Monthly Archives: May 2017

Former CEO And President Of Real Estate Investment Company Pleads Guilty To Embezzling $1.6 Million And Evading Taxes

Posted on by
Department of Justice
U.S. Attorney’s Office
Southern District of New York
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, May 23, 2017

Joon H. Kim, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that ROCKWELL GAJWANI pled guilty today to one count of wire fraud and three counts of tax evasion in connection with embezzling over $1.6 million from the Manhattan-based real estate investment company for which he had served as chief executive officer and president. As part of his plea, GAJWANI agreed to pay $1,975,068.04 in restitution and $1,612,841 in forfeiture. GAJWANI pled guilty before United States District Judge Loretta A. Preska.

Acting U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim said: “As he admitted today, for years Rockwell Gajwani siphoned money from his employer’s accounts, lining his own pockets with more than $1.6 million. Instead of working diligently as his company’s CEO, Gajwani put his efforts into concealing his crimes and hiding his ill-gotten gains from the IRS. Thanks to the dedicated work of the Postal Inspection Service and the IRS, Gajwani will now be held to account for his crimes.”

According to the Complaint, the Indictment, and other statements made in open court:

From October 2011 through March 2013, GAJWANI was the chief executive officer and president of a real estate investment company based in Manhattan (the “Manhattan Real Estate Company”). During this period, GAJWANI took more than $1.6 million in company funds to which he was not entitled by, among other means, making wire transfers from the company’s bank account to his personal bank account, writing company checks to himself, and making cash withdrawals from the company’s bank account.

To accomplish this scheme, among other means, GAJWANI took steps to conceal his true salary and to conceal from the Manhattan Real Estate Company’s parent company (the “Parent Company”) the amount of money he had taken from the Manhattan Real Estate Company’s bank account.

Beginning in late 2012, the director of accounting for the Manhattan Real Estate Company (the “Director of Accounting”) asked GAJWANI for details regarding GAJWANI’s compensation on more than one occasion, and GAJWANI repeatedly said he would get such details to her, but failed to do so. On another occasion, in connection with a request from the Parent Company for financial information, GAJWANI told the Director of Accounting not to provide that information to the Parent Company. To further conceal the funds he had taken from the Manhattan Real Estate Company, GAJWANI directed employees of the Manhattan Real Estate Company to lump the compensation of all employees together in accounting materials provided to the Parent Company, so that GAJWANI’s compensation would not be listed separately from the aggregate figure. GAJWANI also directed certain employees of the Manhattan Real Estate Company not to communicate with employees of the Parent Company.

Over the course of his employment, GAJWANI wrote himself over $940,000 in checks from the Manhattan Real Estate Company’s bank account, and wired over $1.7 million to his personal bank account. Although some of these funds were purportedly for expenses, by the end of his employment GAJWANI had taken over $1.6 million more from the Manhattan Real Estate Company’s bank account than he was entitled to under his employment agreement.

GAJWANI also concealed his fraud on the Manhattan Real Estate Company. Specifically, on two occasions in May 2012, wrote checks to an employee of the Manhattan Real Estate Company (“Employee-2”) from the company’s bank account. wrote “expenses” in the memo line of each check, although neither check was meant to pay company expenses, and instructed Employee-2 to write a check in return directly to GAJWANI himself. Employee-2 did so on both occasions. In this manner, was able to secure over $30,000 in payments that GAJWANI appeared to receive from Employee-2 but in reality were funds GAJWANI had taken from the Manhattan Real Estate Company.

In addition to defrauding the Manhattan Real Estate Company, GAJWANI did not file tax returns or pay taxes for his legitimate salary or for the money he had secured through fraud. Ultimately, in July 2015, after he learned of a criminal investigation, GAJWANI filed tax returns for calendar years 2011, 2012, and 2013. Each of those returns included false representations. For tax year 2011, the federal income tax return that GAJWANI filed understated GAJWANI’s actual income by more than $480,000, and included over $85,000 in false, impermissible tax deductions. For tax year 2012, the federal income tax return that GAJWANI filed included over $260,000 in false, impermissible tax deductions. For tax year 2013, the federal income tax return that GAJWANI filed underreported GAJWANI’s actual income by $270,000.

