Tag Archives: Heidi Boutros Gesch

Army National Guard Soldier Pleads Guilty in Connection with Bribery and Fraud Scheme

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To Date, 24 Individuals Have Pleaded Guilty in Ongoing Corruption Investigation.

A soldier of the U.S. Army National Guard pleaded guilty today for his role in a wide-ranging corruption scheme involving fraudulent recruiting bonuses from the Army National Guard Bureau.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Robert Pitman for the Western District of Texas made the announcement.
Sergeant First Class Eduardo Ruesga-Larracilla, 41, of San Antonio, Texas, pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiracy to commit bribery and wire fraud, and one count of bribery of a public official.
The case against Ruesga arises from an investigation that has led to charges against 26 individuals, 24 of whom have pleaded guilty.
According to court documents, in approximately September 2005, the National Guard Bureau entered into a contract with Document and Packaging Broker Inc. (Docupak) to administer the Guard Recruiting Assistance Program (G-RAP).    The G-RAP was a recruiting program that offered monetary incentives to soldiers of the Army National Guard who referred others to join the National Guard.    Through this program, a participating soldier could receive up to $2,000 in bonus payments for a referral.    Based on certain milestones achieved by the referred soldier, a participating soldier would receive payment through direct deposit into the participating soldier’s designated bank account.    To participate in the program, soldiers were required to create online recruiting assistant accounts.
Ruesga admitted that between approximately January 2010 and approximately October 2011, he conspired with a recruiter and paid him for the personal information of potential Army National Guard soldiers.    Ruesga further admitted that, in order to obtain fraudulent bonuses, he used the personal information for these potential soldiers fraudulently to claim that he was responsible for referring these soldiers for enlistment in the National Guard.
Ruesga is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 9, 2014 before U.S. District Judge Orlando L. Garcia in San Antonio, Texas.
This case is being investigated by the San Antonio Fraud Resident Agency of the Army Criminal Investigation Command’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit.    The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Sean F. Mulryne, Heidi Boutros Gesch, and Mark J. Cipolletti of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section.

Texas Army National Guard Soldier Pleads Guilty to Defrauding the U.S.

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To Date, 23 Individuals Have Pleaded Guilty in Ongoing Corruption Investigation

A soldier in the Texas National Guard pleaded guilty today for his role in a bribery and fraud scheme that caused more than $30,000 in losses to the U.S. National Guard Bureau, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. O’Neil of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas.

Sergeant First Class Zaunmine O. Duncan, 38, formerly of Austin, Texas, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy, one count of bribery and one count of aggravated identity theft.  The case against Duncan arises from an investigation involving allegations that former and current military recruiters and U.S. soldiers in the San Antonio and Houston areas engaged in a wide-ranging corruption scheme to illegally obtain fraudulent recruiting bonuses.   To date, the investigation has led to charges against 25 individuals, 23 of whom have pleaded guilty.

According to court documents, in approximately September 2005, the National Guard Bureau entered into a contract with Document and Packaging Broker Inc. (Docupak), to administer the Guard Recruiting Assistance Program (G-RAP).   The G-RAP was a recruiting program that offered monetary incentives to soldiers of the Army National Guard who referred others to join the Army National Guard.   Through this program, a participating soldier could receive bonus payments for referring another individual to join the Army National Guard.   Based on certain milestones achieved by the referred soldier, a participating soldier would receive payment through direct deposit into the participating soldier’s designated bank account.   To participate in the program, soldiers were required to create online recruiting assistant accounts.

Duncan admitted that between approximately February 2008 and August 2010, while he was a recruiter for the National Guard, he obtained the names and Social Security numbers of potential soldiers and provided them to recruiting assistants, including co-conspirators Elisha Ceja, Annika Chambers, Kimberly Hartgraves and Lashae Hawkins, so that these recruiting assistants could use the information to obtain fraudulent recruiting bonuses by falsely claiming that they were responsible for referring these potential soldiers to join the Army National Guard, when they were not.   In exchange for the information, Duncan admitted that he personally received a total of at least approximately $24,500 in payments from Ceja, Chambers, Hartgraves and Hawkins.

Duncan is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 28, 2014, before U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal in Houston.

Co-conspirators Ceja, Chambers, Hartgraves and Hawkins have all pleaded guilty to conspiracy and bribery in connection to this scheme.   Hartgraves is scheduled to be sentenced on June 24, 2014.   Ceja, Chambers and Hawkins are each scheduled to be sentenced on June 26, 2014.   All of these sentencing hearings are set before U.S. District Judge Rosenthal in Houston.

The cases are being investigated by special agents from the San Antonio Fraud Resident Agency of Army CID’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit.   This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Sean F. Mulryne, Heidi Boutros Gesch and Mark J. Cipolletti of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney John Pearson of the Southern District of Texas.

