MIL Security Engine-1

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett sentenced Harold Dotson, 54, of Gaithersburg Maryland, to three years in federal prison, followed by three years supervised release — including six months of home confinement — in connection with a conspiracy to commit wire fraud affecting financial institutions. The fraud involved submitting more than $24 million in fraudulent CARES Act loan applications.  Judge Bennett also ordered Dotson to pay $24,807,432 in restitution.

Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, announced the sentence with Special Agent in Charge William J. DelBagno, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) – Baltimore Field Office.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act — a federal law enacted in March 2020 — provided emergency financial assistance to Americans suffering from the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. It gives financial assistance including forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and other expenses. Established by the CARES Act, the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) — administered through the Small Business Administration (SBA) — along with the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL), helped businesses meet their financial obligations. An EIDL advance does not have to be repaid, and small businesses can receive an advance, even if they are not approved for an EIDL loan. The maximum advance amount is $10,000.

According to the plea agreement and other court documents, beginning in April 2020, and continuing through January 2022, Dotson engaged in multiple wire fraud conspiracies. These conspiracies involved submitting fraudulent loan applications for various COVID-19 relief benefits, including EIDL and PPP loans.

Dotson, an accountant and tax preparer, served as the owner and principal of H&M Tax Service LLC (H&M Tax), doing business as H&M Financial Group, LLC — a tax preparation business — during the time frame of the conspiracies. He used his accountant expertise to assist with preparing numerous false and fraudulent EIDL and PPP applications for purported businesses that did not exist in any legitimate capacity.

The fraudulent loan applications included false information about the phony businesses’ number of employees, monthly payroll costs, and revenue.   Dotson also routinely created false and fraudulent Internal Revenue Service tax forms. He created the fraudulent tax forms for co-conspirator Ahmed Sary, 47, of Brooklyn, Maryland, and other co-conspirators to submit with the false PPP applications.

In return, Dotson received a percentage of the fraudulent loan proceeds, ranging from 2 to 27 percent. Through the scheme, Dotson received more than $828,498.95 from the co-conspirators.  Then Dotson primarily used the fraudulent funds to gamble at various casinos in Maryland, including Maryland Live, the Horseshoe, and MGM National Harbor. He also used the money for a gambling trip to Las Vegas.

Dotson’s conspiracy with Sary resulted in the disbursement of $14,807,609.37 in fraudulently obtained PPP funds in connection with more than 85 fraudulent PPP loans. Additionally, Dotson’s conspiracy with another co-conspirator resulted in the disbursement of at least 30 fraudulent PPP loans valued at least $6,499,823.12. More than $3,500,000 was funded and disbursed in connection with Dotson’s submission of fraudulent EIDL applications.

In June 2024, Judge Bennett sentenced Sary to seven years in federal prison in connection with the conspiracy.

The District of Maryland Strike Force is one of five strike forces established throughout the United States by the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate and prosecute COVID-19 fraud, including fraud relating to the CARES Act. The CARES Act was designed to provide emergency financial assistance to Americans suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.  The strike forces focus on large-scale, multi-state pandemic relief fraud perpetrated by criminal organizations and transnational actors.  The strike forces are interagency law enforcement efforts, using prosecutor-led and data analyst-driven teams designed to identify and bring to justice those who stole pandemic relief funds. 

For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit justice.gov/coronavirus. Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form. 

U.S. Attorney Hayes commended the FBI, SBA-OIG and the Baltimore County Police Department for their work in the investigation.  Ms. Hayes also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Paul A. Riley and Joseph L. Wenner, who are prosecuting the case, and recognized Paralegal Specialist Julie Jarman and Joanna Huber for their valuable assistance.

For more information about the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to report fraud, visit justice.gov/usao-md  and justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

# # #

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – A Pennsylvania man was criminally charged by information today with seven counts of wire fraud connected to a 2022 Permanent Fund Dividend (PFD) fraud scheme.

