Chairman Carper, Ranking Member Coburn, and distinguished Members of the Committee: Thank you for the opportunity to appear before the Committee today to discuss the Department of Justice’s work regarding virtual currencies.

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – Manuel Garcia-Figueroa, a resident of Playa Añasco, Puerto Rico, pleaded guilty to a bill of information charging him with a felony violation of the Lacey Act for the illegal sale of sea turtle meat, the Justice Department announced today.

As all of you know, banking and financial services play a vital role in our country. They spawn growth, spread risk, facilitate the creation of jobs, and generally drive our economy. Without it, much of the prosperity that allows for our freedoms and our power in the world would not exist.

"Thank you for the opportunity to appear before the Committee today to discuss the Department of Justice’s work regarding virtual currencies. I am honored to represent the Department at this hearing and to describe for you our approach to virtual currencies"

The Honorable Karol V. Mason delivers remarks highlighting the importance of mentoring programs for young people in the Metro Atlanta Area.

Three former investment advisers were sentenced on Nov. 19, 2013 for their roles in attempting to defraud a wealthy investor of $1 billion through a high-yield investment fraud scheme.

As all of us know too well, domestic violence inflicts severe harm on our society. So many women, men and children in our country – of every background, ethnicity, age, disability and sexual orientation – are damaged by this devastating crime. According to the 2010 National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, 1 in 3 women in the United States will experience rape, physical violence or stalking by an intimate partner at some time in their lives.

Three high-level executives of Tokyo-based Takata Corp. have agreed to plead guilty for their participation in a conspiracy to fix prices of seatbelts installed in cars sold in the United States.

Together, we can grow smarter on crime by implementing reforms and enacting legislation that ensures fairness in sentencing; by focusing scarce resources on incarcerating only those who pose the greatest threats; and by providing safe and productive paths forward for those who have paid their debts to society.

Support for the sciences and emphasis on evidence comes from the very top of the Obama Administration. The President has set a management agenda that calls for a “smarter, more innovative, and more accountable government.” The Office of Management and Budget has emphasized the use of evidence to support budget requests by all federal agencies.

Over the course of a remarkable and highly-varied career – spanning more than two decades of service to the legal profession – Zach Fardon has demonstrated his commitment to the cause of justice, and to the highest ideals of America’s legal system.

Stanley Electric Co. Ltd., a Tokyo-based company, has agreed to plead guilty and to pay a $1.44 million criminal fine for its participation in a conspiracy to fix prices of lamp ballasts installed in cars sold in the United States and elsewhere.

It’s a great privilege to join you in congratulating our 2013 Civil Division award recipients. And it’s an honor to help welcome all of the proud family members, friends, and distinguished guests who have taken the time to be here in the Great Hall, and whose support – and sacrifices – have been essential to everything that our awardees have accomplished. Make no mistake: every one of you shares in the recognitions that we are about to bestow.

Twenty Detroit-area residents have been charged for their roles in physician home visit, home health care, chiropractic and psychotherapy schemes to submit more than $34 million in false billing to Medicare.

I join President Obama in expressing my heartfelt condolences to the people of South Africa, and the entire Mandela family, on the passing of Nelson Mandela.

As we administer the Oath of Office to him today, there can be no question that Kenneth Polite is well-suited – and superbly qualified – to lead the hardworking men and women who serve this important United States Attorney’s Office, and to extend the tradition of excellence and integrity that has always defined our very best United States Attorneys.

The Attorney General’s Advisory Committee of the Task Force on American Indian/Alaska Native Children Exposed to Violence held its first public hearing today in Bismarck, N.D., convening tribal researchers, advocates and local community members to discuss domestic violence and child physical and sexual abuse in Indian Country.

ifty years ago Attorney General Robert Kennedy came here to Bismarck and spoke of the "tragic irony" of First Americans living in the freest country in the world yet imprisoned by conditions of poverty and deprivation -- conditions not found in the natural order of things but manmade, imposed and perpetuated by bigotry and greed and violence.

As we move forward with these and other reforms, we will continue to stand and work alongside you, drawing upon your experience, relying on your expertise, and depending on your engagement to refine and strengthen each new proposal.

Earl Gross, 74, of Las Vegas, the former President and Chief Executive Officer of U.S. Mortgage, a loan servicing company, was sentenced to serve 18 months in prison for his role in an $8 million scheme to defraud Wells Fargo Bank

"A key step in promoting greater public confidence in these intelligence activities is to provide greater transparency so that the American people, as well as ordinary citizens around the world, understand what the activities are, how they function, and how they are overseen."

The Department of Justice announced today that it will require Gannett Co. Inc., Belo Corp. and Sander Media LLC to divest their interests in KMOV‑TV, a CBS affiliate in St. Louis, in order to proceed with Gannett’s acquisition of Belo, and Sander’s related acquisition of six Belo television stations that Gannett cannot hold under Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules.

I know it hasn’t always been easy to be related to such a renowned, respected, and dedicated public servant – whose passion for the law, and determination to help his country address the toughest legal challenges, has often kept him at the office late into the night – and made him absent from too many family dinners and special occasions.

