Posts

Posted on

Matthew W. Fodor Named Special Agent in Charge of the Tampa Field Office

Source: US FBI

Director Christopher Wray has named Matthew W. Fodor as the special agent in charge of the Tampa Field Office in Florida. Mr. Fodor most recently served as a deputy assistant director in the Counterterrorism Division at FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C.

Mr. Fodor joined the FBI as a special agent in 2006 and was assigned to the Washington Field Office, where he worked on the counterterrorism squad responsible for international threats in the Washington, D.C., region. Mr. Fodor also worked on the Guantanamo Bay Prosecution Task Force, developing criminal cases against those responsible for the 9/11 attacks.

In 2010, Mr. Fodor transferred to the Oklahoma City Office, where he worked domestic and international terrorism cases. He was promoted in 2012 to a supervisory special agent in the International Terrorism Operations Section of the Counterterrorism Division at FBI Headquarters and provided investigative oversight across seven field offices.

Mr. Fodor was promoted in 2014 to a field supervisor in the Phoenix Field Office and managed a Joint Terrorism Task Force squad dedicated to disrupting homegrown violent extremism and other terrorism threats. In 2018, he was named assistant section chief in the Counterterrorism Division at Headquarters and provided oversight on extraterritorial investigations in Europe, the Arabian Peninsula, and the Levant region.

In 2019, Mr. Fodor was promoted to assistant special agent in charge of the counterterrorism program in the Miami Field Office and was later put in charge of Miami’s resident agencies. In Miami, Mr. Fodor was responsible for the criminal, counterintelligence, and cyber programs, as well as crisis management, threat mitigation, terrorism investigations, and other programs.

Mr. Fodor was promoted to section chief of the Counterterrorism Human Intelligence Section in in the Counterintelligence Division at Headquarters in 2021. He became a deputy assistant director in the Counterterrorism Division in 2023.

Prior to joining the FBI, Mr. Fodor was a police officer with the Denver Police Department. He earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Colorado.

Posted on

Vice President of Kansas Company Pleads Guilty to Crimes Related to Scheme to Illegally Export U.S. Avionics Equipment to Russia and Russian End Users

Source: US FBI

Defendant Pleads Guilty to Numerous Export Control and Money Laundering Violations

Douglas Edward Robertson, 56, of Olathe, Kansas, the former vice president of KanRus Trading Company Inc., pleaded guilty today for his role in a years-long conspiracy to circumvent U.S. export laws by filing false export forms with the U.S. government and, after Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, continuing to sell and export sophisticated and controlled avionics equipment to customers in Russia without the required licenses from the U.S. Department of Commerce.

“Robertson, by his own admission, conspired to sell advanced U.S. avionics equipment to Russian customers in violation of U.S. law,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security Matthew G. Olsen. “The Justice Department will not tolerate those who seek to undermine the effectiveness of export controls that protect critical U.S. technology and deter Russia’s aggression in Ukraine.”

“Robertson’s guilty plea is reflective of the strong evidence gathered against him by federal investigators and the solid case presented by federal prosecutors,” said U.S. Attorney Kate E. Brubacher for the District of Kansas. “Our nation is both proud and grateful to these men and women at the Department of Justice who seek to protect the United States and our national security interests from adversaries both foreign and domestic.”

“Those who seek to profit by illegally selling sophisticated U.S. technology to our adversaries are putting the national security of our country at risk and that cannot be tolerated,” said Executive Assistant Director Robert Wells of the FBI’s National Security Branch. “It is appalling that the defendant schemed to smuggle avionics equipment to customers overseas including Russia, a nation engaged in a long-running military conflict with Ukraine. The FBI will work with our partners to stop the illegal flow of sensitive U.S. equipment and technology to foreign adversaries.”

“You might think that smuggling sensitive U.S.-origin technology to Russia, including to their Federal Security Service (FSB), means we’re not in Kansas anymore. Unfortunately, in this case, we were,” said Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement Matthew A. Axelrod. “We will continue to hold individuals everywhere, including those at the highest rungs of the corporate ladder, accountable when they violate our laws by lying on forms and transshipping items through third countries.”