Former Army National Guard Soldier Pleads Guilty in Connection with Bribery and Fraud Scheme to Defraud the U.S. Army National Guard Bureau

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A former soldier of the U.S. Army National Guard has pleaded guilty for his role in a bribery and fraud scheme that caused approximately $70,000 in losses to the U.S. Army National Guard Bureau, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. O’Neil of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas.
Former Sergeant First Class Michael Rambaran, 51, of Pearland, Texas, pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiracy, one count of bribery and one count of aggravated identity theft.   Sentencing is scheduled for June 24, 2014 before U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal in Houston.
The case arises from an investigation involving allegations that former and current military recruiters and U.S. soldiers in the San Antonio and Houston areas engaged in a wide-ranging corruption scheme to illegally obtain fraudulent recruiting bonuses.   To date, the investigation has led to charges against 25 individuals, 22 of whom have pleaded guilty.
According to court documents, in approximately September 2005, the National Guard Bureau entered into a contract with Document and Packaging Broker Inc. (Docupak) to administer the Guard Recruiting Assistance Program (G-RAP).   The G-RAP was a recruiting program that offered monetary incentives to Army National Guard soldiers who referred others to join the Army National Guard.   Through this program, a participating soldier could receive bonus payments for referring another individual to join the Army National Guard.   Based on certain milestones achieved by the referred soldier, a participating soldier would receive payment through direct deposit into the participating soldier’s designated bank account.   To participate in the program, soldiers were required to create online recruiting assistant accounts.
Rambaran admitted that between approximately February 2008 and August 2011, while he was a recruiter for the National Guard, he obtained the names and Social Security numbers of potential soldiers and provided them to recruiting assistants so that they could use the information to obtain fraudulent recruiting referral bonuses by falsely claiming that they were responsible for referring those potential soldiers to join the Army National Guard, when in fact they were not.   In exchange for the information, Rambaran admitted that he personally received a total of approximately $29,000 in payments from the recruiting assistants.
Co-conspirators  Edia Antoine, Ernest A. Millien III and Melanie Moraida pleaded guilty to conspiracy and bribery in connection to this scheme.   Antoine and Millien are each scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 24, 2014.   Moraida is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 26, 2014.   All of these sentencing hearings are set before U.S. District Judge Rosenthal in Houston.
Another alleged co-conspirator, Christopher Renfro, who was indicted on Aug. 7, 2013, remains charged with two counts of wire fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft.   Trial is currently scheduled for June 16, 2014, before U.S. District Judge Rosenthal in Houston.   An indictment is only an accusation, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The cases are being investigated by special agents from the San Antonio Fraud Resident Agency of Army CID’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit.   This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Sean F. Mulryne, Heidi Boutros Gesch and Mark J. Cipolletti of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney John Pearson of the Southern District of Texas.

Army National Guard Soldier Pleads Guilty to Role in Scheme to Defraud U.S. Army National Guard Bureau

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A U.S. Army National Guard soldier pleaded guilty for her role in a bribery and fraud scheme that caused $30,000 in losses to the U.S. Army National Guard Bureau.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas made the announcement.

Specialist Danielle Applin, 27, of Harker Heights, Texas, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy and one count of bribery.  The case against Applin arises from an investigation involving allegations that former and current military recruiters and U.S. soldiers in the San Antonio and Houston areas engaged in a wide-ranging corruption scheme to illegally obtain fraudulent recruiting bonuses.  To date, the investigation has led to charges against 27 individuals, 20 of whom have pleaded guilty.

According to court documents filed in the case, in approximately September 2005, the National Guard Bureau entered into a contract with Document and Packaging Broker Inc. (Docupak) to administer the Guard Recruiting Assistance Program (G-RAP).  The G-RAP was a recruiting program that offered monetary incentives to soldiers of the Army National Guard who referred others to join the Army National Guard.  Through this program, a participating soldier could receive bonus payments for referring another individual to join the Army National Guard.  Based on certain milestones achieved by the referred soldier, a participating soldier would receive payment through direct deposit into the participating soldier’s designated bank account.  To participate in the program, soldiers were required to create online recruiting assistant accounts.

Applin admitted that she paid an Army National Guard recruiter for the names and Social Security numbers of potential Army National Guard soldiers.  Applin further admitted that she used the personal identifying information for these potential soldiers to claim that she was responsible for referring these potential soldiers to join the Army National Guard, when in fact she had not referred them.  As a result of these fraudulent representations, Applin collected approximately $13,000 in fraudulent bonuses.

The charge of bribery carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000 or twice the pecuniary gain or loss.  The charge of conspiracy carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000 or twice the pecuniary gain or loss.

Applin is scheduled to be sentenced before U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal in Houston on June 11, 2014.

This case is being investigated by the San Antonio Fraud Resident Agency of Army Criminal Investigation Command’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit.  The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Sean F. Mulryne, Heidi Boutros Gesch, and Mark J. Cipolletti of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney John Pearson of the Southern District of Texas.

