Julius Everett “Bud” Johnson, of Richmond, Va., pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Richmond for his role in an investment scheme resulting in millions of dollars in losses.

A Bulgarian national pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia for his role in laundering money for a transnational criminal group based in Eastern Europe.

Sean T. Brehm, 44, of Capetown, South Africa, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Anthony J. Trenga to assault resulting in serious bodily injury.

Four corporations involved in owning and operating a fleet of vessels regularly visiting New Orleans pleaded guilty today and agreed to pay a $1 million penalty and be banned from doing business in the United States for the next five years under the terms of a proposed plea agreement.

Two officers with the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) have been convicted of civil rights and obstruction of justice crimes in connection with the beating death of civilian Raymond Robair in July 2005, and a subsequent cover-up.

The Justice Department has filed a lawsuit against the Berkeley County, S.C., Sheriff’s Office and Sheriff Wayne DeWitt for violating the First Amendment and the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act.

A federal court in Los Angeles has permanently barred William Alexander of Pasadena, Calif., and his two companies, Retirement Plan Services Inc. and Lyons Pensions Inc., from selling or administering pension plans or employee welfare-benefit plans.

A federal court in Dallas has barred Arthur Piner Grider III from operating businesses under any name.

The new indictment identifies GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) as Lauren Stevens’ employer at the time of the alleged obstruction and false statements.

Larry Dees Sr., 66, and Larry Dees Jr., 37, both of Maringuoin, La., each pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Baton Rouge, La., to two violations of the Lacey Act for leading sport hunters to unauthorized areas to hunt American alligators in violation of the federal Endangered Species Act and Louisiana law.

Karl B. Rodney, the chief executive officer of the Carib News Foundation and publisher of Carib News, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to making a false statement to the U.S. House of Representatives.

Two former Washington, D.C., tax preparers have been indicted on tax charges.

Two Miami-area residents and owners of a mental health care corporation, American Therapeutic Corporation (ATC), pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Miami for orchestrating a fraud scheme that resulted in the submission of more than $200 million in fraudulent claims to Medicare.

Michael Jacques, 26, of Springfield, Mass., was found guilty by a federal jury of three crimes related to the burning of a predominantly African-American church in Springfield on the morning after Barack Obama was elected as the first African-American President of the United States.

The Justice Department’s National Security Division today announced the launch of a system for the electronic filing of registration statements and supplements with the Justice Department under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA).

CVS Pharmacy Inc., the retail pharmacy division of CVS Caremark Corporation that operates more than 7,000 retail pharmacies in 41 states and the District of Columbia, has agreed to pay the United States and 10 states $17.5 million to resolve False Claims Act allegations.

Vincent Johnson of Brick, N.J., was sentenced to 50 months in prison and three years supervised release for sending a series of threatening email communications to employees of five civil rights organizations that work to improve opportunities for, and challenge discrimination against, Latinos in the United States.

A federal court has barred a Philadelphia tax preparation firm and its owner from preparing federal tax returns claiming first-time-homebuyer tax credits and tax deductions for certain expenses.

In order to proceed with the first phase of their acquisition of certain patents and patent applications from Novell Inc., CPTN Holdings LLC and its owners have altered their original agreements to address the Justice Department’s antitrust concerns.

An additional alleged member of the Almighty Latin Kings and Queen Nation (Latin Kings) has been indicted for his alleged role in a racketeering conspiracy in Hammond, Ind., and elsewhere.

A federal court has barred Eddie Madrigal of San Antonio and his business, Madrigal Tax Express Inc., from preparing federal tax returns for others.

The Department of Justice and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced today that P4 Production LLC, a mining and phosphorus processing company wholly-owned by Monsanto and operating near Soda Springs in southeast Idaho, has agreed to pay a $1.4 million civil penalty for alleged Clean Water Act violations at its South Rasmussen Mine.

A Michigan woman pleaded guilty today to selling more than $400,000 worth of counterfeit computer software.

Attorney General Eric Holder met today with commissioners of the African Union (AU) in an effort to underscore the U.S. government’s commitment to Africa, particularly efforts to promote rule of law and to combat transnational crime.