According to court documents, as part of his guilty plea, Robertson admitted that between 2020 and when he was arrested in March 2023, he conspired with others – including co-defendants Cyril Gregory Buyanovsky of Lawrence, Kansas, and Oleg Chistyakov, aka Olegs Čitsjakovs, of Riga, Latvia, – to smuggle U.S.-origin avionics equipment to end users in Russia, as well as Russian end users in other foreign countries by, among other actions, knowingly filing false export forms and failing to file required export forms with the U.S. government. In these forms, Robertson and his conspirators lied about the exports’ value, end users, and end destinations.

Robertson further admitted that on at least one occasion in 2021, he, Buyanovsky, and Chistyakov smuggled a repaired Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) to the FSB by removing the FSB sticker from the device before sending the device to a U.S. company to be repaired and then exporting the TCAS back to the FSB in Russia. At the time, the FSB was sanctioned by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control for its interference in the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election.  

Robertson further admitted that after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 and the U.S. government tightened export controls concerning Russia, he, co-defendants Buyanovsky and Chistyakov, and other conspirators continued to purchase and export U.S.-origin avionics equipment to customers in Russia and took numerous steps to hide their illegal activity from law enforcement, including by lying to U.S. suppliers about the intended end users; shipping goods through intermediary companies in Armenia, Laos, the United Arab Emirates, and Cyprus; continuing to file false export forms with the U.S. government; and using foreign bank accounts in countries other than Russia, such as Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Cyprus, the United Arab Emirates, and the Czech Republic, to promote their illegal export activity.

On Dec. 6, 2023, the U.S. Department of Commerce added many of the entities and individuals involved in KanRus and Robertson’s illegal export scheme to the Commerce Department’s Entity List as part of the U.S. government’s interagency efforts to dismantle Russian procurement networks designed to circumvent U.S. export controls and sanctions imposed in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The Entity List imposes specific license requirements on all listed individuals and entities.

In December 2023, Buyanovsky, the former President and owner of KanRus, pleaded guilty to conspiracy and money laundering and consented to the forfeiture of over $450,000 worth of avionics equipment and accessories, and a $50,000 personal forfeiture judgment.

On March 19, Chistyakov, a former KanRus broker, was arrested in Riga, Latvia, for his role in the illegal smuggling scheme. Chistyakov remains detained in Latvia pending extradition proceedings.

As a result of today’s guilty plea, Robertson faces a statutory maximum penalty of five years in prison for the conspiracy count, 20 years in prison for each of the two Export Control Reform Act counts, and 20 years in prison for the money laundering count. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for Oct. 3.

The FBI and the Department of Commerce’s Office of Export Enforcement are investigating the case. The Latvian authorities are assisting the investigation. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection provided substantial assistance.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Scott Rask and Ryan Huschka for the District of Kansas and Trial Attorney Adam Barry of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section are prosecuting the case. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs is providing valuable assistance.

The investigation was coordinated through the Justice Department’s Task Force KleptoCapture, an interagency law enforcement task force dedicated to enforcing the sweeping sanctions, export controls and economic countermeasures that the United States, along with its foreign allies and partners, has imposed in response to Russia’s unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine. Announced by the Attorney General on March 2, 2022, and under the leadership of the Office of the Deputy Attorney General, the task force will continue to leverage all of the department’s tools and authorities to combat efforts to evade or undermine the collective actions taken by the U.S. government in response to Russian military aggression.

Posted on

Readout of the Justice Department Participation in the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators

Source: US FBI

Readout of the Justice Department’s Participation in the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators

The Justice Department supported campus public safety and law enforcement leaders during the annual International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators Conference (IACLEA) from June 24 through June 27, in New Orleans. The conference brought together police chiefs, public safety directors, and security personnel at higher education institutions who are responsible for protecting millions of students worldwide to explore the latest trends and best practices, as well as the challenges facing institutions and communities.  