* * *

GAJWANI, 53, of Darien, Connecticut, pled guilty to one count of wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, and three counts of tax evasion, each of which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the Judge. As part of his plea, GAJWANI agreed to pay $1,975,068.04 in restitution and $1,612,841.04 in forfeiture.

GAJWANI is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Preska on September 12, 2017, at 4:00 p.m.

Mr. Kim praised the outstanding investigative efforts of law enforcement personnel at U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division.

The case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan Cohen and Andrew D. Beaty are in charge of the prosecution.

Janet Labuda on Trade by the Numbers

Posted on by

By [email protected]

Recently, President Trump sent a memo directing Secretary of Commerce, Wilber Ross, to initiate an investigation of steel and aluminum products. The rarely used investigative authority found under section 232(b)(1)(A) of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 (19 U.S.C. 1862(b)(1) determines any detrimental trade activity affecting U.S. national security.

In addition, the Presidential memo lists other “core industries such as…vehicles, aircraft, shipbuilding, and semiconductors. The administration considers these as “critical elements of our manufacturing and defense industrial bases, which we must defend against unfair trade practices and other abuses.”

The Secretary of Commerce reports to the President, within 270 days of initiating the investigation and focuses on whether the importation of the article in question is in such quantities or under such circumstances as to threaten to impair the national security. The President can concur, or not, with the Secretary’s recommendations, and take action to “adjust the imports of an article and its derivatives,” or other non-trade related actions as deemed necessary.

Another trade remedy is found in Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974. This law provides the United States with the authority to enforce trade agreements, resolve trade disputes, and open foreign markets to U.S. goods and services. It is the principal statutory authority under which the United States may impose trade sanctions on foreign countries that either violate trade agreements or engage in other unfair trade practices. When negotiations to remove the offending trade practice fail, the United States may take action to raise import duties on the foreign country’s products as a means to address the trade imbalance.

Under section 332 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1332), the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) conducts investigations into trade and tariff matters upon request of the President, the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means, the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance, either branch of the Congress, or upon the Commission’s own initiative. The USITC has broad authority to investigate matters pertaining to the customs laws of the United States, foreign competition with domestic industries, and international trade relations.

The USITC can also conduct investigations using section 337, to determine whether there is unfair competition in the importation of products into, or their subsequent sale in, the United States. Section 337 declares the infringement of a U.S. patent, copyright, registered trademark, or mask work to be an unlawful practice in import trade. It also declares unlawful other unfair methods of competition and unfair acts in the importation and subsequent sale of products in the United States, the threat or effect of which is to destroy or substantially injure a domestic industry, prevent the establishment of such an industry, or restrain or monopolize trade and commerce in the United States.

Section 337 investigations require formal hearings held before an administrative law judge. If a violation is found, the USITC may issue orders barring the importation of certain products into the United States. In addition to requesting long-term relief, complainants also may move for temporary relief pending final resolution of the investigation based on a showing of, among other things, irreparable harm in the absence of such temporary relief.

Subtitle A of title VII of the Tariff Act of 1930, as added by the Trade Agreements Act of 1979 (19 U.S.C. § 1671 et seq.) and subsequently amended, provides that countervailing duties will be imposed when two conditions are met: (a) the U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) determines that the government of a country, or any public entity within the territory of a country, is providing, directly or indirectly, a countervailable subsidy with respect to the manufacture, production, or export of the subject merchandise that is imported or sold (or likely to be sold) for importation into the United States and (b), in the case of merchandise imported from a Subsidies Agreement country, the USITC determines that an industry in the United States is materially injured or threatened with material injury, or that the establishment of an industry is materially retarded, by reason of imports of that merchandise.

If Commerce determines that a countervailable subsidy is being bestowed upon merchandise imported from a country that is not a Subsidies Agreement country, a countervailing duty can be levied on the merchandise in the amount of the net countervailable subsidy without a USITC determination of material injury.

In addition, Subtitle B provides that antidumping duties will be imposed when two conditions are met: (a) Commerce determines that the foreign subject merchandise is being, or is likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value, and (b) the USITC determines that an industry in the United States is materially injured or threatened with material injury, or that the establishment of an industry is materially retarded, by reason of imports of that merchandise.

