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Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit today affirmed the issuance by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) of a Clean Water Act Section 404 permit for the Cainhoy Plantation development in Charleston, South Carolina. The published decision paves the way for a major, long‑term housing initiative designed to meet the needs of one of the country’s fastest‑growing metropolitan areas.

“Charleston’s rapid growth has created a real need for responsibly planned housing,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of ENRD. “This ruling confirms that the Corps followed the law, thoroughly evaluated alternatives, and approved a plan that supplies homes and community infrastructure while protecting the region’s most valuable wetlands.”

The Corps’ permit authorizes carefully planned residential and mixed‑use development on portions of a 9,076‑acre property — an area the City of Charleston has long identified as essential to meeting regional growth and housing demand. The project will provide new housing, schools, medical facilities, and community services, all while permanently conserving thousands of acres of land.

In affirming the permit, the court recognized that the Corps conducted a thorough, data‑driven review of numerous alternatives before concluding that none offered a practicable path to delivering needed housing with fewer environmental impacts. The court emphasized that the Corps worked with the developers to reduce projected wetlands impacts by nearly 90%, from 1,820 acres to just 181.5 acres, after years of analysis and refinement. 

Attorneys from ENRD’s Environmental Defense, Natural Resources, Wildlife and Marine Resources, and Appellate Sections handled the litigation.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

BROOKLYN, NY – Three defendants were presented in federal court in Brooklyn this week following charges of various offenses related to illegal voting in federal elections. Eoin Cranney, a citizen of Ireland and a lawful permanent resident of the United States, was charged by indictment with making a false claim of citizenship in order to vote and voting by an alien in a federal election.  Ronald Sheldon Baird, a citizen of Guyana and a lawful permanent resident of the United States, was charged by misdemeanor complaint with voting by an alien in a federal election. Karlene Daniels Samuels, a citizen of Jamaica and a lawful permanent resident of the United States, was charged by misdemeanor complaint with voting by an alien in a federal election. Cranney was arraigned on October 20, 2026, before United States Magistrate Judge James R. Cho.  Baird and Samuels were presented on October 22, 2026, before Judge Cho.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – Today, United States District Court Judge Judge María Antongiorgi-Jordán sentenced three more defendants for drug trafficking and firearm violations, related to the murder of Puerto Rico Police Sergeant Eliezer Ramos Vélez, announced Héctor Ramírez-Carbó, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico.  The Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated the case.

Source: United States Department of Justice

Tyjuan Bazemore, 35, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced to 20 years in prison today for the shooting death of his girlfriend, 27-year-old Nyesha Tranae Walden-Hatcher, on February 2, 2026, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

SAN DIEGO – San Diego CPA Oladapo Olagbemi was sentenced in federal court today to 18 months in prison for preparing false tax returns containing $5 million in improper deductions and credits that resulted in $1.5 million in losses to the public fisc. Olagbemi, who managed San Diego-based D.A.O. Accounting, Consulting, and Taxation, pleaded guilty in June to four counts of aiding and assisting the preparation of false tax returns, admitting to multiple schemes between tax years 2019 and 2023 to help clients get illegitimate refunds by claiming business expenses, charitable gifts, and energy credits to which the taxpayers were not entitled. See this link for further information on the plea.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Ryan Raybould announced that a federal grand jury returned a superseding indictment charging Dr. Javaria Jabeen and Allendor Kenyon Brown with participating in a years‑long scheme to defraud the Federal Employees’ Compensation Act program of approximately $19 million in fraudulent medical claims.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

The Justice Department today announced that four additional individuals have pleaded guilty in connection with a conspiracy to create and distribute videos depicting extreme violence and sexual abuse against monkeys.

According to court documents, Ernest Chavez, of Arizona, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to create and distribute so-called “animal crush” videos. In addition, the following individuals pleaded guilty for their role in the conspiracy:

• Mary Longoria, of North Carolina, pleaded guilty on July 16 and is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 2. 
• Kimberly Anglin, of Connecticut, pleaded guilty on Aug. 12 and is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 2.
• Patrick Naylor, of North Carolina, pleaded guilty on Aug. 14 and is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 17. 

