Attorney General Eric Holder today recognized six cities for their progress in preventing youth violence at the second annual summit of the National Forum on Youth Violence Prevention held in Washington, D.C.

The Justice Department announced today that the Civil Rights Division will monitor the election on April 3, 2012, in Milwaukee.

David John Welch, 36, of Hope Mills, N.C., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge W. Earl Britt to a criminal information charging him with one count of conspiracy to steal property under the control of a government contractor.

A federal jury in Worcester, Mass., convicted William Scott Dion and Catherine Floyd, both of Sanbornville, N.H., and Charles Adams of Norwood, Mass., for conspiracies to defraud the United States through the promotion and use of multiple tax fraud schemes, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today.

Ariel Rodriguez, 41, Reynaldo Navarro, 37, and Ysel Salado, 26, each pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Marcia G. Cooke to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, and Melissa Rodriguez, 24, pleaded guilty on March 28, 2012, before Judge Cooke to the same charge.

Three men, including a former officer with the Puerto Rico Department of Corrections, were convicted by a federal jury in San Juan, Puerto Rico, yesterday for their roles in providing security for drug transactions.

Radiotherapy Clinics of Georgia LLC, a radiation oncology practice, and its affiliates RCOG Cancer Centers LLC, Physician Oncology Services Management Company LLC, Frank A. Critz, M.D. and Physician Oncology Services L.P. (collectively, RCOG) agreed to pay $3.8 million to settle claims that they violated the False Claims Act.

"There are parts of the world where everyone shares the same culture, the same religion, and the same language. But that’s not America. And it’s not Cincinnati. According to the Census Bureau, there are over 13,000 people in this city who were born outside of the United States. There are around 20,000 whose primary language isn’t English. And there are still more who follow customs and traditions that our own upbringing didn’t expose us to," said Deputy Attorney General Cole.

At a Chicago summit highlighting a new high-tech war against health care fraud, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and Attorney General Eric Holder today discussed how the Affordable Care Act and the Obama Administration’s Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) are helping fight Medicare fraud.

The Department of Justice and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced an innovative environmental agreement with Ohio-based Marathon Petroleum Company that already has significantly reduced air pollution from all six of the company’s petroleum refineries.

The Justice Department announced today that former jail trustee Willie James Caruthers pleaded guilty yesterday to acting with several others, including law enforcement officials, to assault an inmate inside of the Wilcox County, Ga., Jail on July 23, 2009.

The Justice Department announced today the filing of a complaint in U.S. District Court in Arizona against Home Depot U.S.A. Inc. for violating the employment rights of California Army National Guard soldier Brian Bailey under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA).

Former CIA officer John Kiriakou was indicted today for allegedly repeatedly disclosing classified information to journalists, including the name of a covert CIA officer and information revealing the role of another CIA employee in classified activities.

Jose Antonio Acosta-Hernandez, 34, aka “Diego,” “Dienton,” “Diez” and “Bablazo,” of Chihuahua, was extradited to the United States from Mexico on March 16, 2012.

The Department of Justice announced today that Gary Dodson, 33, of Waldron, Ark., was sentenced in Little Rock for his involvement in firebombing the residence of an interracial couple. On Dec. 7, 2011, Dodson pleaded guilty to conspiring to violate the civil rights, criminal interference with housing rights due to race and possession of an unregistered firearm/destructive device. District Judge Billy Roy Wilson sentenced Dodson to 15 years in prison and 3 years of supervised release for the three counts of conviction.

A federal grand jury in the District of Columbia returned an indictment charging Enyinnaya Udo with 25 counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false income tax returns, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today.

Larry Lujan, 33, was sentenced today to life in prison for a kidnapping that resulted in the death of a 16-year-old

The Department of Justice has seized more than $896,000 in proceeds from the distribution of counterfeit sports apparel and jerseys as the result of an investigation into the sale of counterfeit goods on commercial websites.

Muhammad Abid Hussain, 27, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge John D. Bates.

The Department of Justice announced today that it has settled its lawsuit against the city of New Berlin, Wis., for race discrimination in violation of the Fair Housing Act.