Sections 201 to 204 of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2251 to 2254) concern investigations conducted by the USITC to determine if a product is being imported into the United States in such increased quantities as to be a substantial cause of serious injury, or the threat thereof, to a domestic industry.

If the USITC makes an affirmative determination, it recommends to the President the action that will address the serious injury or threat and facilitate positive adjustment by the industry to import competition. The President makes the final decision on remedy, including the form, amount, and duration.

There is no doubt that the current administration will use every available tool to initiate investigations and take action where such investigations determine injury to U.S. domestic industry by foreign imports. Continue to keep track of the announcements by the White House, Commerce, the USITC and CBP, and don’t get tripped up on the numbers.

Former CEO Pleads Guilty to Investment Fraud Scheme

Posted on by

Department of JusticeU.S. Attorney’s Office

Eastern District of Virginia

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Monday, May 22, 2017
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A former chief executive officer of an investment company pleaded guilty today to her role in an investment fraud scheme involving foreign exchange currency.
According to the statement of facts filed with the plea agreement, Angelina Lazar, 54, a Canadian citizen from Windsor, Ontario, was the Chairman and CEO of Charismatic Exchange, Inc., an investment firm in Las Vegas. From May 2005 through February 2007, Lazar solicited individuals to invest money in foreign exchange currency funds she managed. As part of the scheme, Lazar guaranteed investors a monthly return of 20 percent or more. However, Lazar falsely represented her experience, her success rate, how funds would be invested, and how funds were ultimately spent. For example, Lazar told investors her company used special software program to facilitate and enhance her ability to successfully trade foreign currencies. In truth, Lazar did not possess the software nor did her company ever purchase it. Likewise, Lazar showed investors trading reports that purportedly validated executed foreign currency trades resulting in significant profits. In fact, the trading reports represented only simulated currency trades and no money was actually invested. As a result of her fraudulent conduct, victim investors suffered at least $20,000 in losses.
As part of her plea agreement, Lazar will be immediately deported from the United States to Canada.
Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; and Andrew W. Vale, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, made the announcement after U.S. District Judge Liam O’Grady accepted the plea and announced the sentence. Assistant U.S. Attorney Uzo Asonye prosecuted the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information is located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:09-cr-175.

CFO of Public Computer-Services Company Pleads Guilty to Federal Fraud Charge

Posted on by
Department of Justice
U.S. Attorney’s Office
Northern District of Illinois
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, May 19, 2017

CHICAGO — The former chief financial officer of a public computer-services company admitted in federal court today that he participated in a scheme to defraud a global telecommunications provider out of at least $3 million.

ANTHONY ROTH, 52, of Upton, Mass., pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud. The conviction carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. U.S. District Judge Amy J. St. Eve did not immediately set a sentencing date.

The guilty plea was announced by Joel R. Levin, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Michael J. Anderson, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission provided valuable assistance.

Roth served as the chief financial officer of ContinuityX Solutions Inc., a computer-services company based in Metamora, Ill. Roth stated in a plea agreement that he and ContinuityX’s former chief executive officer, DAVID GODWIN, approached certain companies to buy services from an international telecommunications firm that the companies did not need or intend to use. Godwin and Roth promised these companies that they would not have to pay for the services because he had arranged separate side deals with other companies to fund and use the services, according to Roth’s plea agreement. Roth and Godwin then created false financial information to fraudulently inflate the financial condition of the companies, the plea agreement states. They did all of this so that the telecommunications firm would approve the sales to these companies and pay ContinuityX hundreds of thousands of dollars in commissions for purportedly having brought new customers to the telecommunications company, the plea agreement states.

In 2011 and 2012 Roth and Godwin fraudulently caused ContinuityX to receive approximately $3 million in commission payments from the telecommunications company, according to Roth’s plea agreement. The commissions were paid upfront, and Godwin provided some of the money to the companies that signed up for the services, the plea agreement states.

Godwin, 55, of Germantown Hills, Ill., and a third defendant, former ContinuityX sales representative JOHN COLETTI, 56, of Canyon Country, Calif., are also charged in the case. Godwin has pleaded not guilty to 14 counts of wire fraud, while Coletti has pleaded not guilty to five counts of wire fraud and one count of making false statements to the FBI. Godwin and Coletti are scheduled for a jury trial on Sept. 25, 2017.