Director Steven Dettelbach of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) led a featured session, “The Road to 2030: The Next Generation of Campus Leadership,” where he discussed the present and future evolution of campus police and public safety leadership.

In his remarks, Director Dettelbach said, “It is in our DNA to support you in every effort to both prevent and respond to serious threats on and off your campuses. And we are available to talk through any questions you have about evolving threats or concerns that might be on your mind — whether that is firearm safe storage, ghost gun trends in your communities, keeping students safe off-campus in high crime areas.”

Executive Director Paul M. Cell, of the IACLEA said, “IACLEA is proud to be a partner with ATF in addressing the challenges campuses are experiencing today. Under the leadership of Director Dettelbach, the partnership has fostered training opportunities, program development, and collaboration with regional and local ATF agents with the shared mission of creating safe campus learning and living environments.”

Acting Director Justin Long of the Community Relations Service’s (CRS) and Director Hugh Clements of the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) also attended. COPS representatives led a session on “Facilitated Dialogue as Conflict Response and Conflict Prevention Strategy on Campus,” that highlighted an ongoing collaboration between COPS, CRS and the Ohio State University’s Moritz College of Law to develop resources to help public safety agencies and communities engage in meaningful dialogue in the aftermath of critical incidents, such as police use of force, identity-based conflict, or hate crime.

COPS and ATF representatives led a panel on the recommendations from the department’s Critical Incident Review on the mass casualty incident at Robb Elementary School, a moderated panel discussion on de-escalation, as well as a session on identifying and documenting privately made firearms (PMFs).

FBI representatives led sessions on FBI’s National Domestic Communications Assistance Center’s (NDAC) resources for Law Enforcement in the digital age. NDCAC serves as a knowledge management hub for evidence collection from communications providers and devices, geolocation capabilities, and lawfully authorized electronic surveillance. The FBI also led a presentation on “Responders’ Wellness & Resilience,” which focused on responders’ wellness and resiliency after active shooter and mass shooting incidents.

With the conclusion of this successful IACLEA conference, the Justice Department emphasizes the importance of partnerships with campus law enforcement and continues to closely collaborate with them to promote public safety across the country.

Posted on

FBI, Partners Host Cyber Summit for Washington Metropolitan Area Law Enforcement Agencies and Schools

Source: US FBI

As part of our ongoing commitment to cyber safety, the FBI joined forces with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the Department of Education to host a cybersecurity summit for local government, law enforcement agencies, and school districts in Washington, D.C., and northern Virginia. The summit highlighted the FBI’s work with federal, state, and local partners to better identify cyber threats faster, together.

In recent years, the cyber threat landscape has become increasingly complex. Cybercriminals are targeting K-12 educational institutions at an alarming pace. Schools are lucrative targets due to the amount of personal information they maintain on students, their parents or guardians, and faculty and staff members, such as disciplinary and medical records. The repercussions of cyberattacks on schools can haunt students for years, even after they graduate or move.

While speaking at the symposium, FBI Director Christopher Wray emphasized the importance of collaboration between law enforcement and school district officials. By working together, the FBI and partners can stay ahead of threats and respond faster to cyber incidents.

“School districts—like most public and private sector organizations—are storing more sensitive data in cyberspace,” said David J. Scott, special agent in charge of the FBI Washington Field Office’s Criminal and Cyber Division. “Cybercriminals are, in turn, increasingly targeting schools’ systems. The FBI and our federal, state, and local partners must work as a team to bolster cybersecurity measures, so we can protect our students’ and teachers’ information.”

Representatives at the summit discussed cybersecurity practices, threat mitigation, and overall collaboration. The FBI and our partners will continue to work with local school districts to help them safeguard information and implement cyber response plans.

Posted on

FBI Seeking Individual Who May Have Information Regarding the Identity of a Child Sexual Assault Victim

Source: US FBI

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is seeking the public’s assistance with obtaining identifying information regarding an unknown male who may have critical information pertaining to the identity of a child victim in an ongoing sexual exploitation investigation. Photographs and an informational poster depicting the unknown individual, known only as John Doe 48, are being disseminated to the public and can be found online at the FBI website at fbi.gov/wanted/ecap.

