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Source: US FBI

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – A Bessemer man has been convicted at trial in an elder fraud scheme, announced U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona and FBI Special Agent in Charge Carlton L. Peeples.

The jury returned a guilty verdict against Terrance Alonzo Pruitt, 47, of Bessemer, after two days of testimony before U.S. District Court Judge Anna Manasco.  Pruitt was convicted of two counts of wire fraud.

According to evidence presented at trial, in September 2023, Pruitt executed a Power of Attorney over an elderly family member with dementia, without the victim’s knowledge or permission.  Between September 2023 and December 2023, Pruitt devised a scheme to defraud the victim by becoming a joint account holder on the victim’s bank accounts, changing the address on the victim’s bank accounts from the victim’s address to his address, removing two payable on death (POD) beneficiaries from one of the accounts, and adding two POD beneficiaries to another account.  Pruitt then transferred $550,000 in funds from the victim’s accounts to his personal bank accounts. Pruitt used some of these funds for his own personal benefit, and he moved $500,000 to a new bank account that did not include the victim as an account holder.  When confronted, Pruitt told various, inconsistent stories attempting to excuse his conduct.

The FBI investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ryan S. Rummage and Brett Janich are prosecuting the case.

Reporting from consumers about fraud and attempted fraud is critical to law enforcement’s efforts to investigate and prosecute schemes targeting older adults. If you or someone you know is age 60 or older and has been a victim of financial fraud, help is standing by at the National Elder Fraud Hotline: 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311). This U.S. Department of Justice hotline, managed by the Office for Victims of Crime, is staffed by experienced professionals who provide personalized support to callers by assessing the needs of the victim, and identifying relevant next steps. Case managers will identify appropriate reporting agencies, provide information to callers to assist them in reporting, connect callers directly with appropriate agencies, and provide resources and referrals on a case-by-case basis. Reporting is the first step. Reporting can help authorities identify those who commit fraud, and reporting certain financial losses due to fraud as soon as possible can increase the likelihood of recovering losses. The hotline is staffed 10am-6pm Eastern Time, Monday-Friday. English, Spanish, and other languages are available.  More information about the Department’s elder justice efforts can be found on the Department’s Elder Justice website, www.elderjustice.gov.  Victims are encouraged to file a complaint online with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at this website or by calling 1-800-225-5324.  

Source: US FBI

PHOENIX, Ariz. – During this week of enforcement operations from March 1, 2025, through March 7, 2025, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona has brought immigration-related criminal charges against 227 defendants. Specifically, the United States filed 92 cases in which aliens illegally re-entered the United States, and the United States also charged 120 aliens for illegally entering the United States.  In its ongoing effort to deter unlawful immigration, the United States also filed 12 cases against 15 individuals responsible for smuggling illegal aliens into and within the District of Arizona. Protecting law enforcement officers is a key part of border vigilance, and federal prosecutors also charged one defendant for assaulting a Border Patrol agent.

These cases were referred or supported by federal law enforcement partners, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ICE ERO), ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

Recent matters of interest include:

United States v. Gerardo Tejada-Calleja: On March 3, 2025, the United States charged by criminal complaint Edwin Santiago Marquez Flores with Assault on a Federal Officer in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 111(a), and Improper Entry by an Alien in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1325(a)(1). On March 2, 2025, a United States Border Patrol agent responded to a report of suspected illegal aliens in the area of Vamori, Arizona. When an agent approached the area, Tejada-Calleja was found hiding under a tree, attempting to evade apprehension. Tejada-Calleja ran down a wash upon seeing the agent. After a brief pursuit, Tejada-Calleja and another individual were found hiding under a tree and some brush. During attempts to apprehend the two individuals, the agent reached for his radio to let other agents know he needed assistance. Tejada-Calleja grabbed the agent’s gun belt area and his radio in an attempt to rip it out of the agent’s hands. During the assault, Tejada-Calleja wrapped his arms around the agent, taking him down to the ground backwards and onto his back. Tejada-Calleja and the other individual were able to evade apprehension again until they were subsequently captured and taken into custody. Case No. 25-4720 MJ.