The public is reminded that charges are not evidence of guilt. Godwin and Coletti are presumed innocent and are entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Steven Dollear, Brian Wallach and John Mitchell.

Chicago Scrap Iron Refining Company and Its President Plead Guilty to Criminal Tax Violations for Concealing $11.6 Million from IRS

Posted on by

Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office

Northern District of Illinois

shutterstock_73722895

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wednesday, May 10, 2017

CHICAGO — A Chicago-based scrap iron refining business and its president admitted in federal court today that they concealed from the Internal Revenue Service more than $11.6 million in cash wages paid to employees.

ACME REFINING CO., which does business as Acme Refining Scrap Iron & Metal Co., and its president, LAURENCE C. BARON, each pleaded guilty to impairing and impeding the IRS. Acme and Baron admitted in plea agreements that from 2009 to 2013 they paid cash wages of more than $11.6 million to at least 50 employees, but failed to report the payments to the IRS. Acme and Baron also acknowledged that they willfully failed to withhold for the government the required amounts for FICA taxes and Medicare.

As part of their plea agreements, Baron and Acme agreed to pay restitution of $5,878,327 to the IRS and the state of Illinois, with Acme paying $4,545,243 and Baron paying $1,333,084.

The guilty pleas were announced by Joel R. Levin, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Gabriel L. Grchan, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division in Chicago.

Impairing and impeding the IRS is punishable by up to three years in prison. Baron, 70, of Burr Ridge, also pleaded guilty to a separate count of willfully filing a false individual income tax return, which carries the same maximum penalty. U.S. District Judge Harry D. Leinenweber set sentencing for Sept. 14, 2017.

The cases against Acme and Baron are part an ongoing federal investigation of cash transactions in the Chicago-area scrap metal industry that has resulted in several previous convictions.

According to the plea agreements, Baron directed Acme employees to issue multiple vouchers for cash payments due to suppliers that exceeded $10,000, using nominee or fictitious payees as the purported seller. Between 2009 and 2013 the company and Baron obtained approximately $152 million in cash from two currency exchanges, then used the money to pay 85 separate scrap metal suppliers in order to assist those suppliers in underreporting their income and taxes.

Acme – at the direction of Baron – also spent at least $1.6 million to fund construction of a personal residence in Wisconsin that had no business-related purpose, the plea agreements state. The company falsely recorded this expenditure as “cost of goods sold,” in order to reduce Acme’s tax liability and conceal the payment on behalf of its corporate officers. The bogus records included phony invoices that fraudulently identified the payments as purchases of scrap steel.

Baron also admitted filing false individual income tax returns for tax years 2011 and 2012. The fraudulent returns resulted in a total federal and state tax loss of approximately $208,875, the plea agreement states.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick King.

Posted on by

Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office

Southern District of New York

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Friday, April 21, 2017

Chinese National Pleads Guilty To Attempting To Illegally Export High-Grade Carbon Fiber To China
Joon H. Kim, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Mary B. McCord, the Acting Assistant Attorney General for the National Security Division of the Department of Justice (“NSD”), announced that FUYI SUN, a/k/a “Frank,” a citizen of the People’s Republic of China (“China”), pled guilty today before U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein to violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (“IEEPA”) in connection with a scheme to illegally export to China, without a license, high-grade carbon fiber, which is used primarily in aerospace and military applications.

 

Acting Manhattan U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim said: “As Fuyi Sun admitted today in court, he tried to skirt U.S. export laws by hiding his purchase of high-grade carbon fiber for the Chinese military. Sun used fraudulent documents and codewords in his efforts to obtain this highly protected material, which is used in aerospace and defense programs, and to avoid detection. Together with our law enforcement partners, we will continue to enforce the laws that protect our national security.”

 

NSD Acting Assistant Attorney General Mary McCord said: “Today, Fuyi Sun admitted to attempting to procure high-grade carbon fiber – which has sophisticated aerospace and defense applications – for the Chinese military. The defendant was willing to pay a premium to evade U.S. export laws and illegally transfer this highly protected material. The National Security Division will continue to identify those who violate IEEPA and other laws that protect our national assets from reaching the hands of potential adversaries.”

