’s two vehicles. Nazia signed a contract to sell the family house. The family also purchased one-way airfare for Nazira to take the children (but not Abdullah and Tawhedi) to Kabul, Afghanistan shortly before the planned Election Day shooting.
The ATRC is a specialized federal court, which Congress established in 1996. The court has jurisdiction to remove alien terrorists swiftly from the United States, when the government establishes by a preponderance of the evidence that an alien is a terrorist. See Title Eight, United States Code, Sections 1227(a)(4)(B), 1531(1), and 1534(g). The Court is comprised of U.S. federal district court judges confirmed to the judiciary pursuant to Article III of the United States Constitution, and are then appointed to the ATRC by the Chief Justice of the United States. See Title 8, United States Code, Sections 1531 to 1537.
The court allows the government to use classified information, where disclosing that information to the public would pose risks to national security. The statutory provisions that establish the court provide paid counsel to the aliens if necessary and also permit either party to appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
This removal proceeding reflects the coordinated efforts of multiple federal agencies, including the Department of Justice’s National Security Division, the FBI, and the U.S. Marshals Service, as well as the Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Hayden O’Byrne of the National Security Division is leading the litigation, with assistance from Deputy Chief Larry Schneider and Trial Attorneys Anna Donnell and Evan Schultz.
For more information on the ATRC and to view court documents visit: https://www.atrc.uscourts.gov/
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
Tallahassee, Florida – Lekishaann Huggins, 45, of Tallahassee, Florida, was indicted by a federal grand jury charging her with 39 counts of bank fraud, one count of aggravated identity theft, four counts of spending money laundering, and two counts of filing a false tax return.
Source: United States Navy
WASHINGTON – Today, the Department of War expanded its undersea warfighting capabilities by awarding a five-ship contract modification to General Dynamics Electric Boat (GDEB) for the construction of five Columbia Class ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs), a nine-ship contract to GDEB for the construction of Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 through FY 2029 Virginia Class submarines, and previously awarded shipyard productivity efforts to the two companies. These awards represent a historic investment in maritime modernization and supremacy, with a combined total value of $76.6B.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
SAN DIEGO – A federal grand jury returned an indictment today charging Matthew Ray Calas of Spring Valley with distributing a powerful synthetic opioid—N-Pyrrolidino Protonitazene—that resulted in the death of a 67-year-old San Diego resident. According to court records, Calas advertised drugs for sale on Craigslist using coded language. In text messages with the victim, Calas offered to sell the victim “red devil nitazene,” a smokeable crystal powder. The victim was found on the floor holding drug paraphernalia, suggesting he died shortly after ingesting the substance. Three months later, Calas sold more of the “Red Devil” to an undercover law enforcement officer.