United States v. Jimenez-Aguilar: Edgar Guadalupe Jimenez-Aguilar, an illegal alien living in Phoenix, was indicted last week for Conspiracy to Transport Illegal Aliens in violation of 8 U.S.C. §§ 1324(a)(1)(A)(v)(I), (a)(1)(A)(ii), (a)(1(B)(i), and Possession with Intent to Distribute Heroin in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 8411(a)(1), 841(b)(1)(B)(i). Jimenez-Aguilar was identified by Border Patrol as an operator of a stash house and alien transporting coordinator. On October 3, 2024, officers with the Tohono O’odham Police Department stopped a vehicle and determined four passengers, including two in the trunk of the vehicle, were aliens unlawfully present in the United States. Officers learned that the driver had been recruited on social media, had participated in multiple prior smuggling ventures, and had been to Jimenez-Aguilar’s stash house to unload the aliens. On January 28, 2025, agents stopped a Jeep Grand Cherokee in Mesa and identified the driver as Jimenez-Aguilar via his Sonoran driver’s license. Inside the vehicle, agents located approximately 297 grams of black tar heroin. CR-25-00284-PHX-DJH.

A criminal complaint is simply a method by which a person is charged with criminal activity and raises no inference of guilt. An individual is presumed innocent until evidence is presented to a jury that establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
 

CASE NUMBER:            25-4720 MJ
                                       CR-25-00284-PHX-DJH
RELEASE NUMBER:    2025-031_March 7 Immigration Enforcement

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For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on X @USAO_AZ for the latest news.

Source: US FBI

PHOENIX, Ariz. – Jose Bibiano Cabrera-Cabrera, 37; Jesus Humberto Limon-Lopez, 43; and Jose Guadalupe Tapia-Quintero, 53; all of Mexico, appeared last week for their initial appearances after they were secured from Mexico on February 27, 2025.

The defendants taken into U.S. custody include leaders and managers of drug cartels recently designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists, such as the Sinaloa Cartel, Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG), Cártel del Noreste (formerly Los Zetas), La Nueva Familia Michoacana, and Cártel de Golfo (Gulf Cartel). These defendants are collectively alleged to have been responsible for the importation into the United States of massive quantities of poison, including cocaine, methamphetamine, fentanyl, and heroin, as well as associated acts of violence.

Tapia-Quintero is charged with Conspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine with Intent to Import into the United States; Conspiracy to Import Methamphetamine; Conspiracy to Possess with the Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine; Conspiracy to Commit Promotional Money Laundering; Conspiracy to Commit Concealment Money Laundering; and Aiding and Abetting. He is facing up to life imprisonment.

Limon-Lopez is charged with Continuing Criminal Enterprise; Conspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine, Fentanyl, Heroin, and Cocaine; Conspiracy to Import Methamphetamine, Fentanyl, Heroin, and Cocaine; Distribution of Methamphetamine; Distribution of Fentanyl; Distribution of Heroin; Distribution of Cocaine; and Conspiracy to Unlawfully Export Firearms and Ammunition. He faces up to life imprisonment.

Cabrera-Cabrera is charged with Conspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine, Fentanyl, Heroin, and Cocaine; Conspiracy to Import Methamphetamine, Fentanyl, Heroin, and Cocaine; and Conspiracy to Unlawfully Export Firearms and Ammunition. He faces up to life imprisonment.

An indictment is merely an allegation of criminal conduct, not evidence. An individual is presumed innocent until evidence is presented to a jury that establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Strike Force Initiative, which provides for the establishment of permanent multi-agency task force teams that work side-by-side in the same location. This co-located model enables agents from different agencies to collaborate on intelligence-driven, multi-jurisdictional operations to disrupt and dismantle the most significant drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations.

The OCDETF Arizona Strike Force is comprised of agents and officers from Customs and Border Protection, the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations, the United States Marshals Service, the United States Postal Service, United States Postal Inspection Service, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Arizona Army National Guard, the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office, the Pima County Sheriff’s Office, and the Scottsdale Police Department. The prosecution is being handled by the United States Attorney Office for the District of Arizona.
 