 

According to the allegations contained in the Complaint and the Indictment filed against SUN and statements made in court filings and proceedings, including today’s guilty plea:

 

Since approximately 2011, SUN has attempted to acquire extremely high-grade carbon fiber, including Toray type M60JB-3000-50B carbon fiber (“M60 Carbon Fiber”). M60 Carbon Fiber has applications in aerospace technologies, unmanned aerial vehicles (commonly known as “drones”) and other government defense applications. Accordingly, M60 Carbon Fiber is strictly controlled – and requires a license for export to China – for nuclear non-proliferation and anti-terrorism reasons.

 

In furtherance of his attempts to illegally export M60 Carbon Fiber from the United States to China without a license, SUN contacted what he believed was a distributor of carbon fiber – but was, in fact, an undercover entity created by HSI and “staffed” by HSI undercover special agents (the “UC Company”). SUN inquired about purchasing the M60 Carbon Fiber without the required license. In the course of his years’ long communications with the undercover agents and UC Company, SUN repeatedly suggested various security measures that he believed would protect them from “U.S. intelligence.” Among other such measures, at one point, SUN instructed the undercover agents to use the term “banana” instead of “carbon fiber” in their communications. Consequently, soon thereafter he inquired about purchasing 450 kilograms of “banana” for more than $62,000. In order to avoid detection, SUN also suggested removing the identifying barcodes for the M60 Carbon Fiber, prior to transshipment, and further suggested that they identify the M60 Carbon Fiber as “acrylic fiber” in customs documents.

 

On April 11, 2016, SUN traveled from China to New York for the purpose of purchasing M60 Carbon Fiber from the UC Company. During meetings with the undercover agents, on or about April 11 and 12, among other things, SUN repeatedly suggested that the Chinese military was the ultimate end-user for the M60 Carbon Fiber he sought to acquire from the UC Company, and claimed to have personally worked in the Chinese missile program. SUN further asserted that he maintained a close relationship with the Chinese military, had a sophisticated understanding of the Chinese military’s need for carbon fiber, and suggested that he would be supplying the M60 Carbon Fiber to the Chinese military or to institutions closely associated with it.

 

On April 12, 2016, SUN agreed to purchase two cases of M60 Carbon Fiber from the UC Company. On that date, SUN paid the undercover agents purporting to represent the UC Company $23,000 in cash for the carbon fiber, as well as an additional $2,000 as compensation for the risk he believed the UC Company was taking to illegally export the carbon fiber to China without a license. SUN was arrested the next day, April 13, 2016.

 

* * *

 

SUN, 53, pled guilty today to attempting to violate IEEPA, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The maximum potential sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge. SUN is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Hellerstein on July 26, 2017 at 11:00 a.m.

 

Mr. Kim praised the extraordinary investigative work of the New York Field Office of the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations; the New York Field Office of the Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security, Office of Export Enforcement; and the Northeast Field Office of the Department of Defense, Defense Criminal Investigative Service. Mr. Kim also thanked the Counterintelligence and Export Control Section of the Department of Justice’s National Security Division.

 

This prosecution is being handled by the Office’s Terrorism and International Narcotics and Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Units. Assistant United States Attorneys Matthew Podolsky, Patrick Egan, and Nick Lewin are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Trial Attorney David Recker of the Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.

Four Chinese Nationals Arrested and Charged in Connection with College Admissions Exam Scam

Posted on by

Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office

District of Massachusetts

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Thursday, May 4, 2017
Students Arrested Today in Massachusetts, Arizona and New Jersey on Immigration-Related Charges
BOSTON – Yue Wang, 25, Shikun Zhang, 24, Leyi Huang, 21, and Xiaomeng Cheng, 21, all in the United States on F-1 non-immigrant student visas, were arrested today on charges of conspiracies to defraud the United States.

 

The conspiracies involved Wang, a current student at the Hult International Business School in Cambridge, Mass., agreeing to sit for the TOEFL exam in the place of Zhang, Huang, and Cheng. The TOEFL exam is an English language test recognized by more than 9,000 colleges, universities, and agencies in more than 130 countries. It is also used by the United States government in issuing, extending, or renewing F-1 student visas.