Initial video of the unidentified male, John Doe 48, was first recorded by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in December 2023. The EXIF data embedded within the video file indicated that the file was produced in October 2023.

John Doe 48 is described as a white male between the ages of 45 and 65 years old with dark hair and a gray beard. He has a tattoo on each of his forearms. He is seen in the back of a 2018-2019 Nissan NV Cargo Van wearing a blue T-shirt and a dark-colored hat. He is heard speaking English in the video.

Anyone with information to provide should submit a tip online at tips.fbi.gov or call the FBI’s toll-free tip line at 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324). The public is reminded no charges have been filed in this case and that the pictured individual is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

This individual is being sought as part of the FBI’s Operation Rescue Me and Endangered Child Alert Program (ECAP) initiatives. Operation Rescue Me focuses on utilizing clues obtained through in-depth image analysis to identify the child victims depicted in child exploitation material, while ECAP seeks national and international media exposure of unknown adults (referred to as John/Jane Does) who visibly display their faces and/or other distinguishing characteristics in association with child pornography images.

Posted on

‘King’ of Violent Haitian Gang Sentenced to 35 Years in Prison for Gun Smuggling and Money Laundering

Source: US FBI

Joly Germine, 31, of Croix-des-Bouquets, Haiti, was sentenced today to 420 months in prison for his role in a gunrunning conspiracy that smuggled firearms to Haiti in violation of U.S. export laws, and the laundering of ransoms paid for U.S. hostages held by the notoriously violent Haitian gang known as 400 Mawozo. Eliande Tunis, 46, of Pompano Beach, Florida, who styled herself as Germine’s “wife” and was described at trial as the “Queen” of 400 Mawozo, was sentenced on June 5, to 150 months in prison for her role in the conspiracy. Two other defendants in the conspiracy were also sentenced to jail time for their involvement.

The conspiracy resulted in the purchase in the United States of at least 24 firearms, including weapons designed for the military and close-quarters combat such as AK-47s, AR-15s, an M4 Carbine rifle, an M1A rifle, and a .50 caliber rifle, which were smuggled from the United States to the gang in Haiti to further their criminal activities. Those firearms were bought using funds laundered from the proceeds of the hostage taking for ransom of U.S. citizens in Haiti in 2021.

“A leader of the Haitian gang known as 400 Mawozo will now spend 35 years in prison for a scheme to smuggle guns from the United States to Haiti using the proceeds extorted from kidnapping American citizens,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “The leaders of violent gangs in Haiti that terrorize Americans citizens in order to fuel their criminal activity will be met with the full force of the Justice Department.”

“Joly Germine is being held accountable for his role in smuggling weapons into Haiti using funds laundered from the ransoms of kidnapped American citizens,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “The 400 Mawazo gang not only wreaks havoc in its own communities but targets innocent Americans living and traveling in Haiti. The FBI will continue to work with our partners to target the leadership and take down any violent criminal group who preys upon Americans abroad and uses unlawful and dangerous tactics like weapons-trafficking and kidnapping to further their criminal enterprise.”

“Firearms smuggling is not a victimless crime,” said Director Steven Dettelbach of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). “Just like these weapons, many guns smuggled to Haiti end up in the hands of violent gangs. Those gangs use them to harm both Haitians and American citizens. As this sentence demonstrates, ATF is committed to working with our law enforcement partners both at home and internationally to hold gun smugglers responsible.” 

“Mr. Germine, a leader of a notorious Haitian gang, admitted to an illegal gun-running scheme to arm fellow gang members with U.S. firearms in support of the group’s violent crime spree across Haiti, including the alleged 2021 kidnapping of 16 U.S. citizens,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “The Justice Department will aggressively pursue every tool at its disposal to hold accountable those who would smuggle U.S.-origin weapons and other controlled goods for the benefit of malicious actors and their criminal enterprises.”