CASE NUMBER:           CR-13-00179-PHX-SRB
                                      CR-21-01864-TUC-SHR
RELEASE NUMBER:    2025-030_Cabrera-Cabrera

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For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on X @USAO_AZ for the latest news.

Source: US FBI

PHOENIX, Ariz. – LaDell Jay Bistline, Jr., 46, of Colorado City, was sentenced on Wednesday by United States District Judge Susan M. Brnovich to life in prison. On October 2, 2024, a jury convicted Bistline of one count of Receipt of Child Pornography; one count of Transfer of Obscene Material to a Minor; two counts of Persuading or Coercing Travel to Engage in Sexual Activity; two counts of Using a Means of Interstate Commerce to Persuade or Coerce a Minor to Engage in Sexual Activity; and two counts of Transportation of a Minor for Criminal Sexual Activity.

Bistline’s charges are based on his participation in a years-long child sexual abuse conspiracy that spanned several states and victimized at least 10 children. Bistline committed his crimes with others, including co-defendant Samuel Rappylee Bateman, the self-proclaimed leader of a religious sect based in Colorado City. Bateman and 10 of his other followers previously pleaded guilty to charges related to the child sexual abuse conspiracy and were not part of the trial against Bistline.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Bistline delivered two of his own daughters to Bateman to become child “brides” and be sexually abused when the girls were nine and 11 years old. Bistline and others transported the victims between states including Nebraska, Colorado, Utah, and Arizona to facilitate the sexual abuse. Bistline also participated in group sexual activity involving children, including one event he watched over a video livestream.

The Phoenix Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) conducted the investigation in this case. The United States Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, Phoenix, handled the prosecution. The United States Attorney’s Office continues to extend special gratitude to the Arizona Department of Child Safety for its work rescuing and protecting Arizona children impacted by this matter, the Colorado City Police Department, the Iron County (Utah) Sheriff’s Office, the U.S. Marshals Service, and the St. George Resident Agency of the FBI’s Salt Lake City Field Office for their assistance in this matter.
 

CASE NUMBER:           CR-22-8092-006-PHX-SMB
RELEASE NUMBER:    2025-021_Bistline

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For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on X @USAO_AZ for the latest news.

Source: US FBI

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – A convicted felon has been sentenced on drug and gun charges, announced U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Carlton Peeples.  

U.S. District Court Judge Annemarie Axon sentenced Waymon Lanar Robinson, Jr., 31, of Birmingham, to 140 months in prison.  In September, Robinson pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, heroin, and fentanyl; carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime; and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

According to court documents, on March 1, 2023, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office deputies conducted surveillance on a house in Tarrant, Alabama, associated with the gang “Hard2Kill.”  Officers conducted a traffic stop in an alleyway behind the house. Officers saw Robinson place something inside his pants and walk away from the house.  They approached Robinson and asked if he had any weapons on him. Robinson said he did and showed the officer a Glock .40 caliber pistol in his waistband. Robinson also had fentanyl, methamphetamine, hydrocodone pills, heroin, and marijuana inside of a Crown Royal Bag in his pants. 

The FBI investigated the case, along with the Jefferson County Sherriff’s Office.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Brittany Byrd prosecuted the case.  

Source: US FBI

TUCSON, Ariz. – Charles Morice Gilmore, 52, of Missouri, was sentenced last week by United States District Judge Angela M. Martinez to concurrent statutory maximum sentences of 10 years in prison for Mailing Threatening Communications, and six years for Influencing Federal Official by Threat. Gilmore pleaded guilty to these crimes on October 1, 2024.

Between February 28, 2023, and March 27, 2023, while an inmate at the United States Penitentiary in Tucson, Gilmore mailed letters to a federal judge claiming there were bombs in the courthouse where the victim worked and that the bombs could be remotely detonated. The letters to the judge contained religious slurs and asserted ties to the Hells Angels and the Ku Klux Klan. Gilmore also sent a threatening letter to a federal prosecutor who had previously handled one of his cases. Gilmore attached pipe bomb instructions to that letter. He claimed he had mailed the instructions to others outside the prison to carry out his orders. A third letter from Gilmore to a former cellmate with instructions for making pipe bombs and listing locations where the pipe bombs should be placed was also intercepted.