Real estate developer from Fairhope, Ala., pleaded guilty today in federal district court in Gulfport, Miss., to the unpermitted filling of wetlands near Bay St. Louis, Miss., in violation of the Clean Water Act

Particularly in the wake of the Supreme Court’s flawed decision, earlier this year, to strike down a key part of the Voting Rights Act, your steadfast commitment to the aggressive enforcement of all federal voting protections has signaled our determination to use every tool available to us in the fight for enfranchisement and against discrimination.

Today, we announce significant developments in a securities fraud investigation involving the large-scale theft of client funds by a global brokerage and trading firm.

The Justice Department announced today that developer Douglas Pauley and entities affiliated with him have agreed to pay $110,000 and make all retrofits required to remove accessibility barriers at 30 apartment complexes, involving more than 750 units, in West Virginia that were developed through the federal government’s Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program.

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.

Genzyme Corp. has agreed to pay $22.28 million to resolve allegations that it marketed, and caused false claims to be submitted to federal and state health care programs for use of, a “slurry” version of its Seprafilm adhesion barrier.

The Department of Justice today announced that it will require Heraeus Electro-Nite LLC to divest certain assets that it acquired from Midwest Instrument Company Inc. (Minco) to Keystone Sensors LLC in order to resolve the department’s competitive concerns.

The Justice Department announced today that it has closed its investigation of State Correctional Institution – Pittsburgh after the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (PDOC) significantly improved security policies and practices at the prison and throughout the Pennsylvania prison system.

"Too often, so-called “zero-tolerance” policies – however well-intentioned – make students feel unwelcome in their own schools. They disrupt the learning process. And they can have significant and lasting negative effects on the long-term well-being of our young people – increasing their likelihood of future contact with juvenile and criminal justice systems," said Attorney General Holder.

Michigan-based Cadillac Asphalt LLC (Cadillac) and Michigan Paving and Materials Co. (MPM), have agreed to pay $3.8 million to resolve allegations that they falsely claimed Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) credits on a number of federally funded transportation projects.

Edwin Stigile, formerly a Lieutenant at Roxbury Correctional Institution (RCI) in Hagerstown, Md., and two former RCI Correctional Officers, Tyson Hinckle and Reginald Martin, each pleaded guilty to an offense arising out of the assault of an inmate on Mar. 9, 2008.

More than 30 years ago, LISC was launched in a moment of great challenge – at a time when distressed neighborhoods across the country faced uncertain futures. After decades of rising crime and deteriorating fortunes in parts of America’s most vibrant cities, the Ford Foundation and its allies stepped forward. And they established the Local Initiatives Support Corporation to take what was – at the time – a novel approach to addressing community challenges.

Two men have been indicted by a federal grand jury in Las Vegas for offenses involving the federal renewable fuel program that allegedly netted them more than $37 million.

Four men have pleaded guilty for their roles in a highly sophisticated and violent organization that targeted jewelry couriers in Georgia and Texas.

The U.S. Justice Department released the following statement by department spokesman Brian Fallon in response to President Obama’s speech on U.S. signals intelligence.

Remarks as Prepared for Delivery by Associate Attorney General Tony West at the Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration Hosted by the Union League of Chicago

Today the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division announced its letter of findings determining that prison officials at the Alabama Department of Corrections and the Julia Tutwiler Prison for Women violate women prisoners’ constitutional rights by failing to take reasonable steps to protect them from harm due to sexual abuse and sexual harassment caused by correctional staff.

John Mills and Terrance Allen, both of Malone, N.Y., pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Albany, N.Y., to conspiracy to violate the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) and substantive CERCLA counts in relation to the illegal removal, handling, and disposal of asbestos.

A campaign worker was indicted yesterday by a federal grand jury in the Southern District of Texas for allegedly paying voters to vote in a Donna, Texas school board election. Two other campaign workers were indicted on similar charged last week for alleged vote-buying in the election.

The Justice Department announced today that General Electric Hitachi Nuclear Energy Americas LLC (GE Hitachi) has agreed to pay $2.7 million to resolve allegations under the False Claims Act that it made false statements and claims to the Department of Energy and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) concerning an advanced nuclear reactor design.

The government has filed a complaint against Kellogg, Brown &s contract with the Army to provide logistical support in Iraq.

The Justice Department reached an agreement today with SD Staffing LLC (SD Staffing), aka Atwork Personnel Services Inc., a company based in Methuen, Mass., resolving claims that the staffing company engaged in citizenship status discrimination in violation of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

Since its inception just over two years ago, this Veterans Treatment Court has shown tremendous promise in helping eligible men and women to break the destructive cycle of criminality and incarceration that traps too many people and weakens too many communities across America.

Attorney General Eric Holder and Director of National Intelligence James Clapper released the following joint statement Monday.

Aleksandr Andreevich Panin, a Russian national also known as “Gribodemon” and “Harderman,” has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire and bank fraud for his role as the primary developer and distributor of the malicious software known as “SpyEye.”

The recent revelations about the massive thefts of financial information from large retail stores have served as a stark reminder to all of us about how vulnerable we are to cyber criminals who are determined to steal our personal information.

"Why is health care enforcement so important? A major reason is the importance of the health care industry itself. From compliance officers to physicians, from corporate executives to nurses and researchers, you contribute to producing the drugs and medical devices on which we and our loved ones rely. Your efforts help to ensure that, when we are sick, the medicines we take will heal us effectively; that when we are in pain, we can obtain relief safely," said Assistant Attorney General Delery