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March 24, 2026

Defense News: Wyoming Guard Expands Field Artillery with Rocket Training

Source: United States Army

CAMP GUERNSEY, Wyo. – The Wyoming National Guard expanded its field artillery capability by training Soldiers March 20 in one of the Army’s most in-demand roles, the 13M High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) crew member.

At the Regional Training Institute in Guernsey, Soldiers from across the force are attending a 13M MOS transition course, learning how to operate and support one of the Army’s most lethal and mobile weapon systems. The course prepares experienced Soldiers from other career fields to serve on HIMARS crews.

“This course enables Soldiers who are already trained in another specialty to become qualified HIMARS crew members,” said Capt. Matthew Buchanan, operations officer and officer in charge at the RTI. “There’s a growing demand for this capability across the Army, and Wyoming is part of that growth.”

That demand is tied to how the Army is changing. HIMARS has proven its effectiveness in modern conflicts, increasing the need for long-range precision fires. As units expand, so does the need for trained crews, including within Wyoming’s 2nd Battalion, 300th Field Artillery Regiment.

“Every HIMARS battalion is growing,” Buchanan said. “We’re adding batteries, and that means we need more trained Soldiers. This course allows us to build that capability here at home.”

Students arrive with a wide range of experience. Many have spent years in other military occupational specialties before transitioning into field artillery.

“We encourage them to bring that experience with them,” said Staff Sgt. Jeremy Larkey, of Riverton, Wyoming, lead instructor. “Every background adds something to the team, whether it’s maintenance, communications or logistics.”

The course blends classroom instruction with hands-on training. Soldiers learn system components, safety procedures and operational concepts before applying those skills in practical exercises.

“There’s a lot of information,” Larkey said. “But the goal isn’t to memorize everything. It’s to give them a foundation so they can continue learning when they get to their unit.”

Training builds toward a field training exercise where students operate as full HIMARS crews in a realistic environment.

“It’s about building confidence,” said Staff Sgt. Austin Paulsen, of Thermopolis, Wyoming, an instructor. “We want them to go back to their units, contribute immediately and keep improving.”

Beyond technical skills, leaders emphasize the mission’s purpose.

“HIMARS gives the Army the ability to reach targets at long distances and shape the battlefield,” Buchanan said. “When you’re part of that, you’re part of something bigger than yourself.”

As the Wyoming National Guard continues to grow its field artillery capability, the 13M transition course is preparing Soldiers for that mission.

Defense News: Presidio Endeavor sharpens Wisconsin National Guard readiness

Source: United States Army

MADISON, Wis. — The Wisconsin Department of Military Affairs hosted the National Guard’s Presidio Endeavor wargame at the Armed Forces Reserve Center, March 11-12.

The inaugural event brought together participants from the Wisconsin National Guard’s joint Army and Air staffs, Wisconsin Emergency Management, U.S. Northern Command and the National Guard Bureau.

Ryan Kennedy and John Griese, wargame designers and facilitators supporting the National Guard Bureau’s Wargaming and Analysis Branch, led the turn-based, scenario-driven event.

“Wargames like Presidio Endeavor are great idea generators,” said Griese. “They provide planners and commanders a low-risk forum in which they can try out new ideas and concepts.”

Griese noted that National Guard members are well-practiced in supporting civil authorities during natural disasters while also maintaining combat readiness.

“The Presidio Endeavor scenarios challenge their ability to handle these dual missions simultaneously, and over extended periods of time,” Griese said. “It forces a state’s joint force headquarters to sort out ways to mitigate risk, generate and sustain combat power, and potentially uncover opportunities in what I call the ‘state-strategic’ space.”

Primary participants representing 12 military and interagency functional areas occupied a main table, surrounded by a gallery of observers. Among them was Lt. Col. Orrin Viner, the Wisconsin Army National Guard’s deputy chief of staff for operations.

Viner described the wargame as an opportunity to test the organization’s decision-making processes and plans in a complex, high-stress scenario.

“Within this demanding fictional environment, our resources were stressed to the breaking point,” he said. “It allowed us to identify key points of friction requiring immense effort and senior leader decisions.”

Viner said conducting the event annually will help refine best practices and expand participation across the force.

The integration of Wisconsin Emergency Management’s Response Planning and Support Section supervisor, Drew Werner, added a multiagency coordination element to the scenarios.

“The single greatest benefit of WEM’s participation is gaining a comprehensive understanding of interagency expectations,” said Werner. “Specifically, how federal and state government, our military partners, and civil authorities expect to coordinate during mobilization, which directly informs and strengthens our planning efforts.”

Werner added that WEM also benefited from the opportunity to rehearse domestic operations procedures alongside the National Guard — procedures that were applied just three days later, when local Soldiers were mobilized during a severe blizzard to assist the Wisconsin State Patrol in reaching stranded motorists.

The Presidio Endeavor wargame concluded with a hot wash, allowing for in-depth discussion among facilitators, players and observers.

“The point with wargaming is presenting a scenario that gets people to think, act, react, then talk about the outcome and what they’d do next time to generate a different outcome,” said Griese. “It’s a really effective and useful visualization exercise and an activity that is as old as war itself.”