According to court documents, beginning in January 2022 and continuing through February 2022, Adepoju Babatunde Salako, 33, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, allegedly devised a scheme to defraud the Alaska Department of Revenue (DOR) PFD program. Specifically, Salako fraudulently obtained the personal identifying information (PII) for legitimate Alaskan residents and submitted seven separate applications to the Alaska DOR to obtain their PFD funds. Salako was never an Alaskan resident and has never traveled to Alaska.

Court documents detail that Salako allegedly created new email accounts that he controlled for each legitimate Alaska resident whose PII he fraudulently obtained. Using the PII, Salako allegedly gained control of at least seven already established “myAlaska” online accounts—the platform Alaska residents use to apply for the PFD. Once inside the accounts, Salako allegedly changed the account information to route communications from “myAlaska” directly to the email accounts he controlled for each individual. Salako also allegedly changed each applicant’s bank information to route the PFD payments to bank accounts he controlled.

Court documents further allege that Salako tried to shield his identity and location by using a Virtual Private Network (VPN) to appear as though six of the seven application submissions were submitted from an Internet Protocol (IP) address in Alaska. The other application was submitted using an IP address in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Records from Salako’s personal email account showed logins from the same Philadelphia IP address.

The State of Alaska determined the applications to be fraudulent and denied the applications.

Salako faces up to 20 years in prison and up to a $250,000 fine for each count of wire fraud. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

U.S. Attorney Michael J. Heyman of the District of Alaska, Special Agent in Charge Rebecca Day of the FBI Anchorage Field Office and Acting Commissioner Janelle Earls of the Alaska Department of Revenue made the announcement.

The FBI Anchorage Field Office and State of Alaska Department of Revenue, Criminal Investigations Unit investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Ainsley McNerney is prosecuting the case.

If you suspect you’ve been a victim of PFD fraud, contact the Alaska Department of Revenue, Criminal Investigations Unit. Online Fraud Tips can be filed at https://pfd.alaska.gov/fraud-tip-form. You can also contact the Fraud Hotline: (907) 500-0360.

###

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Defendant fraudulently promised victims 100-200 percent or more in investment returns

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – On Sept. 30, 2025, a Springfield, Mo., resident, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen Bough, to a period of imprisonment for 15 months, for his theft of mail matter from residential post office boxes.

Anthony Renell Williams, 45, pleaded guilty to a single count indictment on March 31, 2025, charging him with theft of mail on March 16, 2023.  Williams was observed by several Springfield, Mo., residence walking throughout various neighborhoods and stopping at the post office boxes of several residence. Witnesses contacted the Springfield, Missouri, Police Department to report the suspicious behavior. Springfield Police officers responded and were ultimately able to locate Williams and found he had stolen mail on his person.  Inspectors with the United States Postal Inspection Service conducted a further investigation and located security videos from local residences that captured images of Williams stealing mail from the post office boxes of local residences. Williams ultimately confessed to stealing mail, admitting that he had stolen the mail in order to commit fraud, and obtain money that could pay for his drug addiction.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Carney. It was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), and the Springfield, Missouri, Police Department.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

ST. LOUIS – A high school baseball coach in Illinois has been indicted and accused of drug trafficking crimes.

Demetrius Combs, 33, of Sauget, Illinois, was indicted in U.S. District Court in St. Louis on August 27 with one count of distribution of fentanyl, two counts of distribution of methamphetamine, one count of possession with intent to distribute in excess of 400 grams of fentanyl, one count of possession with intent to distribute in excess of 500 grams of methamphetamine and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. The indictment accuses Combs of conducting the drug sales between June and August of 2023.

Combs was arrested on September 25 and pleaded not guilty.

A motion seeking to have Combs held in jail until trial says an undercover officer with the St. Louis County Police Department purchased fentanyl on one occasion from Combs and meth on two occasions. During a court-approved search of Combs’ home in Bellefontaine Neighbors, officers found $3,746 in cash and capsules containing fentanyl in Combs’ possession. In his car, police found a pistol, three cell phones and more capsules containing fentanyl. In his home they found multiple firearms, two cell phones, thousands of dollars in cash, a pill press, fentanyl, meth and drug paraphernalia. One of the handguns was equipped with an auto sear or “switch” that converted it into a fully automatic weapon, the motion says.

Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The St. Louis County Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Christian Goeke is prosecuting the case.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces and Project Safe Neighborhood.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Greenbelt, Maryland – Noman Saleem, 38, of Queens and Levittown, New York, pled guilty today, in connection with his role in a wire fraud scheme. Saleem conspired to steal the victims’ money — including a victim in Maryland — under the guise of a crypto staking or crypto investment opportunity with guaranteed returns.

Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, announced the guilty plea with Special Agent in Charge William J. DelBagno, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) – Baltimore Field Office.

According to the plea agreement, beginning in December 2020, and continuing through at least March 2021, Saleem engaged in the investment scheme by promoting himself as popular online crypto influencers, convincing several victims to send crypto to virtual wallets that he owned and controlled. The victims invested with Saleem under the guise of a crypto staking or crypto investment opportunity with guaranteed returns.  After Saleem took control of the victims’ crypto, he ceased communicating with them and disappeared with their crypto.

Cryptocurrencies are not tied to any nation’s fiat currency. The owner of cryptocurrency is assigned a mathematical encryption key pair consisting of a public key and a private key. A public key, also known as an address, is visible to the public. The public key allows the public to verify the owner of virtual currency and to send and receive cryptocurrencies. A private key, also known as a secret key, utilizes a password to complete cryptocurrency transactions. Secret keys are typically only shared with the owner of the public key. A wallet can hold multiple public keys for a user and an account can hold multiple wallets for a user.

Crypto staking involves holding cryptocurrency holdings for a period of time to earn interest or rewards. Crypto staking is often accomplished through groups of people or pools, with participants earning passive income on their holdings, ranging from 5 to 20 percent.

In 2020, Saleem began using Telegram as a messaging application.  Saleem created a handle on Telegram used by a popular crypto influencer. Thousands of people joined Saleem’s public channel, and Saleem also created a VIP sub channel by subscription in exchange for approximately $500 to $600 of crypto. Saleem led members to believe that he was the influencer, as VIP channel members could direct message him. He also created a second handle using another popular crypto influencer’s handle and offered channel members the option to join his VIP channel by subscription.

Saleem advertised staking rewards through his Telegram channels, with terms of 30 to 90 days.  He then enticed potential investors with promises that the more crypto that they invested, the greater the returns.  Saleem never actually staked any crypto.

While conducting the crypto influencing and staking scheme, Saleem obtained at least $1,798,529 in U.S. currency. The Government seized much of these losses back in the form of crypto and U.S. currency, as identified in the plea agreement.

Saleem is facing a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison for wire fraud. His sentencing is set for March 3, 2026, at 9:30 a.m.  Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge determines sentencing after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

U.S. Attorney Hayes commended the FBI for its work in the investigation.  Ms. Hayes also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sean R. Delaney and Evelyn L. Cusson, who are prosecuting the case, and recognized Paralegal Specialist Shelbe Mascaro for her valuable assistance.

For more information about the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to report fraud, visit justice.gov/usao-md and justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

# # #

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

LOS ANGELES – A wholesale clothing importer located in the Fashion District of downtown Los Angeles and two of its executives have been sentenced for avoiding the payment of more than $8 million in customs duties on imported clothing, and for running a scheme in which the company laundered money and failed to report on tax returns more than $17 million derived from cash transactions, the Justice Department announced today.

On late Monday, C’est Toi Jeans Inc. (CTJ), which imported apparel from China and other nations and exported clothing to customers in Mexico, Central America, and South America, was sentenced by United States District Judge Mark C. Scarsi to five years of probation and was ordered to submit to federal monitoring. Judge Scarsi also fined CTJ $11.5 million and ordered it to pay more than $15 million in restitution.

