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Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

CHICAGO — A Chicago Police officer has been indicted on federal firearm charges for allegedly conspiring to “straw purchase” firearms on behalf of an acquaintance who transported the guns to Mexico.

In the fall of 2024, KEVIN RODRIGUEZ used his status as a Chicago Police officer to purchase an AR-15 style assault rifle in Dyer, Ind., and a handgun in Monee, Ill., and falsely certified on required forms that he was the actual buyer of the guns, according to an indictment unsealed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Chicago. Rodriguez purchased the guns on behalf of an acquaintance, DIEGO VALDEZ, who identified which firearms he wanted and paid Rodriguez to buy them, the indictment states.  After falsely completing the forms and making the purchases, Rodriguez provided the firearms to Valdez, who then smuggled them into Mexico, the indictment states.

The indictment charges Rodriguez, 27, of Chicago, with one count of conspiracy, one count of knowingly making false statements in connection with the acquisition of a firearm, and one count of knowingly purchasing a firearm intended for another individual in furtherance of a felony.  Valdez, 25, of Chicago, is charged with one count of conspiracy and one count of knowingly receiving a straw purchased firearm.  The defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges during their arraignments earlier this week in federal court in Chicago.  A status hearing is set for Oct. 8, 2025, before U.S. District Judge John J. Tharp, Jr.

The indictment was announced by Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Christopher Amon, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Division of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives.  The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Elie Zenner.

The investigation is being conducted in coordination with ATF’s Crime Gun Intelligence Center of Chicago.  The CGIC is a centralized law enforcement hub that focuses exclusively on investigating and preventing gun violence in Chicago and throughout northern Illinois.  The CGIC is an interagency collaboration that brings together federal, state, and local law enforcement officers, prosecutors, and intelligence analysts to move quickly to investigate and prosecute violent crimes.

The public is reminded that an indictment is not evidence of guilt.  The defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Jackson, TN – Garrett Baughman, 19, of Wildersville, Tennessee, has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for soliciting sexually explicit images and videos from a thirteen-year-old child.  Joseph C. Murphy, Jr., Interim U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, announced the sentence today.

Baughman was charged with one count of production of child pornography; one count of use of a facility and means of interstate commerce to persuade, induce, entice a minor to engage in sexual criminal acts; and one count of receipt of child pornography. Following his guilty plea to the enticement of a minor charge, United States Senior District Judge J. Daniel Breen sentenced Baughman to 20 years in prison and five years of supervised release.  There is no parole in the federal system. 

Additionally, Baughman must comply with the conditions of the Sexual Offender Registry upon his release.  

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc. 

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Nashville-Jackson Resident Agency Child Exploitation Task Force and the Henry County Sheriff’s Office.

Assistant United States Attorney Caroline Parish prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

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For more information, please contact the Media Relations Team at USATNW.Media@usdoj.gov. Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office on Facebook or on X at @WDTNNews for office news and updates.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

TULSA, Okla. – A child predator was sentenced today to life in prison after attempting to meet a 14-year-old boy, announced U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson.

U.S. District Judge Sara E. Hill sentenced Jeffry Alan Clain, 59, for Attempted Coercion and Enticement of a Minor, Receipt and Distribution of Child Pornography, and Possession of Child Pornography in Indian Country. Judge Hill ordered Clain to serve life in prison, followed by lifetime supervised release. If released, Clain will also be required to register as a sex offender.

“Clain is every parent’s worst nightmare. He not only tried to meet a child to engage in sex but also had hundreds of devices containing child sexual abuse material,” said U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson. “This sentence sends a strong message to criminals looking to exploit children. We will be relentless and find anyone looking to harm our children.”  

In July 2024, Clain began communicating with someone he believed was a 14-year-old boy on a dating application. When the boy disclosed that he was only in the 9th grade, court records show that Clain said, “it’s been years since I’ve dated a young guy like you.” The conversations quickly turned sexual. Clain sent nude photos and detailed the sexual acts he would perform on the boy while bathing together. Clain then arranged to meet the 14-year-old at his home. When Clain arrived, agents took him into custody.