"Although 44 years have passed since our nation first mourned the loss of Dr. King, it is clear that his spirit lives on. His enduring contributions have allowed me to stand on this stage as our nation’s first African-American Attorney General, and to serve alongside our first African-American President. And the dream that he shared – on the National Mall that now includes a memorial in his honor – has inspired countless acts of compassion and collaboration, including the creation of the National Action Network more than two decades ago," said Attorney General Holder.

"It is important for the department to conclude its investigation and bring this action to maintain an open and competitive marketplace while we are in the early stages of this emerging technology–electronic books. Ensuring an open and competitive marketplace allows for innovation, which is good for businesses participating in that marketplace and is good for consumers," said Acting Assistant Attorney General Pozen.

"In recent years, we have seen the rapid growth – and the many benefits – of electronic books. E-books are transforming our daily lives, and improving how information and content is shared. For the growing number of Americans who want to take advantage of this new technology, the Department of Justice is committed to ensuring that e-books are as affordable as possible," said Attorney General Holder.

A federal grand jury in London, Ky., returned a three-count indictment charging David Jason Jenkins, 37, and Anthony Ray Jenkins, 20, for kidnapping and assaulting Kevin Pennington, and for conspiring with each other and with other unnamed individuals to commit the kidnapping.

A federal court has permanently barred Michael Strauss from promoting tax shelters, the Justice Department announced today. The government complaint in the case alleged that Strauss, of Herndon, Va., his son Patrick Strauss, of Washington D.C., and Joseph Barreiro of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., promoted and sold several fraudulent tax schemes, including sham cemetery investments. The men allegedly promoted the cemetery schemes to customers located in Northern Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C., using shell companies that they controlled.

A federal grand jury in the Middle District of Alabama returned a 37-count indictment against Mary Bennett, Milton Bennett, Narendrakumar Patel, Corinthian Bennett and Eugenia Burks for their roles in an identity theft and tax fraud scheme, the Justice Department, the U.S. Secret Service and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today. All five are charged with conspiring to commit mail fraud and wire fraud. The indictment also charges various defendants with mail fraud, wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, theft of government funds and forgery of state securities. The indictment was returned on Feb. 15, 2012, and unsealed today following the arrests of the defendants.

"The Department of Justice is resolutely committed to preventing and combating human trafficking in all its forms. For Attorney General Holder and I, this is a deeply held conviction," said Deputy Attorney General Cole.

The Justice Department today announced that it has resolved a lawsuit alleging that Air Methods Corp. and LifeMed Alaska, LLC willfully violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) by discriminating against and failing to reemploy Chief Warrant Officer Third Class Jonathon L. Goodwin of Wasilla, Alaska. The suit was filed in federal district court in Alaska.

The Justice Department announced today that two Harlan County women admitted they assisted others in kidnapping and assaulting a gay man because of his sexual orientation.

Stephen A. Favato, a resident of Point Pleasant Beach, N.J., and a former partner in BDO Seidman LLP’s Woodbridge, N.J., office, was sentenced to 18 months in prison for tax crimes, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today. In August 2010, a jury sitting in Newark, N.J., found Favato guilty of one count of corruptly endeavoring to obstruct and impede the Internal Revenue laws and one count of aiding and assisting in the preparation and filing of a false income tax return.

Thomas Mitchell of Mansfield, Ohio pleaded guilty before United States District Judge George J. Limbert of the Northern District of Ohio to criminal information charging him with willfully failing to file an income tax return with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Justice Department and IRS announced today.

Stuart Carson, the former president of Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.-based valve company Control Components Inc. (CCI), and Hong “Rose” Carson, the former CCI director of sales for China and Taiwan, have pleaded guilty to violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).

A former executive of a New York-based tax liens company who supervised the purchasing of municipal tax liens at auctions in New Jersey pleaded guilty today for his role in a conspiracy to rig bids for the sale of tax liens auctioned by municipalities throughout the state.

A former chief engineer from the tuna fishing vessel San Nikunau pleaded guilty today in federal court to violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships.

On April 17, 2012, a federal grand jury returned a four count indictment charging Beverly S. Beavers and James E. Beavers of Knoxville, Tenn., with conspiracy to defraud the United States and filing false claims for tax refunds, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today.