Gilmore has a lengthy criminal history for violent offenses and is a career offender. Judge Martinez imposed concurrent stipulated sentences of 10 years for each mailing of threatening communications and six years for threatening a federal judge. The sentences will be consecutive to Gilmore’s 10-year federal sentence for mailing threatening communications in 2017; a 10-year sentence for threatening federal officials in 2014; a 90-month sentence in 2013 for mailing threatening communications to a different federal judge; and a 20-year prison sentence for stabbing an inmate in Jefferson City, Missouri in 2018. A separate case against Gilmore for mailing a hoax bomb threat to a state courthouse in Missouri was dismissed as part of the stipulated agreement in this case.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation in this case. The United States Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, Tucson, handled the prosecution.

CASE NUMBER:           CR-23-2122-TUC-AMM
RELEASE NUMBER:    2025-020_Gilmore

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For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on X @USAO_AZ for the latest news.

Source: US FBI

FAIRBANKS, Alaska – An Utqiagvik man was sentenced today to 15 years in prison and will serve 10 years on supervised release for producing child pornography.

According to court documents, a detective with a local law enforcement agency, acting in an undercover capacity and posing online as a 13-year-old girl, operated an account with a social media application known to law enforcement to be utilized by individuals seeking sexual encounters with minors. On Nov 6, 2023, the undercover detective received a message from Billy Ray Okpeaha Jr., 25.

Between Nov. 6, 2023, and Jan. 18, 2024, Okpeaha and the undercover detective engaged in online exchanges that included Okpeaha’s requests that the undercover detective send him explicit content, the defendant sending a photo of his genitals to the undercover detective, and discussions about meeting each other in person and sexual interactions if an in-person meet occurred. Okpeaha sent the address of the hotel he was staying at and requested the undercover detective meet him at his hotel room.

Okpeaha made plans to meet the undercover detective for a sexual encounter on Jan. 22, 2024. He was arrested that day at an apartment in Utqiagvik. Investigators seized and searched his electronic devices, which contained child sexual abuse materials, including visuals of a known minor victim. The known minor victim was interviewed and confirmed sending images of child sexual abuse material at Okpeaha’s request.

Okpeaha was initially released on pre-trial supervision following his arrest but fled his transitional living facility. He was re-arrested in Coldfoot, Alaska, allegedly attempting to evade supervision and capture.

On Sept. 4, 2024, Okpeaha pleaded guilty to one count of sexual exploitation of a child – production of child pornography.

“Crimes against children are among the most heinous offenses, inflicting lasting harm on vulnerable victims. Mr. Okpeaha deliberately targeted innocent children in a rural village for his own sexual gratification, exposing a clear and present danger to our communities,” said U.S. Attorney S. Lane Tucker for the District of Alaska. “Our office will continue to work closely with law enforcement partners to identify, apprehend and vigorously prosecute anyone who attempts to exploit or target the children of Alaska.” 

“The defendant used the Internet to commit child exploitation crimes in Alaska and was found to be in possession of CSAM on his devices,” said Special Agent in Charge Rebecca Day of the FBI Anchorage Field Office. “This investigation and sentencing demonstrate the severity of the defendant’s crimes, and our commitment to prevent further victimization and ensure online predators are brought to justice.”

The FBI Anchorage Field Office and Anchorage Police Department investigated this case as part of the FBI’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force, with assistance from the North Slope Borough Police Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Carly Vosacek prosecuted the case.

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

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Source: US FBI

            WASHINGTON — An Alabama man has been arrested for allegedly assaulting law enforcement and other charges related to his alleged conduct during the Jan. 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol. His alleged actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election.

            Robert James Bonham, 44, of Wilsonville, Alabama, is charged in a criminal complaint filed in the District of Columbia with felony offenses of assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers and obstruction of law enforcement during a civil disorder.

            In addition to the felonies, Bonham is charged with several misdemeanor offenses, including entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly conduct in a Capitol building, and act of physical violence in the Capitol grounds or buildings.