“Violent gangs have ravaged Haiti, and all too often, Americans in Haiti have been targets of their violence,” said U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves for the District of Columbia. “These two defendants not only helped lead a prominent violent gang in Haiti, but they were also intimately involved in arming the gang and laundering ransom proceeds the gang obtained from kidnapping Americans. Preventing them from illegally shipping anymore firearms or laundering the proceeds of kidnappings strikes a critical blow against the gang they once led.”

“As Joly Germine and Eliande Tunis have just learned, the FBI is dedicated to disrupting and dismantling gangs who undertake hostage-taking of U.S. Citizens anywhere,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI Miami Field Office.  “This includes taking away their ability to wreak violence on the innocent using smuggled firearms.”

“Today’s sentencing sends a strong message: the Diplomatic Security Service is committed to making sure that those who commit transnational crimes face consequences for their criminal actions,” said Assistant Director Paul Houston of the Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) for Threat Investigations and Analysis. “DSS’ strong relationship with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and other law enforcement agencies around the world continues to be essential in the pursuit of justice.”

According to court documents, Germine, pleaded guilty on Jan. 31, to the 48-count second superseding indictment, which charged him with conspiring to violate U.S. export control laws and to defraud the United States, violating export control laws, smuggling, and laundering the proceeds of ransoms paid to free U.S. hostages taken by the gang and laundering money to promote his crimes. Germine’s plea came at the end of the government’s case at trial, which included the testimony of 24 witnesses and two weeks of evidence.

Germine’s co-defendant Tunis, who had a supervisory role in the conspiracy, pleaded guilty on the eve of trial on Jan. 17, to the same 48-count indictment, and was sentenced on June 5 to 150 months in prison. Other co-defendants, Jocelyn Dor, 31, and Walder St. Louis, 35, who acted as a straw gun purchasers for Germine and Tunis, both pleaded guilty and were sentenced to 60 months and 36 months, respectively, for their roles in the gun-smuggling and money laundering scheme.

According to evidence presented at trial, from at least March through November 2021, Germine, Tunis, and two co-defendants conspired with each other and with other gang members in Haiti to acquire and supply firearms to the 400 Mawozo gang in Haiti. Germine directed the gang’s operations from a Haitian prison using unmonitored cell phones, including directing gang members in Haiti to transfer money to Tunis and others in the United States for the purpose of obtaining firearms for the gang. Germine then provided Tunis and the two other U.S.-based co-defendants, all Florida residents, specifications for firearms and ammunition that Germine and other gang leaders wanted sent to Haiti. Tunis and the two co-defendants then purchased at least 24 rifles, handguns, and a shotgun at Florida gun shops while falsely stating that they were the “actual buyers” of the firearms, when they were in fact acting as straw purchasers for Germine. In approximately May 2021, Tunis smuggled firearms and ammunition to Haiti in containers disguised as food and household goods. In October 2021, Tunis attempted to ship additional firearms and ammunition to Haiti, again by smuggling the firearms, but those firearms were seized by the FBI before they left the United States.

400 Mawozo is a violent Haitian gang that operated in the Croix-des-Bouquets area to the east of the capital, Port-au-Prince. From at least Jan. 12, 2020, 400 Mawozo was engaged in armed hostage takings of U.S. citizens in Haiti for ransom. The victims have generally been forced from their vehicles at gunpoint and kept in various locations by armed gang members while their relatives and colleagues negotiate payment for their release. At trial, the government presented evidence that the gang received ransom payments from the hostage taking of three U.S. citizens in the summer of 2021, who testified at trial, and the cash ransom proceeds were commingled with the gang’s funds and transferred via MoneyGram and Western Union from the United States to Haiti to buy more firearms.

In the fall of 2021, the 400 Mawozo gang claimed responsibility for taking 16 U.S. citizens hostage, including five children, and one Canadian citizen who were part of a missionary organization visiting an orphanage in Port-au-Prince. The gang demanded a ransom of $1 million for each hostage. The hostages were all released or had escaped by on or about Dec. 16, 2021. While Germine has been charged in a separate indictment in relation to that hostage-taking incident, today’s sentencing does not address those charges, which are lodged in case number 22-cr-161 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. An indictment is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

The FBI Miami Field Office investigated the case, with assistance from the ATF and the Department of Commerce’s Office of Export Enforcement.