Army National Guard Colonel and Sergeant Indicted for Allegedly Defrauding Recruiting Assistance Program

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A retired colonel and a sergeant in the Army National Guard have been charged in a nine-count indictment in Albuquerque, N.M., for allegedly defrauding the National Guard Bureau and its contractor of approximately $12,000 by fraudulently obtaining recruiting bonuses, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.
Retired Colonel Isaac Alvarado, 74, of Albuquerque, N.M. was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, four counts of wire fraud and four counts of aggravated identity theft in an indictment that was filed this week in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico.    Sergeant First Class Travis Nau, 40, also of Albuquerque, N.M., was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, three counts of wire fraud and three counts of aggravated identity theft.
According to court documents, in approximately September 2005, the National Guard Bureau entered into a contract with Document and Packaging Broker Inc. to administer the Guard Recruiting Assistance Program (G-RAP).    The G-RAP was a recruiting program that was designed to offer monetary incentives to soldiers of the Army National Guard who referred others to join the Army National Guard.    Through this program, a participating soldier could receive bonus payments for referring another individual to join.    Based on certain milestones achieved by the referred soldier, a participating soldier would receive payment through direct deposit into the participating soldier’s designated bank account.    To participate in the program, soldiers were required to create online recruiting assistant accounts.    The rules prohibited Army National Guard recruiters from participating in the G-RAP.
According to court documents, between approximately November 2007 and February 2012, Alvarado participated as a recruiting assistant in the G-RAP.    Nau, who worked in a recruiting office and is Alvarado’s son-in-law, allegedly provided Alvarado with the names and Social Security numbers of potential soldiers.    This enabled Alvarado to claim that he was responsible for referring these potential soldiers to join the military, when in fact he did not recruit any of them.    In addition, Nau advised at least two potential soldiers to falsely report that Alvarado had assisted in their recruitment even though he had not.    As a result, Alvarado allegedly received a total of approximately $12,000 in fraudulent recruiting bonuses.
An indictment is merely a charge and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
If convicted, the defendants face up to five years in prison on the conspiracy count.    Each wire fraud count carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.    Each count of aggravated identity theft carries a mandatory two-year sentence in prison.    Each charged count carries a maximum fine of up to $250,000, or twice the gross gain.
The case is being investigated by special agents from the Fort Bliss Army Criminal Investigation Command.    The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Sean F. Mulryne, Mark J. Cipolletti and Heidi Boutros Gesch of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section.

Two Army National Guard Soldiers Plead Guilty to Schemes to Defraud U.s. Army National Guard Bureau

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Two current U.S. Army National Guard soldiers have pleaded guilty for their role in bribery and fraud schemes that caused a total of at least $70,000 in losses to the U.S. Army National Guard Bureau.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas made the announcement.

Sergeant Annika Chambers, 28, of Houston, pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiracy and one count of bribery. Specialist Elisha Ceja, 27, of Barboursville, W.V., previously pleaded guilty to the same charge on Oct. 1, 2013. The cases against both defendants arise from an investigation involving allegations that former and current military recruiters and U.S. soldiers in the San Antonio and Houston areas engaged in a wide-ranging corruption scheme to illegally obtain fraudulent recruiting bonuses.  To date, the investigation has led to charges against 25 individuals, 17 of whom have pleaded guilty.

According to court documents filed in both cases, in approximately September 2005, the National Guard Bureau entered into a contract with Document and Packaging Broker, Inc. (Docupak) to administer the Guard Recruiting Assistance Program (G-RAP).  The G-RAP was a recruiting program that offered monetary incentives to soldiers of the Army National Guard who referred others to join the Army National Guard.  Through this program, a participating soldier could receive up to $3,000 in bonus payments for referring another individual to join.  Based on certain milestones achieved by the referred soldier, a participating soldier would receive payment through direct deposit into the participating soldier’s designated bank account.  To participate in the program, soldiers were required to create online recruiting assistant accounts.

Ceja and Chambers both admitted that they paid Army National Guard recruiters for the names and Social Security numbers of potential Army National Guard soldiers.  They further admitted that they used the personal identifying information for these potential soldiers to falsely claim that they were responsible for referring the potential soldiers to join the Army National Guard.

As a result of these fraudulent representations, Ceja collected approximately $12,000 in fraudulent bonuses, and Chambers collected approximately $17,000 in fraudulent bonuses.  The charge of bribery carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000 or twice the pecuniary gain or loss.  The charge of conspiracy carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000 or twice the pecuniary gain or loss.

Ceja and Chambers are scheduled to be sentenced before U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal in Houston on Dec. 19, 2013, and March 11, 2013, respectively.

These cases are being investigated by Special Agents from the San Antonio Fraud Resident Agency of Army Criminal Investigation Command’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit. The cases are being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Sean F. Mulryne, Mark J. Cipolletti, and Heidi Boutros Gesch of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney John Pearson of the Southern District of Texas.