Chavez, Longoria, Anglin, and Naylor were among 11 individuals indicted in 2025 based on their involvement with various online groups dedicated to the creation and proliferation of monkey torture videos. 

According to court documents, the defendants and their co-conspirators used Telegram, an online messaging application to gather online and discuss topics for upcoming torture videos. The conspirators would then funnel money to individuals in Indonesia willing to carry out requested acts of torture on camera using various online payment applications. Nicholas Dryden, of Cincinnati, Ohio, was one of the sources of videos at the time and was previously sentenced to 108 months in prison for his role in the conspiracy. 

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Justice Department’s  Energy and Natural Resources Division (ENRD), U.S. Attorney Dominick S. Gerace II for the Southern District of Ohio, Special Agent in Charge Jason Cromartie of the FBI’s Cincinnati Field Office, and Assistant Director Doug Ault of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS)’s Office of Law Enforcement made the announcement. 

The USFWS’ Office of Law Enforcement and the FBI investigated the cases.

Senior Trial Attorney Adam Cullman of ENRD is prosecuting the cases. 

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Linh Luu and Kevin Le, a husband and wife of Anaheim, California, pleaded guilty today in federal court in Eugene, Oregon, to violating the Lacey Act. The court sentenced them to three years’ probation and a $10,000 fine each for their roles in trafficking wildlife between Oregon and Vietnam. 

Photo of tiger pelt trafficked by defendants, from sentencing memo in case number 26-cr-00297 in U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Luu and Le admitted that from September 2019 through May 2021, they processed $51,100 in payments to aid an individual in Vietnam to illegally move wildlife items to and from Oregon. The wildlife parts included American black bear gallbladders and cougar bones, all shipped to Vietnam; and lion teeth, segments from black rhinoceros and white rhinoceros horns, and a tiger pelt, all imported to Oregon. 

According to a sentencing submission filed by the government, Luu and Le met an undercover federal agent in December 2020 in a parking lot. They accepted $12,000 in cash as a down payment for part of a rhino horn and discussed ways to avoid U.S. banking regulations that could detect illicit transactions. They later each received nearly $5,000 in electronic payments for the horn segment, which was then shipped to Oregon disguised as a household decoration. The sale was discussed as a way to build trust for future, larger deals.

Lion teeth trafficked by the defendants to Oregon, from sentencing memo in case number 26-cr-00297 in U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon.

All of the wildlife that had parts trafficked in this case are listed under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), a treaty that the United States, Vietnam, and 183 other governments have signed to regulate commercial trade in species that are or may become extinct. Trade in listed species is prohibited without a permit, which the defendants did not receive. Black bears and cougars are native to Oregon and are prized by some for use in traditional Asian medicine. Lions, tigers, and black and white rhinoceroses are also protected under the Endangered Species Act. The Lacey Act is the country’s oldest wildlife trafficking statute and prohibits, among other things, buying or selling wildlife that was illegally imported or exported. 

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Justice Department’s Energy and Natural Resources Division (ENRD), U.S. Attorney Scott E. Bradford for the District of Oregon, and Assistant Director Douglas Ault of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) made the announcement.

Photo of a part of a rhino horn (left) and the same rhino horn part disguised as a house good to thwart customs (right), from sentencing memo in case number 26-cr-00297 in U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon.

The USFWS’s Office of Law Enforcement investigated the case with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations and the Oregon State Police.

Senior Trial Attorney Ryan Connors of ENRD’s Environmental Crimes Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney William McLaren for the District of Oregon prosecuted the case.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

LAS VEGAS – A Las Vegas man was sentenced today by United States District Judge Gloria M. Navarro to 96 months in prison followed by 10 years of supervised release for distributing and transporting child sexual abuse material over social media networks and applications, and for maintaining a large collection of CSAM. The government recommended a sentence of 96 months in prison.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – On October 21, 2026, United States District Court Judge Aida Delgado Colón sentenced Ángel Javier Santos-Méndez to 260 months (21 years and 8 months) in prison followed by 20 years of supervised release for child exploitation charges against a female minor victim. Santos-Méndez, 34, from Caguas, PR, was indicted on October 30, 2025, arrested on November 5, 2025, and pleaded guilty on April 16, 2026.