Louisiana Woman Charged and Agrees to Plead Guilty in Pandemic Relief Scheme

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

BOSTON – A Louisiana woman has been charged and has agreed to plead guilty to her alleged involvement in a multi-state scheme to obtain millions of dollars in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds for herself and others by submitting fraudulent applications to PPP lenders.

March 24, 2026

Blue Springs Man Sentenced for Distribution of Child Pornography

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Kristopher Brandon Holcomb, 44, was uploading child porn on a popular mobile app and communicating with others he believed were minors on the app. HSI’s investigation revealed over 60 videos and almost 200 images on his electronic devices. He was sentenced to ten years in prison, ten years of supervised release and a lifetime of registering as a sex offender.

March 24, 2026

Cuba man pleads guilty to operating a marijuana grow operation

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo announced today that Daniel S. Ackerman, 59, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge John L. Sinatra, Jr. to possession with intent to distribute 50 or more marijuana plants, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, and a $1,000,000 fine.

March 24, 2026

Rapid City Woman Sentenced to 2 Years in Federal Prison for Possessing a Firearm as a Felon

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

United States Attorney Ron Parsons announced today that U.S. District Court Judge Camela C. Theeler has sentenced a Rapid City, South Dakota, woman convicted of Possession of a Firearm by a Prohibited Person. The sentencing took place on March 23, 2026.

March 24, 2026

Registered Sex Offender Sentenced for Receipt of Child Sexual Abuse Material

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

RENO – A Reno man who is a registered sex offender was sentenced on Monday by United States District Judge Anne R. Traum to 60 months in prison to be followed by 15 years of supervised release for receiving child sexual abuse material images and videos after the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) forwarded a CyberTip to law enforcement. The United States Sentencing Guidelines range for this offense was 151 to 188 months. The government had recommended a 151-month sentence to be followed by Lifetime supervised release.

March 24, 2026

Uruguayan Man Pleads Guilty to Agreeing to Move Money into the U.S. to Circumvent U.S. Sanctions Relating to Venezuelan Officials

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

A Uruguayan man pleaded guilty today to agreeing to use an unlicensed money services business to circumvent U.S. sanctions relating to Venezuela by transferring nearly $100,000 from the Dominican Republic into a U.S. bank account.

According to court documents, Irazmar Carbajal De Jesus, 60, agreed to transfer approximately $99,500 delivered in cash in the Dominican Republic to a specified bank account in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. The agents told the defendant’s partner that the funds were from a sanctioned person from the Venezuela government who needed help moving them to the United States.

Carbajal and his partner advised that the fee would be 20 percent for this service, which included creating fake invoices to justify the transactions to the banks and the use of several accounts to transmit the funds. Carbajal referred to the funds in coded language, identifying them as a “boy who needs to be taken to school.”

Carbajal pleaded guilty to conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business. He is scheduled to be sentenced on June 12 and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida, and Special Agent in Charge Brett Skiles of the FBI Miami Division made the announcement.

The FBI International Corruption Unit in Miami investigated the case.

Trial Attorney Barbara Levy of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering, Narcotics and Forfeiture Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Nalina Sombuntham for the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case.

The Money Laundering, Narcotics and Forfeiture Section’s (MNF) mission is to take the profit out of crime, eliminate drug cartels, and protect the U.S. financial system. MNF pursues criminal prosecutions and criminal and civil asset recovery actions involving: financial facilitators who launder profits for criminals; financial institutions and their officers and employees whose actions threaten the U.S. financial system and financial institutions; international money launderers who support transnational organized crime; and the top command and control of international drug trafficking organizations.

MNF’s International Unit investigates and prosecutes cross-border money laundering schemes involving transnational criminal organizations, cartels, foreign official corruption and related money laundering affecting the U.S. financial system and prosecutes criminal cases and civil forfeiture matters to recover the proceeds of those crimes.

March 24, 2026

Former Army Civilian Employee from Merced Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Sexually Abusing Children

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Thelmo Meneses Santos, Jr., 60, of Merced, was sentenced today to 15 years in prison to be followed by 10 years of supervised release for sexually abusing two minors while he was employed by the Armed Forces outside of the United States.

March 24, 2026

Former Army Civilian Employee Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Sexually Abusing Children

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

A California man was sentenced today to 15 years in prison and 10 years of supervised release for sexually abusing two minors while he was employed by the Armed Forces outside of the United States. According to court documents, Thelmo Meneses Santos, Jr., 60, of Merced, sexually abused two minor children multiple times between 2015 and 2023. Santos began sexually abusing both of the minor victims when they were 11 years old. Santos sexually abused the two minors in Japan, where he was employed by the U.S. Army as a civilian employee. During the investigation, Santos gave an interview to law enforcement officers where he admitted to engaging in sexual acts with both minor children. Santos was later arrested in Hawaii by Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID) agents. After his arrest, Santos attempted to unlawfully influence one of his victims to falsely recant her report of sexual abuse.

In addition to his sentence of imprisonment, Santos will be required to pay restitution to his victims and to register as a sex offender in the place where he resides, where he is an employee, and where he is a student, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).

Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Eric Grant for the Eastern District of California; and Special Agent in Charge Michael DeFamio of the Army CID Far East Field Office made the announcement.

The Army’s Criminal Investigation Division and the FBI investigated this case.

Trial Attorney Eduardo A. Palomo of the Justice Department’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney David Gappa of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California prosecuted the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, 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 www.justice.gov/psc.