While speaking with agents, Clain admitted that he knew it was wrong to have sex with a minor. He told agents that they would find child pornography on his cellphone. Clain also admitted to agents that he previously engaged in sexual intercourse with a 14-year-old boy while he was an adult.

Agents obtained a search warrant for Clain’s cellphones and home. During the search of his home, agents found more than 170 electronic devices, some of which contained multiple storage drives. In total, agents found the equivalent of more than 12,000 images depicting children, toddlers, and infants being sexually abused.

During the examination of the devices found in Clain’s home, agents found images from 2016 with a different 14-year-old boy and their conversations over the years. In the conversation, Clain provides the 14-year-old with links to child sexual abuse material and explains how to find it on the internet. The images found showed Clain performing sexual acts on the 14-year-old boy. Agents were able to identify and locate the child victim. The victim, now 24 years old, identified himself in the photos.

Clain will remain in custody pending transfer to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike Flesher prosecuted the case. Homeland Security Investigations and the Tulsa Police Department investigated this case as part of Operation Clean Sweep II. This operation partnered with the Tornado Alley Child Exploitation and Trafficking Task Force, which aims to hold child predators accountable throughout the Northern District of Oklahoma.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, 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 Justice.gov/PSC.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

David Deval Martin, 40, of McIntosh County, Oklahoma, was sentenced — for a second time — to life in prison for the vicious 2013 murder of a Checotah woman.

“The defendant in this case brutally murdered his victim in cold blood,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti. “By retrying the case and securing a life sentence for the Defendant, the Department of Justice has demonstrated our commitment to seeking justice for the victims of violent crime in Indian Country.”

“The defendant’s heinous crime was deserving of the life sentence imposed by the Court,” said United States Attorney Christopher J. Wilson for the Eastern District of Oklahoma. “I am grateful for the thorough work of investigators and the skilled presentation of the evidence by colleagues from the Violent Crime and Racketeering Section. Their collective efforts were vital in securing justice for the victim’s family.”

“Thanks to the work of the McIntosh County Sheriff’s Office, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Justice Violent Crime and Racketeering Section (VCRS), the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and FBI Oklahoma City, this depraved and merciless killer has been sentenced to spend the rest of his life in federal prison,” said FBI Oklahoma City Special Agent in Charge Doug Goodwater. “Today’s sentencing underscores the FBI’s dedication to working with our partners and achieving justice for victims of violent crimes in Indian Country.”

In 2016, Martin was found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life imprisonment without parole after a state jury trial held in the District Court of McIntosh County, Oklahoma. On appeal, the Supreme Court of the United States required the Department of Justice to indict and prosecute Martin in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma. A federal jury found Martin guilty on one count of murder in Indian Country in October 2024.

According to court documents, on Nov. 7, 2013, Martin viciously beat and stabbed the victim —whom he had previously dated — causing over 109 separate injuries to her head and neck. The medical examiner estimated that it would have taken Martin “20 to 30 [minutes] or longer” to inflict these wounds, and that the victim was alive, and likely conscious, for much of her own murder. Just hours before Martin killed the victim, he was seen threatening her at a local convenience store by pointing his fingers at her head in the shape of a gun.

At the scene of the crime, investigators recovered Martin’s DNA mixed with the victim’s own blood from the front door of the home, and Martin’s fingerprint on the handle of a metal rod used to beat the victim. Martin’s DNA was also recovered from the steering wheel of the victim’s abandoned car.

This case was investigated by the McIntosh County Sheriff’s Office, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Martin will remain in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending transportation to a designated United States Bureau of Prisons facility to serve a life sentence without the possibility of parole.