The Justice Department announced that it has reached an agreement with Jefferson County, Texas, Drainage District Number Seven on the terms of a consent decree filed today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

A Los Angeles-area man pleaded guilty today to establishing fraudulent medical clinics and using stolen identities of physicians to defraud Medicare of up to $13.7 million.

Attorney General Eric Holder today announced the formation of a Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force Working Group to focus specifically on fraud in the energy markets.

Rogelio Hackett Jr., 26, of Lithonia, Ga., pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Anthony J. Trenga in Alexandria, Va., to trafficking in counterfeit credit cards and aggravated identity theft.

One individual and his company in New York and two others and their company in California were indicted today in the District of Columbia on charges of illegally exporting millions of dollars worth of computer-related equipment from the United States to Iran via the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

A former Bexar County Sherriff’s Office Deputy was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia to 27 months in prison for depriving a man of his constitutional right to be free from excessive force and for obstructing justice.

A federal grand jury in the Eastern District of Washington has returned a superseding indictment charging Kevin Harpham, 36, of Colville, Wash., with federal hate crime and weapons violations arising out of the attempted bombing of the Martin Luther King Jr. Unity March in Spokane, Wash., on Jan. 17, 2011.

A Las Vegas man was arrested yesterday on charges that he defrauded distressed homeowners in Las Vegas who were attempting to refinance or adjust their home mortgages.

An Alabama businessman pleaded guilty today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Wallace Capel Jr. to his role in conspiring to bribe legislators in exchange for their favorable votes on pro-gambling legislation.

Wajdi Waked, 25, of Las Vegas, pleaded guilty today before Judge Philip M. Pro of the U.S. District Court in Nevada, to one count of violating the Clean Air Act by falsifying emissions test results.

A federal court has permanently barred Rita Augustus from preparing federal tax returns for others.

The U.S. Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) announced $6.9 million in awards to 23 projects in the Engaging Men in Preventing Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence, Dating Violence and Stalking Grant Program.

Two former humanitarian aid workers were each sentenced today to 142 months in prison for defrauding the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) of approximately $1.9 million that was intended to assist impoverished people and towns in Liberia.

Cynthia Peters was sentenced to 27 months in prison based on her plea of guilty to one count of willfully aiding and assisting in the preparation and filing of a false income tax return.

An Oakland, Calif., woman was sentenced today to 57 months in prison for her role in a scam to bill Medicare for more than $1.2 million in claims for expensive, high-end power wheelchairs and other durable medical equipment (DME) that were not medically necessary.

A Lufkin, Texas, woman was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Marcia Crone to 180 months in prison for her role in a double homicide that took place in Nacogdoches, Texas, in August 2007.

Thomas Robert Turner, a resident of Prince George’s County, Md., pleaded guilty to corruptly endeavoring to obstruct and impede the due administration of the Internal Revenue laws.

A federal jury this week found that the Clean Water Act applied to the filling of wetlands and other waters at two properties in Carver, Mass., owned by Charles Johnson, Genelda Johnson, Francis Vaner Johnson, and Johnson Cranberries Limited Partnership.

A federal court has permanently barred George Thomas Gaines of Aurora, Colo., from preparing federal tax returns for others.

Alchico Grant and Melinda Clayton were indicted by a federal grand jury in the Middle District of Alabama on a variety of charges stemming from an identity theft and tax fraud scheme.

Jeremy Matthew Moro, Joshua James Moro and Sonya Marie Hart were sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Donald E. Walter in connection with a conspiracy to violate the civil rights of an interracial couple by burning a cross near their home in Athens, La., in October 2008.

Four members of a Pittsburgh Crips street gang pleaded guilty this week in federal court to charges of conspiring to conduct a racketeering enterprise.

Richard Franco Montejano, 29, of Harbor City, Calif., pleaded guilty today to conspiring to commit criminal copyright infringement, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division.

“All individuals have a right to go to the hospital and communicate with medical staff without having to sign a waiver of liability, and hospitals have a responsibility to ensure that individuals get effective communication,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division.

The United States has filed a civil mortgage fraud lawsuit against Deutsche Bank AG and its wholly owned subsidiary, MortgageIT Inc.

Bryant Mathis, who served in a leadership role as a member of a Pittsburgh Crips street gang, was sentenced today in federal court in Pittsburgh to 20 years in prison on charges of conspiring to conduct a racketeering enterprise.