 

After Wang took the TOEFL exam in her co-conspirators places, her scores were allegedly used by the co-conspirators to apply for admission to various universities in the United States. Zhang used this fraudulently acquired TOEFL score to gain admission to Northeastern University in Boston, Mass.; Huang fraudulently used the TOEFL score to gain admission to Penn State University in Erie, Pa.; and Cheng used the fraudulently acquired TOEFL score to gain admission to Arizona State University. In each case, the United States Department of State issued the student an F-1 non-immigrant student visa based on their admittance to these educational institutions.

 

“Illegal schemes to circumvent the TOEFL exam jeopardize both academic integrity and our country’s student visa program,” said William B. Weinreb, Acting U.S Attorney. “The TOEFL exam ensures that international students have adequate English language skills to succeed in higher education programs in the United States. It also helps maintain the security of our borders and immigration system. By effectively purchasing passing scores, they violated the rules and regulations of the exam, taking spots at US colleges and universities that could have gone to others.”

 

“These schemes not only undermine the integrity of the academic institutions, they also undermine our nation’s immigration system,” said Matthew Etre, Special Agent in Charge of HSI in Boston. “HSI will continue to protect the nation’s immigration system by working with our federal law enforcement partners and our partners in academia to ensure that those involved in these scams are held accountable.”

 

The charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States provides for a sentence of no greater than 5 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The defendants are subject to deportation after conviction and serving any sentence imposed. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Fifa Audit And Compliance Committee Member Pleads Guilty To Corruption Charges

Posted on by

Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office

Eastern District of New York

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Thursday, April 27, 2017

Fifa Audit And Compliance Committee Member Pleads Guilty To Corruption Charges
Defendant Accepted and Facilitated Bribes Within the Asian Football Confederation
Earlier today, Richard K. Lai, a United States citizen, pleaded guilty to a criminal information charging him with two counts of wire fraud conspiracy in connection with his participation in multiple schemes to accept and pay bribes to soccer officials. Lai also pleaded guilty to one count of failing to disclose foreign bank accounts and agreed to pay more than $1.1 million in forfeiture and penalties. The plea was entered before United States District Judge Pamela K. Chen at federal courthouse in Brooklyn, New York.

 

The guilty plea was announced by Bridget M. Rohde, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; William F. Sweeney, Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI); and Special Agent-in-Charge R. Damon Rowe, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Los Angeles Field Office (IRS).

 

“Today’s plea marks another important step in our ongoing effort to root out corruption in international soccer,” stated Acting United States Attorney Rohde. “The defendant abused the trust placed in him as a soccer official in order to line his own pockets, and now he will be held to account. The defendant’s breach of trust was particularly significant given his position as a member of the FIFA Audit and Compliance committee, which must play an important and independent role if corruption within FIFA is to be eliminated.”
“Years of this systemic culture of corruption and greed have tainted one of the world’s most popular sports,” stated Assistant Director-in-Charge Sweeney. “Kickbacks and bribes became the norm for doing business with FIFA, but not anymore. The plea deal today and all the other cases tied to this investigation prove our work isn’t done, and we will continue to pursue anyone who had their hands in illegal activity.”
“Today’s guilty plea by Guam Football Association president Richard K. Lai, reaffirms the dedication of IRS Criminal Investigation to use our financial investigative expertise to uncover corrupt schemes and illicit payments involving FIFA officials,” stated Special Agent-in-Charge Rowe. “Co-conspirators may try to hide and launder the proceeds of their corrupt self-enrichment, but as mentioned in the legal documents filed today, IRS-CI Special Agents will trace and uncover those funds both through the U.S. financial system and beyond, to offshore jurisdictions in locations such as Asia, the Middle East, and around the globe.”
As alleged in the criminal information to which he pleaded guilty, Lai, a resident of the U.S. territory of Guam, has served as the president of the Guam Football Association (GFA) since 2001. In that capacity, Lai had a vote in FIFA presidential elections. Lai has also served at various times as a member and chair of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Finance Committee and a member of the AFC Executive Committee, and is currently a member of the AFC Marketing Committee and the FIFA Audit and Compliance Committee.

 

As also set forth in the information, Lai pleaded guilty to a scheme in which he received $100,000 in bribes in 2011 from an official of the AFC who was then running for the FIFA presidency, in exchange for Lai’s vote and support in the then-upcoming FIFA presidential election.