Si Oh Rhew, 71, of La Cañada Flintridge, CTJ’s president and a 75% owner of the company, was sentenced by Judge Scarsi to 103 months in federal prison, fined $8 million, and was ordered to pay more than $19 million in restitution.

Lance Rhew, 38, of downtown Los Angeles, Si Oh Rhew’s son, a CTJ corporate officer, and the owner of another Los Angeles-based company called GLLR Inc. that did business as CTJ, was sentenced to 84 months in federal prison, fined $500,000, and was ordered to pay restitution.

CTJ was a business owned by Si Oh Rhew and his wife that the Rhews operated. CTJ received U.S. currency in bulk cash that was derived from drug trafficking as payment for customer invoices. Those funds were delivered to CTJ by money couriers unrelated to and unknown to CTJ or to the customers whose invoices were being paid.

CTJ and Si Oh Rhew failed to file currency transaction reports, which are required for any transaction involving more than $10,000 in cash, and the defendants concealed the cash receipts from an accountant who prepared their taxes, which led to the fraudulent omission of more than $17 million in gross sales from tax returns filed with the IRS.

The defendants also avoided customs duties and tariffs by purchasing garments from overseas manufacturers, including from China, but then submitting false information to United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) that understated the true value of the items being imported into the United States.

As a result, the import duties owed on the shipments were lowered. The indictment alleges that the defendants sent 515 individual wire transfers totaling $137,156,726 to pay overseas suppliers for undervalued garments. Overall, CTJ imported goods that were undervalued by more than $51 million, causing approximately $8.4 million in unpaid tariffs and duties that should have been paid to CBP.

At the conclusion of a six-week trial, CTJ and Si Oh Rhew were found guilty by a jury in October 2024 of two conspiracies and multiple counts of failure to file reports of currency transaction over $10,000 in a trade or business. All three defendants were found guilty of three counts of entry of falsely classified goods, three counts of entry of goods by means of false statements, three counts of passing false and fraudulent papers through a customhouse, and two counts of international promotional money laundering.

CTJ was found guilty of an additional two concealment money laundering counts involving drug proceeds. Si Oh Rhew was found guilty of an additional two counts of aiding, assisting, and procuring the filing of a false tax return. Lance Rhew was found guilty of one additional count of aiding, assisting, and procuring the filing of a false tax return. Lance Rhew was also found guilty of one conspiracy count.

The jury found the defendants not guilty of several additional criminal counts, including – for CTJ – two counts of concealment money laundering and – for Lance Rhew – several counts of failure to file a report of a currency transaction in a nonfinancial trade or business.

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and IRS-Criminal Investigation. They were aided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Monterey Park Police Department, the El Segundo Police Department, the Long Beach Police Department, the Los Angeles Police Department, the Gardena Police Department, and the West Covina Police Department.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.

The investigation was conducted by the HSI-led El Camino Real Financial Crimes Task Force, a multi-agency task force that includes federal and state investigators who are focused on financial crimes in Southern California.

Assistant United States Attorney Lana Morton Owens of the Transnational Organized Crime Section prosecuted this case.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo., man pleaded guilty in federal court today to being in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl.

Donnique H. Kelley, 36, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark to participating in a conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine and 40 grams or more of fentanyl.

According to court documents, between the dates of Dec. 14, 2022 and March 23, 2023, Kelley and others sold methamphetamine and fentanyl to law enforcement officials on at least seven separate occasions. 

On Sept. 12, 2023, following a car stop on East 63rd Street, Kansas City, Mo., a co-conspirator and source of supply of fentanyl and methamphetamine for the conspiracy was found in possession of 4.45 kilograms of methamphetamine, 2.02 kilograms of marijuana, and $14,382.

Under federal statutes, Kelley is subject to a sentence of not less than 10 years and up to life in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brad K. Kavanaugh.  It was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations, the Jackson County Drug Task Force, the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department and the Overland Park, Kansas Police Department.

Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force

This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.