Source: United States Department of Justice
BOSTON – Two Brockton men were sentenced today in federal court in Boston for the Sept. 24, 2024 robbery of Energy Credit Union in West Roxbury. The defendants stole $197,146 from the Credit Union where one brother was employed as a teller.
Source: United States Department of Justice
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Aaron Michael Underwood, 40, of Arapahoe, Wyoming, was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for being a felon in possession of a firearm. U.S. District Court Judge Alan B. Johnson imposed the sentence on Oct. 13, 2026.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
An illegal alien from Jamaica admitted to illegally voting in a federal election, U.S. Attorney Robert Frazer for the District of New Jersey announced today.
Gaye Tyndale-Simpson, an illegal alien from Jamaica, pleaded guilty to one count of voting by an alien in a federal election before U.S. Magistrate Rukhsanah L. Singh in federal court in Trenton, New Jersey.
According to documents filed in the case and statements made in court, Tyndale-Simpson, 55, is a citizen of Jamaica and has never been a citizen of the United States. In November 2024, Tyndale-Simpson voted in the general election that was held in part for the purpose of electing a candidate for the office of the President.
The voting by an alien charge carries a maximum penalty of up to 6 months in prison and a $100,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled before Judge Singh on Feb. 24, 2027.
U.S. Attorney Frazer credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Stefanie Roddy, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Michael McCarthy, U.S. Department of State, Diplomatic Security Service, New York Field Office, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Brian Wood, and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, with the investigation.
This case was brought under the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Election Integrity Task Force, a coalition of federal law enforcement partners focused on preserving and protecting the integrity of elections conducted in the District of New Jersey.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin D. Bleiberg of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Criminal Division.
Source: United States Department of Justice
Dustin Stover Bowles, 42, of West Virginia, was sentenced to 30 years in prison for aggravated sexual abuse of a child under the age of 12.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, between September 2006 and December 2006, Bowles sexually abused a minor while he babysat her at his home. The victim disclosed the abuse to several trusted adults in 2020, as well as Army criminal investigators. Bowles was later charged under the Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act. At the time of his criminal conduct, Bowles had been on active duty with the Army stationed in Hanau, Germany.
At trial, witnesses testified that Bowles frequently babysat the minor victim and described Bowles as a fun “uncle.” The victim testified that when the defendant babysat her in 2006, Bowles reached his hand into her pants underneath her underwear and directly touched her genitals while she pretended to be asleep. The victim was eight years old when Bowles sexually abused her. Additionally, three other victims testified that the defendant sexually abused them while they were asleep, including one victim who was a minor at the time of the sexual abuse. On April 17, a jury convicted Bowles of aggravated sexual abuse of a minor under the age of 12 while abroad as a member of the armed forces.
Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Moore Capito for the Southern District of West Virginia, and Assistant Director Heith Janke of the FBI’s Criminal Division made the announcement.
The FBI and the U.S. Army’s Criminal Investigation Division investigated the case.
Trial Attorney Eduardo Palomo of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Rada Herrald for the Southern District of West Virginia are prosecuting 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 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, visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
This week the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (ED-OCR) entered a voluntary university-wide settlement agreement with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) to end antisemitism and race discrimination. The settlement agreement resolves investigations conducted by the Civil Rights Division and ED-OCR under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on race, color, or national origin (protected characteristics).
“Title VI requires that all students — regardless of their ancestry or race — receive equal treatment under the law at federally funded colleges and universities,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Higher ed policies and practices that tolerate antisemitism or favor certain racial groups over others, frustrate our color-blind justice system. The Civil Rights Division commends UNC for its cooperation in meeting its obligations under federal law without the need for litigation; we hope other institutions will take note and do the same.”
“Today’s agreement with the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill is an important step in upholding civil rights laws and restoring the American people’s confidence in higher education,” said Assistant Secretary Kimberly Richey of the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights. “The Trump Administration is holding schools accountable for antisemitism at American universities and ensuring that institutions, which have no problem accessing generous taxpayer support, follow all federal laws and ensure safe learning environments. Because of today’s agreement with UNC, aspiring students will be assessed based solely on their merit — not race — and Jewish students can thrive without the threat of antisemitic discrimination.”
Under the settlement agreement — which applies to all undergraduate, graduate, professional, and other schools, components, and programs — UNC will take several steps in key areas:
The settlement agreement also includes monitoring and reporting provisions. Within 30 days, UNC will select a “Merit & Civil Rights Administrator” who will be responsible for implementing the settlement agreement. And on a quarterly basis, UNC will send any antisemitism and race discrimination complaints it has received to ED-OCR and the Civil Rights Division. The settlement agreement will be in effect until Dec. 31, 2028.
Because of UNC’s cooperation, UNC will remain eligible for federal funding. In addition, ED-OCR will close 18 active investigations into UNC. And the Civil Rights Division will also close its 18-month compliance review, which was opened on April 18, 2025.
As recipients of federal financial assistance, colleges and universities are subject to federal non-discrimination laws. The Civil Rights Division will continue to investigate their compliance with Title VI.
NOTE: Read the Settlement Agreement here.