 

As further described in the information, Lai also pleaded guilty to a scheme in which he received over $850,000 in bribes between 2009 and 2014 from a faction of soccer officials in the AFC region. Lai received those bribes in exchange for using his influence as a soccer official to advance the interests of the faction that bribed him, including by helping officials in that faction identify other officials in the AFC to whom they should offer bribes. The goal of this scheme was for the faction to gain control of the AFC and influence FIFA.

 

The guilty plea announced today is part of an investigation into corruption in international soccer being led by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, the FBI New York Field Office, and the IRS-CI Los Angeles Field Office. The prosecutors in Brooklyn are receiving considerable assistance from attorneys in various parts of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division in Washington, D.C., including the Office of International Affairs, the Organized Crime and Gang Section, the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, and the Fraud Section, as well as from INTERPOL Washington.

 

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Paul Tuchmann, Nadia Shihata, and Brian D. Morris of the Eastern District of New York are in charge of today’s prosecution.

 

The government’s investigation is ongoing.

Philadelphia Area Restauranteur Indicted On Tax Offenses

Posted on by

Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office

Eastern District of Pennsylvania

shutterstock_68248675

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Thursday, May 11, 2017
PHILADELPHIA – Giuseppe “Pino” DiMeo, 49 years old, and a resident of Eagleville, Pennsylvania was charged today by indictment[1]
with two counts of conspiring to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), and twelve counts of filing false tax returns announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. The indictment charges that from 2008 through 2012, DiMeo conspired with his business partners at restaurants in Wilmington, Delaware and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to defraud the IRS of income taxes and payroll taxes. DiMeo skimmed cash from four of his restaurants and failed to report the cash income to the IRS. DiMeo also paid many of his employees in cash under the table and failed to inform his accountant or the IRS about his businesses’ cash payroll. In total, DiMeo had over three million dollars in unreported gross receipts and failed to pay to the IRS approximately one million dollars in income taxes and payroll taxes.

DiMeo has owned and operated numerous restaurants in the Philadelphia area, and presently owns DiMeo’s Pizzaiuoli Napulitani in Wilmington, Delaware; Pizzeria DiMeo’s (Andorra) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Arde Osteria in Wayne, Pennsylvania.

The defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 46 years of imprisonment, three years of supervised release, a $3.5 million fine, and a $1,400 special assessment.

The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations,

and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Maria M. Carrillo and Tiwana L. Wright.

Defense Contractor Sentenced to 5 Years in Federal Prison for $53 Million Procurement Fraud and Illegal Gratuities Scheme

Posted on by

Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office

District of Maryland

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

2015-05-29 11.34.57

Friday, April 28, 2017

Defense Contractor Sentenced to 5 Years in Federal Prison for $53 Million Procurement Fraud and Illegal Gratuities Scheme

Baltimore, Maryland – On April 27, 2017, U.S. District Judge Marvin J. Garbis sentenced John Wilkerson, age 51, of Moultrie, Georgia to five years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for a wire fraud conspiracy and for paying illegal gratuities to a government official, in connection with the award of more than $53 million in federal government contracts. Judge Garbis also ordered Wilkerson to pay forfeiture and restitution in the amount of $9,441,340.11.

 

The sentence was announced by Acting United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Stephen M. Schenning; Commander of the Air Force Office of Special Investigations (OSI); Special Agent in Charge Robert Craig, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), Mid-Atlantic Field Office; and U.S. Small Business Administration Acting Inspector General Mike Ware.

 

According to his plea agreement, Wilkerson was a Department of Defense Account Manager for Iron Bow Technologies, LLC (Iron Bow), which provided IT consulting and other services to government and industry customers. Wilkerson was also part owner and operated an information technology company, Superior Communications Solutions, Inc. (SCSI).

 

Andrew Bennett, who was separately charged and has pled guilty, was a program manager for an information technology company, Advanced C4 Solutions, or AC4S, from 2005 until 2011. In 2011, Bennett left AC4S and went to work for Wilkerson at SCSI.