            The FBI arrested Bonham today in Alabama, and he will make his initial appearance in the Northern District of Alabama.

            According to court documents, Bonham was identified in police body-worn camera footage on Jan. 6, 2021, armed with a flagpole bearing an American flag, at approximately 2:32 p.m. on the Capitol’s Upper West Plaza, where officers were retreating under pressure from advancing rioters. Moments later, at approximately 2:33 p.m., it is alleged that officers commanded Bonham and others to “move back!”

            Instead of complying, Bonham allegedly raised the flagpole and thrust it forward toward an officer in an apparent attempt to stab him.  Body-worn camera footage shows the flagpole making contact with the officer, constituting a forcible assault and obstructing the officer’s duties.

            After the alleged attack, the officer reacted immediately, grabbing the flagpole with their left hand, prompting a physical struggle with Bonham as the officer tried to disarm him. Court documents say that additional officers moved in to assist, ordering Bonham to release the weapon. Despite multiple commands to “let it go,” it is alleged that Bonham refused, shouting, “No!” A tense standoff ensued until Bonham regained control of the flagpole and returned to the mob.

             This case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Alabama.

            This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Birmingham and Washington Field Offices which identified Bonham as BOLO (Be on the Lookout) #368 on its seeking information images. Valuable assistance was provided by the United States Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Department.

            In the 46 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,561 individuals have been charged in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 590 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, a felony. The investigation remains ongoing.

            Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.

            A complaint is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Source: US FBI

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – A federal grand jury in Alaska returned an indictment last week charging an Alabama man with wire fraud and tax evasion after he allegedly defrauded a local Anchorage business while serving as their general manager.

According to court documents, in 2008, James Wohlers, 56, of Deatsville, Alabama, was hired by GBR Equipment/Oilfield Services (GBR), an Anchorage based business that provides oilfield services on the North Slope and elsewhere, as their human resource manager. In 2009, Wohlers became their general manager, overseeing vendor interface, employee hiring, payroll and accounting. Part of his responsibilities included coordinating wire transfers from GBR’s bank account to outside accounts.

In 2019, an audit was completed on the company’s finances and bank records after employees determined the company was earning sufficient revenue but was unable to pay vendors and employees. The audit revealed that from at least 2013 to 2019, Wohlers allegedly executed wire transfers from the GBR account that did not benefit the company, and allegedly used GBR’s corporate credit cards for personal expenses, like paying personal credit card bills.

The indictment alleges that in 2015, Wohlers formed a partnership named BGI Industrial Services (BGI), which was registered with the Alabama Secretary of State. In 2017, GBR performed services for two companies. Wohlers allegedly sent both companies invoices from BGI for $25,000 and $2,500 respectively, and both companies paid the invoices. The money was deposited into BGI’s bank account. Wohlers also allegedly used GBR credit cards to pay for business expenses related to BGI and used employees paid by GBR to complete work on behalf of BGI. 

In late 2015, Wohlers announced GBR employee pay cuts of 5 to 10 percent, along with other restrictive measures to address GBR’s poor financial condition. A few months later, Wohlers announced additional GBR employee pay cuts of 5 to 15 percent. Within two weeks of making his second announcement, Wohlers allegedly used over $43,000 of GBR’s funds to pay for airfare and other expenses related to a personal trip to China.

Wohlers was terminated by GBR in August 2019, and the company sent the defendant a demand letter stating he owed GBR $1.5 million. After being terminated, Wohlers allegedly deleted roughly 10,000 emails from GBR’s servers.

Wohlers is charged with one count of wire fraud and three counts of tax evasion. The defendant is scheduled for his initial court appearance on Jan. 10 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Matthew M. Scoble of the U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

U.S. Attorney S. Lane Tucker for the District of Alaska, Special Agent in Charge Rebecca Day of the FBI Anchorage Field Office and Special Agent in Charge Adam Jobes of the IRS Criminal Investigation, Seattle Field Office made the announcement.

The FBI Anchorage Field Office and the IRS Criminal Investigation Seattle Field Office are investigating the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Tom Bradley is prosecuting the case.

An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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