Members of the public may report possible civil rights violations at www.civilrights.justice.gov/.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
Markus Octavious Ham, 45, a previously convicted felon residing in Maryland, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 30 months in federal prison in connection with his illegal possession of a loaded semiautomatic “ghost gun,” announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
Fort Myers, Florida – Jose Toribio Canales (44, El Salvador) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell to eight years and four months in federal prison for illegal reentry after deportation. Toribio Canales pleaded guilty on July 2, 2026. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
Fort Myers, Florida – John P. Skubinski (55, Naples) and Melvin A. Slawik, Jr. (68, Naples) have each been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell to 15 months in federal prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud. Both pleaded guilty on April 30, 2026. As part of their sentence, the court also entered an order of forfeiture in the amount of $536,200, the proceeds of the wire fraud. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
Source: United States Department of Justice
The Justice Department today announced that Village Capital & Investment LLC, a servicer of home loans guaranteed by the Department of Veterans Affairs, will pay over $500,000 to resolve allegations that it failed to properly apply Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) interest rate benefits to at least 41 servicemembers’ mortgages and retaliated against servicemembers who requested interest rate benefits.
“When lenders refuse to honor the benefits guaranteed under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act — or worse, retaliate against those who assert their rights — they not only violate federal law, but undermine the trust that military families place in financial institutions,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Today’s action makes clear that such conduct will not be tolerated. We will continue to enforce the law to ensure servicemembers receive the protections they have earned.”
“Protecting our nation’s heroes from unlawful lending practices is a fundamental duty, not an option,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Sigal Chattah for the District of Nevada. “By failing to apply the interest rate cap correctly and misrepresenting mortgage terms, Village Capital & Investment LLC breached the trust of servicemembers. This settlement serves as a clear directive to VA home loan servicers everywhere: illegal lending practices that harm servicemembers will be met with swift accountability and strict enforcement.”
Under this settlement, Village Capital will pay at least $425,000 to affected servicemembers. The company will also be required to pay a $79,380 civil penalty, which is the maximum penalty for a first violation of the SCRA. The agreement also requires Village Capital to revise its policies and procedures to prevent future SCRA violations and provide SCRA training to its employees.
The Department alleges that Village Capital violated the SCRA by failing to reduce the interest rate on servicemembers’ pre-service debts to 6% retroactively to the date they received their military orders and by failing to reduce the monthly mortgage payments by the amount of interest forgiven. Village Capital also allegedly misled servicemember borrowers regarding the interest rates on their mortgages, telling them that their interest rate was already below 6% when the rate was in fact above 6%. The Department also alleges that Village Capital violated the SCRA by retaliating against servicemembers who requested interest rate benefits by accelerating the payment of principal on their loans and falsely reporting their mortgages as delinquent to the Department of Veterans Affairs.
The Department’s enforcement of the SCRA is conducted by the Civil Rights Division’s Housing and Civil Enforcement Section in partnership with U.S. Attorneys’ Offices throughout the country. Since 2011, the Department has obtained over $490 million in monetary relief for over 153,000 servicemembers through its enforcement of the SCRA. For more information about the Department’s SCRA enforcement efforts, please visit www.servicemembers.gov.
Servicemembers and their dependents who believe that their rights under the SCRA may have been violated should contact the nearest Armed Forces Legal Assistance Program Office. Office locations can be found at legalassistance.law.af.mil.
Note: Read the executed settlement here.
Source: United States Department of Justice
The Justice Department today announced that Village Capital & Investment LLC, a servicer of home loans guaranteed by the Department of Veterans Affairs, will pay over $500,000 to resolve allegations that it failed to properly apply Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) interest rate benefits to at least 41 servicemembers’ mortgages and retaliated against servicemembers who requested interest rate benefits.
“When lenders refuse to honor the benefits guaranteed under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act — or worse, retaliate against those who assert their rights — they not only violate federal law, but undermine the trust that military families place in financial institutions,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Today’s action makes clear that such conduct will not be tolerated. We will continue to enforce the law to ensure servicemembers receive the protections they have earned.”
“Protecting our nation’s heroes from unlawful lending practices is a fundamental duty, not an option,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Sigal Chattah for the District of Nevada. “By failing to apply the interest rate cap correctly and misrepresenting mortgage terms, Village Capital & Investment LLC breached the trust of servicemembers. This settlement serves as a clear directive to VA home loan servicers everywhere: illegal lending practices that harm servicemembers will be met with swift accountability and strict enforcement.”
Under this settlement, Village Capital will pay at least $425,000 to affected servicemembers. The company will also be required to pay a $79,380 civil penalty, which is the maximum penalty for a first violation of the SCRA. The agreement also requires Village Capital to revise its policies and procedures to prevent future SCRA violations and provide SCRA training to its employees.
The Department alleges that Village Capital violated the SCRA by failing to reduce the interest rate on servicemembers’ pre-service debts to 6% retroactively to the date they received their military orders and by failing to reduce the monthly mortgage payments by the amount of interest forgiven. Village Capital also allegedly misled servicemember borrowers regarding the interest rates on their mortgages, telling them that their interest rate was already below 6% when the rate was in fact above 6%. The Department also alleges that Village Capital violated the SCRA by retaliating against servicemembers who requested interest rate benefits by accelerating the payment of principal on their loans and falsely reporting their mortgages as delinquent to the Department of Veterans Affairs.
The Department’s enforcement of the SCRA is conducted by the Civil Rights Division’s Housing and Civil Enforcement Section in partnership with U.S. Attorneys’ Offices throughout the country. Since 2011, the Department has obtained over $490 million in monetary relief for over 153,000 servicemembers through its enforcement of the SCRA. For more information about the Department’s SCRA enforcement efforts, please visit www.servicemembers.gov.
Servicemembers and their dependents who believe that their rights under the SCRA may have been violated should contact the nearest Armed Forces Legal Assistance Program Office. Office locations can be found at legalassistance.law.af.mil.
Note: Read the executed settlement here.