Trial Attorneys Jared A. Hernandez and Brian W. Lynch from the Department of VCRS represented the United States. This case represents the last indictment that has been a part of the Criminal Division’s Violent Crime and Racketeering Section McGirt project, in which the Criminal Division partnered with the Eastern District of Oklahoma to prosecute murder cases in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision in McGirt v. Oklahoma.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

            WASHINGTON – Tony Brown 34, a convicted felon residing in the District of Columbia, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 28 months in prison in connection with his illegal possession of a Ruger pistol, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

            Brown pleaded guilty June 26 before Chief Judge James E. Boasberg to unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a person convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for more than one year. In addition to the 28-month prison term, Judge Boasberg ordered Brown to serve 18 months of supervised release.

            According to court documents, on May 14, 2025, about 7:45 p.m. officers from the Metropolitan Police Department were patrolling the 5200 block of A Street, SE, in a marked police cruiser. From the driver’s seat of the patrol car, an officer observed the handle and magazine of an unholstered pistol showing under Brown’s shirt. The officer exited the police cruiser, approached Brown, and greeted him. As the officer drew nearer, Brown ran away and led officers on a brief foot pursuit.

            Officers apprehended Brown. An officer observed the outline of a handgun below Brown’s right knee. Officers pulled down Brown’s pants to reveal a black Ruger Model 57 that had slipped from Brown’s waistband down his leg during the foot chase. The pistol was loaded with 14 rounds of 5.7×28 caliber ammunition. Brown was initially charged with carrying a firearm without a license.

            Brown has a fifteen-year criminal history marked by a previous 2017 conviction on a felon in possession of a firearm charge in the District and a 2018 conviction for assault on a law enforcement officer in Prince William County, Maryland.

            This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department. The matter was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John Fucetola and former Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Sumaiya F. Ismail.

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Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Audrey G. Fleissig on Wednesday sentenced a man who shot at an undercover St. Louis Police officer who was investigating drug sales to 15 years and five months in prison.

Anthony Stallworth sold 28 capsules containing fentanyl to an undercover St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department officer on Oct. 10, 2019. Five days later, the officer contacted Stallworth to buy more fentanyl. Stallworth set a meeting location, then directed the officer to another spot. Stallworth arrived at the second location and had the officer follow his Mercedes SUV. Stallworth then suddenly stopped his SUV, stuck a gun out of the SUV’s window and fired two shots in the direction of the officer’s vehicle, which was stopped at a stop sign. Stallworth fled, speeding and driving erratically so that officers were unable to follow.

In the summer of 2023, St. Louis police were conducting surveillance in the 4700 block of Wilcox Avenue in St. Louis and spotted Stallworth engaging in drug transactions. They conducted a court-approved search of an apartment there and found Stallworth with 450 grams of methamphetamine, 86 grams of fentanyl, $2,862 in cash, a 10mm pistol and drug paraphernalia.

“Stallworth armed himself with firearms and even opened fire on undercover officers, showing a blatant disregard for human life,” said Special Agent in Charge Bernard “Butch” Hansen, of the Kansas City Field Division. “Combined with the large quantities of fentanyl and methamphetamine he was trafficking, his actions put our entire community at risk. Today’s sentence holds him accountable for the violence he chose and for flooding our streets with deadly drugs and guns. ATF will continue working with our partners to protect families and neighborhoods from offenders who endanger public safety.”

Stallworth, 26, of St. Louis, pleaded guilty in June to one count each of possession with the intent to distribute more than 50 grams of methamphetamine, possession with the intent to distribute fentanyl, distribution of fentanyl and discharge of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. The discharge of a firearm charge carried a mandatory minimum term of 10 years in prison for Stallworth, consecutive to all other charges, and the meth possession charges carry a mandatory minimum term of five years.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Szczucinski prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

ALBUQUERQUE – A Sanostee man was sentenced to 72 months in prison for a violent assault that left a woman seriously injured.

There is no parole in the federal system.

According to court documents, between December 2 and December 3, 2023, Nathan Mescale, 36, assaulted Jane Doe and the assault resulted in serious bodily injury.

