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Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

The owner of a company that produced and sold renewable fuel and fuel credits was sentenced today to serve 18 months in prison followed by two years of supervised release, and to pay $2,857,029 in restitution and a $150,000 fine, for his role in a scheme that generated over $7 million in fraudulent Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) renewable fuel credits and sought over $6 million in fraudulent tax credits connected to the purported production of biodiesel.

According to court documents, Christopher Burdett owned a biofuel company based in Fort Pierce, Florida, that claimed to turn various feedstocks into biodiesel. However, when reporting the number of gallons they produced to the IRS and EPA, Burdett and General Manager Royce Gillham vastly overstated their production volume to generate more credits. When auditors sought more information from the company, Burdett and Gillham provided false information about their fuel production and customers. 

Burdett previously pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit wire fraud and to file false claims. For his role in the scheme, Gillham was previously sentenced to 37 months in prison.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD), U.S. Attorney Jason A Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida, Assistant Administrator Jeffrey Hall of the EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, and Special Agent in Charge Ron Loecker of IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI)’s Florida Field Office made the announcement. 

The EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division and IRS-CI investigated the case.

Senior Trial Attorney Adam Cullman of ENRD’s Environmental Crimes Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Funk for the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case on behalf of the government.

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

Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, Daryl Campbell was sentenced by United States District Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis to 37 months in prison for orchestrating a scheme to smuggle contraband into the Metropolitan Detention Center (the MDC).  Campbell pleaded guilty in September 2025 to conspiracy to possess contraband.  The sentence imposed today will run consecutive to the 35-year term he is serving for a manslaughter conviction in New York County.  Campbell’s co‑defendants and fellow MDC inmates Ian Diez, Jonathan Guerrero, Abel Mora, and Mayovanex Rodriguez were previously sentenced to terms of incarceration ranging from six months to 30 months.  A sixth co-conspirator, Carl Kelly, is awaiting sentencing.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

An indictment was filed today in U.S. District Court charging Michael Marx, 45, of Midland, Texas, in connection with the May 4 shooting near the Washington Monument in which a civilian bystander was struck by gunfire, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.  

Source: United States Department of Justice

A California man was sentenced yesterday to 65 months in prison for smuggling at least 1,700 reptiles into the United States from Mexico, Hong Kong, and elsewhere over a six-year period. 

Jose Manuel Perez, of Oxnard, pleaded guilty in August 2022 to one count of smuggling goods into the United States and one count of wildlife trafficking. From January 2016 to February 2022, Perez and other co-conspirators smuggled wildlife into the United States without obtaining the permits required by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and without declaring any wildlife imported into the United States.

Perez and his co-conspirators used social media to buy and to negotiate the terms of the sale and delivery of wildlife in the United States. The defendants advertised for sale on social media the animals smuggled from Mexico into the United States, posting photos and video that depicted the animals being collected from the wild.

For the animals smuggled from Mexico, Perez’s co-conspirators retrieved the wildlife — which included Yucatán box turtles, Mexican box turtles, baby crocodiles, and Mexican beaded lizards — from Cuidad Juárez International Airport in Mexico and eventually shipped the animals by car to El Paso, Texas. Perez paid his co-conspirators a “crossing fee” for each border crossing, the amount of which depended on the number of animals transported, the size of the package, and the risk of being detected by the authorities.

On other occasions, Perez and a co-conspirator traveled to Mexico to purchase live animals that had been taken from the wild so that the animals could be smuggled into the United States. Once the animals had been shipped to the United States, they were transported to Perez’s residence (which was originally in Missouri and then in California after he moved).

In total, Perez caused the illegal smuggling and importation of at least 1,700 animals with a fair market value of more than $739,000.

Prior to today’s sentencing, Jose Perez had been serving a nine-year prison sentence after pleading guilty in May 2023 to three counts of being a felon in possession of firearms. He is not legally permitted to possess firearms because his criminal record includes felony convictions in Ventura County Superior Court for street terrorism and assault with a deadly weapon.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD), First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bilal A. Essayli for the Central District of California, and Assistant Director Doug Ault of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Office of Law Enforcement made the announcement.

USFWS investigated the case. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California, the ENRD’s Environmental Crimes Section, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and Homeland Security Investigations provided substantial assistance.

Senior Trial Attorney Gary Donner of ENRD’s Environmental Crimes Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew W. O’Brien and Juan M. Rodriguez for the Central District of California prosecuted the case.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Jacksonville, Florida – Drew Geer (42, Lake Butler), Anthony Crosby (42, Keystone Heights), and Leroy Halbert (53, Lake Butler) have each been charged by indictment with three counts of possession of dogs for dog fighting ventures. In addition, Geer and Crosby were charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Geer and Crosby each face a maximum sentence of 30 years in federal prison. Halbert faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in federal prison. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement. 

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Fort Myers, Florida – Walter James Marshall (32, Fort Myers) has been sentenced by United States District Judge Kyle C. Dudek to 5 years and 10 months in federal prison for possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon. Marshall pleaded guilty on February 11, 2026. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Orlando, Florida – Montrey Roseberry (20, Orlando) was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Carlos Mendoza to life in federal prison for coercion and enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity and production and possession of child sex abuse material. Roseberry was found guilty on February 19, 2026. United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.      

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

ABINGDON, Va. – A Bristol, Virginia man, who conspired with others to distribute more than 600 fentanyl pills, was sentenced yesterday to 60 months in federal prison.   Bobby John Arnett, 56, pled guilty to one count of conspiring to possess with the intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl. 

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

 A second Venezuelan man with ties to the Tren de Aragua (TdA) international gang was sentenced today for conspiracy to commit bank fraud by United States District Judge Michael P. Mills. Winder Alexander Canelon-Tiapa, 26, living as an illegal alien in Dallas, Texas, was sentenced today to ten months with three years of supervised release.  Additionally, he is to pay the victim $47,250 in restitution.