"While the Department of Justice does a great deal in this area, it is committed to doing more to serve survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and child abuse and to prevent these terrible crimes from occurring in the first place. That is why, led by the excellent work of the Office on Violence Against Women, we are working to support a coordinated community response to address the causes and consequences of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking and child abuse," said Deputy Attorney General Cole.

American pharmaceutical company Merck, Sharp & Dohme was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Patti B. Saris in Boston to pay a criminal fine in the amount of $321,636,000 in connection with its guilty plea related to its promotion and marketing of the painkiller Vioxx (rofecoxib), the Justice Department announced today.

The United States has asked a federal court to bar three Philadelphia-area tax preparers from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today. According to the government complaint in the civil injunction suit, defendants Deron Joe, Edmund Dassin and James Tokpawhiea are Liberian nationals who are legal permanent residents of the United States. The suit alleges that most of the customers of their business, Urban Tax Professionals, are also from Liberia and were referred to the defendants by family or friends.

The Justice Department announced a settlement today with Orange County, N.Y., to protect the rights of Spanish-speaking Puerto Rican voters under Section 4(e) of the Voting Rights Act. Today’s consent decree is intended to resolve concerns that limited-English proficient Puerto Rican voters were being denied their full voting rights because the county failed to provide bilingual ballots and Spanish-language assistance as required by law.

The Department of Justice today released the executive summary of the report by an independent auditor of the Gulf Coast Claims Facility (GCCF), the facility set up to process claims in the wake of the April 20, 2010, Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

"At the Department of Justice, we know that small businesses are adaptable and innovative. We have come to rely on them to support many of our most important missions, from ensuring the national security to combating violent crime, fighting financial fraud, and protecting those most in need of our help – our children; the elderly; and victims of hate crimes, human trafficking and exploitation," said Deputy Attorney General Cole.

Marking the ninth annual Earth Day Service Celebration today, Acting Associate Attorney General Tony West and Assistant Attorney General Ignacia S. Moreno marked a day of service, commending volunteers from the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD), Washington Parks & People and the DC Green Corps as they continue work on environmental restoration projects near the Community Greening Center in Marvin Gaye Park in Northeast Washington, D.C.

An Alabama real estate investor has agreed to plead guilty and to serve prison time for his role in conspiracies to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in southern Alabama.

The Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today that attorney Aristotle “Rick” R. Matsa, of Worthington, Ohio, was convicted of numerous tax fraud and obstruction of justice related offenses, including witness tampering and making a false statement.

The International Competition Network (ICN) launched and approved three new initiatives on international enforcement cooperation, the investigative process in competition cases and working with the courts.

We live in a nation where education is considered perhaps the single most important factor in determining whether an individual will find success in life. As a government – and as attorneys tasked with protecting our children’s ability to succeed in schools across the country - we have a critical responsibility to work together to break down any barriers a child might face in accessing his or her right to a quality education.

Anthony Allega Cement Contractor Inc., a Cleveland construction firm, has agreed to pay the United States $500,000 to resolve allegations that it knowingly submitted false claims related to a federally-funded construction project, the Justice Department announced today. The United States alleged that Allega submitted false claims that made it appear that the company was in compliance with the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) program, as required in order to obtain and maintain Allega’s contract with the government. The DBE program provides opportunities to businesses owned by minorities and women, as well as socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, to participate in federally-funded construction and design projects.

A financial investor who purchased municipal tax liens at auctions in New Jersey, as well as a company in which he was a partner, pleaded guilty today for their roles in a conspiracy to rig bids for the sale of tax liens auctioned by municipalities throughout the state.

Mevlid Jasarevic, 23, a citizen of Serbia, was indicted today by a federal grand jury in the District of Columbia on charges of attempted murder and other violations in connection with his alleged machine gun attack on the U.S. Embassy in Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina, on Oct. 28, 2011.

The United States has intervened in a lawsuit against Japanese company, Toyo Ink Manufacturing Co. Ltd. and its U.S. subsidiaries: Toyo Ink International Corp., located in New York; Toyo Ink America LLC, located in Illinois; and Toyo Ink Manufacturing America LLC, located in New Jersey, the Justice Department announced today. Toyo Ink, which has operations worldwide, is a leading provider of printing inks.