Valuable assistance was provided by the government of Haiti, particularly the Haitian National Police, the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, the Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida’s Special Prosecutions Section.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Karen P. Seifert and Kimberly Paschall for the District of Columbia and Trial Attorney Beau Barnes of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section prosecuted the case.

Posted on

New Rule Provides Federal Firearms Licensees Access to FBI Records of Stolen Firearms

Source: US FBI

An interim final rule signed by Attorney General Merrick B. Garland on June 24, 2024, will allow federal firearms licensees (FFLs) to voluntarily access records of stolen firearms in the FBI’s National Crime Information Center (NCIC). The rule implements parts of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA) and allows FFLs to verify whether a firearm offered for sale has been reported as stolen prior to adding it to their inventory.  
 
FFLs will immediately have two options to access the stolen gun records:    

  1. FFLs may partner with law enforcement agencies to search the NCIC stolen gun records. 
  2. States may request an extract of the NCIC stolen gun records to make available to FFLs within their jurisdiction.  

A third option under development will allow FFLs that currently leverage the National Instant Criminal Background Check System for firearm background checks via E-Check to also use E-Check to query the NCIC stolen gun records.  
 
When a search indicates a firearm is stolen, the FFL may report that information to a criminal justice agency. This will assist law enforcement agencies investigating reports of stolen firearms by providing potential investigative leads and will help deter or halt the sale of stolen firearms through seemingly legitimate business transactions.  

Posted on

Former Colorado Resident Sentenced to Life in Prison for Federal Hate Crimes and Firearm Offenses Related to Mass Shooting at Club Q

Source: US FBI

Anderson Lee Aldrich, 24, formerly of Colorado Springs, Colorado, was sentenced to 55 concurrent life sentences to run consecutive to 190 years in prison after pleading guilty to 74 hate crimes and firearms charges related to the Nov. 19, 2022, mass shooting at Club Q, an LGBTQIA+ establishment in Colorado Springs.  

According to the plea agreement, Aldrich admitted to murdering five people, injuring 19, and attempting to murder 26 more in a willful, deliberate, malicious, and premediated attack at Club Q. According to the plea, Aldrich entered Club Q armed with a loaded, privately manufactured assault weapon and began firing. Aldrich continued firing until subdued by patrons of the Club. As part of the plea, Aldrich admitted that this attack was in part motivated because of the actual or perceived sexual orientation and gender identity of any person.

“Fueled by hate, the defendant targeted members of the LGBTQIA+ community at a place that represented belonging, safety, and acceptance – stealing five people from their loved ones, injuring 19 others, and striking fear across the country,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Today’s sentencing makes clear that the Justice Department is committed to protecting the right of every person in this country to live free from the fear that they will be targeted by hate-fueled violence or discrimination based on who they are or who they love. I am grateful to every agent, prosecutor, and staff member across the Department – from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado, to the Civil Rights Division, the ATF, and FBI – for their work on this case. The Justice Department will never stop working to defend the safety and civil rights of all people in our country.”

“The 2022 mass shooting at Club Q is one of the most violent crimes against the LGBTQIA+ community in history,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “The FBI and our partners have worked tirelessly towards this sentencing, but the true heroes are the patrons of the Club who selflessly acted to subdue the defendant. This Pride Month and every month, the FBI stands with the survivors, victims, and families of homophobic violence and hate.”

“ATF will not rest until perpetrators like this defendant are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” said Director Steven Dettelbach of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). “I hope today’s life sentence brings at least some peace to the victims and survivors of this senseless, horrific tragedy. That this sentence should come during Pride month reinforces how far we have left to go before all communities, including all LGBTQIA+ communities, are safe here. It also shows how far ATF and all our partners will go to ensure hatred does not win.”

