MIL Security Engine-1

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Editor’s Note: This matter occurred on date indicated but not published at that time due to the government shutdown. Press release posted and made available following the return to normal operations.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Monico Erich Gastelo, 44, of Fresno, was sentenced Monday 40 years in prison for sexual exploitation of a child and receipt and distribution of child pornography, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced.

The sentence will be followed by 15 years of supervised release, during which time Gastelo’s access to children, computers, and the internet will be restricted. He was also ordered to pay $40,000 in monetary penalties, and he will be required to register as a sex offender upon his release from custody.

According to court documents, in January 2019, Gastelo created a social media account in which he pretended to be an 18-year-old boy. Gastelo used the account to converse with younger individuals and request sexually explicit content from them.

Between January and March 2020, Gastelo began communicating on Wickr, Snapchat, and Telegram with other individuals sexually attracted to children. He sent and received multiple images and videos of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) on these platforms. Forensic review of Gastelo’s phones revealed that he had more than 1,500 images and videos of suspected CSAM.

Gastelo’s conduct escalated in May 2020. A minor victim told law enforcement that he had been sexually exploited online and that an individual later identified as Gastelo had added him as a friend on Snapchat. Gastelo sent over a dozen images of his penis to this minor victim and enticed the victim to send back CSAM.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Central California Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, specifically the Fresno Police Department, the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, and Homeland Security Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney David Gappa and the Justice Department’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section Trial Attorney McKenzie Hightower prosecuted the case.

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 www.justice.gov/psc.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

SIOUX FALLS – United States Attorney Ron Parsons announced today that Chief Judge Roberto A. Lange has sentenced a Sioux Falls, South Dakota, man convicted of Possession of a Firearm by a Prohibited Person. The sentencing took place on October 20, 2025.

Jacob Henry Leroy, 22, was sentenced to two years and nine months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.

Henry was indicted for Possession of a Firearm by a Prohibited Person by a federal grand jury in December 2024. He pleaded guilty on July 21, 2025.

On November 14, 2024, law enforcement arrested Leroy and found him in possession of a .38 Special Caliber, double-action revolver, inside his pant leg. Officers also found methamphetamine in Leroy’s pocket and sock. Leroy is prohibited from possessing the firearm because he has a prior felony conviction and because he was, at the time, a drug user.

This case was investigated by the Sioux Falls Police Department and Homeland Security Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Connie Larson prosecuted the case.

Leroy was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.

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. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN). Through PSN, the District of South Dakota seeks to bring together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce gun violence and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

PITTSBURGH, Pa. – A resident of Rossiter, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced in federal court to 97 months of incarceration, to be followed by three years of supervised release, on his conviction of possession of a destructive device, First Assistant United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today.

Senior United States District Judge Nora Barry Fischer imposed the sentence on Roam L. Beer, 51.

Beer was convicted of the offense at the conclusion of a jury trial on August 7, 2025. The evidence presented during the day-and-a-half trial established that, on January 5, 2024, Beer threw an ignited homemade explosive device, which had been weaponized with steel shot, at the side of the residence of his estranged wife, who was in the room immediately inside the wall of the house where Beer threw the device, but was uninjured in the incident.

Assistant United States Attorney Shaun E. Sweeney prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

Prior to imposing sentence, Judge Fischer spoke of Beer’s lengthy criminal history, during which Beer “moved from threats to making bombs,” and described Beer’s offense in this case as “a very dangerous act warranting a serious penalty.”

First Assistant United States Attorney Rivetti commended the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and New Kensington Police Department for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Beer.

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

WACO, Texas – An Austin woman was sentenced in a federal court in Waco today to 37 months in prison for embezzling federal funds for personal use while serving as the executive director of the Killeen Housing Authority (KHA).

According to court documents, Deadra Johnson, 53, fraudulently obtained KHA funds and used them to pay for her personal expenses, including rent, utilities, auto maintenance, internet service, airline tickets, and furniture. A portion of the funds also went towards the purchase of a new vehicle.  In an attempt to conceal her actions, Johnson developed multiple kickback schemes.

Johnson was arrested on Jan. 17, 2024, and charged with theft of government property. She pleaded guilty on Feb. 11, 2025. In addition to three-years imprisonment, U.S. District Judge David Counts ordered Johnson to pay $297,473.30 in restitution.

“In stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars while overseeing the Killeen Housing Authority, Deadra Johnson selfishly betrayed not just the federal government and American taxpayers, but also the hundreds of families who depended on KHA services,” said U.S. Attorney Justin R. Simmons for the Western District of Texas. “My office is proud to partner with federal, state, and local authorities to protect the interests of this Nation, to protect our local communities, and to ensure that fraudsters like this defendant are brought to justice.”

“Deadra Johnson exploited her position and violated the public trust by stealing federal funds that were intended to help provide housing for the most vulnerable people in our community. She orchestrated a plot to use that money to pay for a life of luxury for herself and her family members, which included purchasing multiple vehicles, first-class plane tickets, and paying for other personal expenses,” said Special Agent in Charge Robert Lawler with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General (OIG). “HUD OIG will continue to work with its law enforcement partners to diligently pursue and hold accountable individuals who take advantage of their positions of trust to defraud HUD programs.”