 

James T. Shank, who was separately charged and has pled guilty, was a Program Manager at the United States Navy’s Space and Naval Warfare (SPAWAR) Systems Center

 

From September 2009 through August 2012 Wilkerson, Bennett and Shank conspired to steer government contracts at Joint Base Andrews to companies affiliated with Wilkerson and Bennett. After the award of the contracts, Wilkerson offered, and Shank accepted, employment with SCSI while Shank was still a government employee and while he was taking official actions that benefited Wilkerson. In addition, Wilkerson paid Shank $86,000 in the year after Shank retired from government service, funneling the payment through two other companies in order to conceal the source of the funds. Wilkerson also hired Bennett and paid him a $500,000 bonus using proceeds from the fraud scheme.

 

For example, Shank, Wilkerson, and Bennett developed a request for proposal (RFP) for DO27, a contract to supply labor services for an Air Force technology project, including for overall project management services, so that AC4S would win the contract. On June 10, 2010, DO27 was awarded to AC4S in the amount of $18,332,738.10. Wilkerson provided Bennett with a quote for labor on behalf of SCSI that was less than the quote he had previously submitted on behalf of Iron Bow as their sales representative. After SCSI was selected as a subcontractor on DO27, it subcontracted with Iron Bow to provide most of the labor SCSI was supposed to provide under DO27. Wilkerson was able to earn income from the work Iron Bow employees were doing by having SCSI act as a middleman and charging a mark-up on Iron Bow’s work. Wilkerson and Bennett also directed an SCSI employee to create false invoices supposedly documenting the hours SCSI employees spent working on DO27, which were submitted to AC4S and paid by the United States government. SCSI received $6,794,432.98 on DO27 out of the $18 million AC4S received for providing labor for the project.

 

Shank also initiated the procurement process on more than 11 delivery orders that purchased telecommunications equipment and furniture as part of the Air Force project. Those delivery orders were issued to Iron Bow in 2010 and 2011. Wilkerson took multiple items of commercially available furniture, bundled them together and assigned them an SCSI specific number and a price that included a significant mark up over what SCSI paid the furniture manufacturer for the items. Shank then submitted to SPAWAR contracting officers a purchase order asking for authority to buy the bundle of furniture that bore the SCSI specific part number. SCSI received approximately $33 million of the $35 million paid to Iron Bow under the various furniture and equipment delivery orders. Wilkerson charged the United States a 25 percent markup on furniture purchased under these two purchase orders, resulting in a profit to him of more than $6 million.

 

In addition, from 2010 until his retirement in June 2011, Shank falsely certified that the United States government received more than $1 million worth of goods under the W91QUZ-07-D-0010 contract that the government did not in fact receive.

 

In late 2010 or early 2011, Wilkerson offered Shank employment. Shank did not disclose that fact to anyone at SPAWAR and did not recuse himself from any of the contracts that benefited Wilkerson. In February 2011, Bennett left AC4S and went to work for Wilkerson at SCSI. Bennett received a $500,000 bonus when he joined SCSI, which was paid for by profit Wilkerson had earned on the furniture contracts.

 

Shank accepted employment with SCSI in May 2011, but was still working for SPAWAR when he approved more than $1.1 million worth of invoices that benefitted SCSI and Wilkerson.

 

Between July 2011 until August 2012, Wilkerson paid Shank approximately $86,000. The funds that Wilkerson paid Shank were funneled through T&M Communications, LLC, a company owned by T.R., a senior executive at SCSI, who ultimately paid out the funds to Shank. Further, in some instances funds paid to Shank were also funneled through Decision Point Technologies, LLC, another company owned by Wilkerson. Shank did no work for Decision Point Technologies or T&M Communications in that time period.

 

The National Procurement Fraud Task Force was formed in October 2006 to promote the early detection, identification, prevention and prosecution of procurement fraud associated with the increase in government contracting activity for national security and other government programs. The Procurement Fraud Task Force includes the United States Attorneys’ Offices, the FBI, the U.S. Inspectors General community and a number of other federal law enforcement agencies. This case, as well as other cases brought by members of the Task Force, demonstrate the Department of Justice’s commitment to helping ensure the integrity of the government procurement process.

 

Acting United States Attorney Stephen M. Schenning thanked Air Force OSI, DCIS, and the U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General for their work in the investigation. Mr. Schenning commended Assistant U.S. Attorneys Leo J. Wise and Philip A. Selden, who are prosecuting the case.