“The defendant’s mass shooting and heinous targeting of Club Q is one of the most devastating assaults on the LGBTQIA+ community in our nation’s history. This sentence cannot reclaim the lives lost or undo the harms inflicted. But we hope that it provides the survivors, the victims’ families, and their communities a small measure of justice,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Our message today should be loud and clear. No one should have to fear for their life or their safety because of their gender identity or sexual orientation. The Justice Department will vigorously investigate and prosecute those who perpetrate hate-fueled, bias-driven attacks.”

“Hate has no place in our country and no place in Colorado” said Acting U.S. Attorney Matt Kirsch for the District of Colorado. “I hope that today’s sentence demonstrates to the victims and those connected to this horrific event that we do not tolerate these heinous acts of violence.”

The FBI Denver Field Office, Colorado Springs Police Department, and ATF investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alison Connaughty and Bryan Fields for the District of Colorado and Trial Attorney Maura White of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division prosecuted the case.

Posted on

Bristol Man Sentenced to 30 Months in Federal Prison for Role in Vehicle Theft Scheme

Source: US FBI

Marc H. Silverman, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that RYAN TESTA, 48, of Bristol, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall in New Haven to 30 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for his participation in a multistate identity theft and vehicle theft scheme that defrauded dozens of individuals and businesses out of more than $1 million.

According to court documents and statement made in court, beginning in approximately September 2020, Testa’s co-conspirator, Tyshon Walker, obtained personal information stolen from residents of Connecticut and other states and used it to apply for vehicle loans at dealerships in Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Rhode Island for luxury and performance vehicles, motorcycles, an all-terrain vehicle, and a boat.  Once the loan was approved by the dealership using the identity theft victim’s information, Walker would send “runners,” to pick up the vehicle utilizing a fictitious driver’s license that included the identity theft victim’s information and a photograph of the runner.  The vehicle was then transported back to Connecticut for resale on Facebook Marketplace.

In early 2023, Walker and his wife, Stephanie Perez, recruited Testa to be a runner.  Between March and May 2023, at the direction of Walker and Perez, Testa used stolen identities to acquire at least nine vehicles with a total value of more than $500,000.

Testa has been detained since May 16, 2023, after he was arrested in Pennsylvania in connection with the attempted theft of a vehicle connected to this scheme.  On February 27, 2024, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud, and one count of aggravated identity theft.

Walker and Perez pleaded guilty to related charges.  On March 6, 2025, Perez was sentenced to 14 months of imprisonment.  Walker awaits sentencing.

This matter has been investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s New Haven Safe Streets/Gang Task Force, the Bridgeport Police Department, the Hopkinton (R.I.) Police Department, the Westtown – East Goshen Regional (Pa.) Police Department, and the Washington Township (N.J.) Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lauren C. Clark and Heather M. Cherry.

Posted on

Hartford Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Drug and Gun Offenses

Source: US FBI

Marc H. Silverman, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that CHRISTOPHER DANCY, 35, of Hartford, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Omar A. Williams in Hartford to drug and firearm offenses.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on August 18, 2022, Dancy was arrested for violating his state parole.  A search of an apartment where he was staying revealed a loaded Glock model 45, 9mm pistol, approximately 20 grams of fentanyl mixed with xylazine, and items used to process and package narcotics for distribution.

On May 3, 2023, Hartford Police officers observed Dancy engaging in suspected drug activity in the area of Albany Avenue and Edgewood Street and seized a car that Dancy had occupied.  On May 5, 2023, a search of the car revealed a loaded Glock model 26, 9mm pistol.  Subsequent DNA testing of the pistol connected it to Dancy.

Dancy’s criminal history includes state drug and firearm convictions.  It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm or ammunition that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce.

Dancy pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years, and unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 15 years.  A sentencing date is not scheduled.

Dancy has been detained since June 5, 2023.

This matter is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the FBI’s Northern Connecticut Gang Task Force, and the Hartford Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert S. Dearington.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.  For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit www.justice.gov/psn.