“Our responsibility is to protect the integrity of federal programs and uphold the trust the American people place in us,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Alex Doran for FBI San Antonio. “Deadra Johnson’s actions diverted critical government funds away from individuals who depend on them during their most challenging moments. We remain committed to working alongside our law enforcement partners to safeguard public resources and ensure they reach those they were intended to help.”

HUD OIG and the FBI investigated the case with assistance from the Texas Department of Public Safety.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Greg Gloff prosecuted the case.

###

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

SIOUX FALLS – United States Attorney Ronald A. Parsons, Jr. announced today that United States District Chief Judge Roberto A. Lange has sentenced a former middle school teacher from Sioux Falls, South Dakota convicted of four counts of Production of Child Pornography, three counts of Attempted Production of Child Pornography, and one count of Transfer of Obscene Materials to a Minor. The sentencing took place on October 14, 2025.

Justin Preuschl, age 29, was sentenced to 24 years and 4 months in federal prison, 7 years of supervised release, restitution in the amount of $1,000, a special assessment of $1,000 under the Amy, Vicky, and Andy Child Pornography Act of 2018, and a special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund in the amount of $800. Upon release from federal prison, Preuschl must register as a sex offender.

Preuschl was indicted by a federal grand jury in June 2024. He pleaded guilty on July 15, 2025.

Between 2022 and 2024, Preuschl created multiple social media personas posing as a teenage boy. Using his personas on SnapChat and TikTok, Preuschl targeted and sexually groomed over 20 young teenage and preteen girls and convinced several of them to produce for him child sexual abuse materials. The victims included some of his own students, ages 13-15 years old, while he was a teacher at Whittier Middle School in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

This case was investigated by the Sioux Falls Police Department, the Division of Criminal Investigations, and Homeland Security Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth A. Ebert-Webb prosecuted the case.

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.

Preuschl was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service. 

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

David X. Sullivan, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that KHAWAR M. KHOKHAR, 37, of Ellington, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Sarala V. Nagala in Hartford to 20 months of imprisonment and two years of supervised release for defrauding the State of Connecticut of more than $1.2 million in tobacco tax revenue.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Khokhar operated Smokin’ Wholesale LLC, a Connecticut-licensed tobacco wholesale business that acquired smokeless tobacco and other tobacco products from out-of-state distributors, including businesses in Pennsylvania and Illinois, and sold the products to retail merchants in Connecticut.  Between approximately May 2017 and June 2019, Khokhar and Smokin’ Wholesale purchased approximately $2 million in tobacco products from the distributors, but failed to report accurately to the Connecticut Department of Revenue Services the value of the products imported into the state, and failed to pay to the state the tobacco-related taxes owed.  Through this scheme, Khokhar and others caused Connecticut to suffer a tax loss of more than $1.2 million.

Judge Nagala ordered Khokhar to pay restitution in the amount of $1,140,994.13, and to forfeit $60,707 that was seized during the investigation.

Khokhar was arrested on May 20, 2024.  On April 3, 2025, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy.

Khokhar, who is released on a $100,000 bond, is required to report to prison January 19.

This investigation was conducted by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Connecticut Department of Revenue Services, Criminal Investigations Division.  The case was by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael S. McGarry.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

PIERRE – United States Attorney Ron Parsons announced today that U.S. District Judge Eric C. Schulte has sentenced a Mission, South Dakota man convicted of Assault with a Dangerous Weapon.  The sentencing took place on October 20, 2025.

Robert Romero, age 48, was sentenced to five years and eight months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.

Romero was indicted by a federal grand jury in October 2024.  He pleaded guilty on July 21, 2025.

The conviction stems from an incident that occurred in May 2024 within the boundaries of the Rosebud Sioux Indian Reservation.  On May 12, 2024, Romero was driving a vehicle in Mission when he observed the victim walking alongside the roadway.  Romero stopped his vehicle and argued with the victim.  Romero then exited his vehicle and produced a machete, which he used to strike the victim’s arm, inflicting a serious injury that required hospitalization.

This matter was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office because the Major Crimes Act, a federal statute, mandates that certain violent crimes alleged to have occurred in Indian Country be prosecuted in Federal court as opposed to State court.

This case was investigated by the Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services.  Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Kirk Albertson prosecuted the case.

Romero was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service. 

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Winner Man Sentenced to 25 Years in Federal Prison in Child Sex Trafficking Case and Co-defendant Sentenced to 7 Years in Federal Prison

Source: United States Department of Justice

As federal employees return to work following the recent lapse in appropriations, OIP is aware that there are questions regarding whether the lapse in appropriations affects how agencies should count the number of days needed to respond to FOIA requests and administrative appeals. OIP has issued guidance to federal agencies in calculating FOIA response times for requests received during the government shutdown.

Agencies should use the automatically generated received date as the “date received” for electronic communication.  For physical mail, the date on which the mail was physically received by the FOIA office should control.  For most agencies, this means that the “date received” for physical mail will be the date that the government reopened, November 13, 2025. You can read the full guidance piece here.

OIP’s FOIA Counselor Service and Annual FOIA Report Team are available to answer any questions on this guidance or any other topic regarding FOIA administration by calling (202) 514-FOIA (3642).