Upon his release from prison, Mescale will be subject to three years of supervised release.

Acting U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison and Justin A. Garris, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today.

The Farmington Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with the assistance of the Navajo Police Department and Department of Criminal Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mia Ulibarri-Rubin prosecuted the case. 

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Marcel Kamill Mickles, 49, of Pensacola, was indicted by a federal grand jury this week on charges of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida, announced the charges today.

Mickles appeared for his arraignment in federal court before United States Magistrate Judge Zachary C. Bolitho on September 23, 2025, in Pensacola, Florida. Jury trial is scheduled for November 3, 2025, before District Court Judge M. Casey Rodgers.

If convicted, Mickles faces up to 20 years’ imprisonment for the drug trafficking crime and up to 15 years for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.  Possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime carries a consecutive five-year term with a maximum of life imprisonment.

The case was a joint investigation by the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant United States Attorney Jessica S. Etherton is prosecuting the case.

An indictment is merely an allegation by a grand jury that a defendant has committed a violation of federal criminal law and is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America (https://www.justice.gov/dag/media/1393746/dl?inline) 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. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access available public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Aberdeen, MS – An Amory, Mississippi man was sentenced yesterday to 20 years in prison for distribution of child sexual abuse material.

According to court documents, William Hadley Maddox, 24, was sending child pornography to a minor over an Internet application. Maddox was also receiving images of the minor engaged in sexually explicit activity.

Senior Judge Sharion Aycock sentenced Maddox to the statutory maximum of 240 months in prison followed by a lifetime of supervised release. Maddox will be required to register as a sex offender anywhere he resides, is employed, or is enrolled as a student.

“The defendant in this case has learned the valuable lesson that there is absolutely zero tolerance in this district for the sexual exploitation of any minor,” said U.S. Attorney Clay Joyner.  “The cooperation between Monroe County Sheriff Kevin Crook’s office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation was exemplary and their determination to protect children is evident in their actions.”

“Due to the extreme nature of this case, I truly feel like a child’s life was saved by the quick response and partnership between our local investigators, the FBI, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” stated Monroe County Sheriff Kevin Crook. “We are thankful to be part of a team of people who are as passionate as we are about protecting our most vulnerable citizens, our children.”

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Parker S. King prosecuted the case as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), 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.projectsafechildhood.gov. 

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA – Daniel Balan, 46, of Bacau, Romania, pleaded guilty in federal court to five counts of bank fraud, five counts of aggravated identity theft, and one count of possessing 15 or more access devices, in connection with an ATM “skimming” scheme. The plea was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

U.S. Attorney Heekin said: “This offender exploited numerous innocent victims for his own financial gain, but thanks to the outstanding investigative work of our state and federal law enforcement partners he will enjoy an extended stay behind bars. My office will continue to aggressively prosecute these crimes to vindicate the victims exploited by these offenses and hold the fraudsters accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”

Court documents reflect that beginning on January 28, 2025, the defendant placed “skimming” devices and cameras on multiple ATMs in the Tallahassee, Florida area. The devices and cameras were used to capture customer account and access device information. Then, between February 8 and 9, 2025, the defendant used the stolen information to fraudulently obtain $56,340 in customer funds. At the time of arrest, law enforcement found 28 gift cards in the defendant’s pocket that had been encoded with stolen account information and labeled with a corresponding PIN.

Balan faces up to thirty years’ imprisonment and five years of supervised release on each bank fraud count, up to ten years’ imprisonment and five years of supervised release on the possession of 15 or more access devices count, and a consecutive two years’ imprisonment and one-year of supervised release on each aggravated identity theft count when he is sentenced.

The case involved a joint investigation by the U.S. Customers and Immigration Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the Leon County Sheriff’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Justin M. Keen and Eric W. Welch.

Sentencing is scheduled for December 3, 2025, at 2:00 pm at the United States Courthouse in Tallahassee before United States District Judge Mark Walker.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit theU.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.