b

Obama Administration Announces a Coordinated Effort to Protect Consumers by Preventing and Detecting Potential Fraud in the Health Insurance Marketplace

Attorney General Eric Holder, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairwoman Edith Ramirez met at the White House to kick off a comprehensive interagency initiative to prevent, protect against, and where necessary prosecute consumer fraud and privacy violations in the Health Insurance Marketplace.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

UBS Securities Japan Co. Ltd Sentenced for Long-running Manipulation of Libor

UBS Securities Japan Co. Ltd. (UBS Securities Japan), an investment bank, financial advisory securities firm and wholly-owned subsidiary of UBS AG, was sentenced today for its role in manipulating the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR), a leading benchmark used in financial products and transactions around the world.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Six Individuals, Three Corporations Charged in Indiana-based Biofuels Fraud Scheme

The Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Indiana announced today the return of two indictments against six individuals and three companies for offenses involving federal renewable fuel programs, allegedly creating losses to victims totaling more than $100 million. The 88 counts included in the three charging documents include allegations of conspiracy, wire fraud, false tax claims, false statements under the Clean Air Act, obstruction of justice, money laundering and securities fraud.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Justice Department Awards $90 Million to Enhance, Support Tribal Justice and Safety

The Department of Justice today announced the awarding of 192 grants to 110 American Indian tribes, Alaska Native villages, tribal consortia and tribal designated non-profits.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Tennessee Federal Court Bars the Owners of Mo’ Money Taxes from Owning, Operating, Licensing or Franchsing a Tax Return Preparation Business and Preparing Tax Returns for Others

A federal court in Memphis, Tenn., permanently barred the owners of Mo’ Money Taxes, Markey Granberry and Derrick Robinson, as well as a former Mo’ Money manager, Eumora Reese, from preparing tax returns for others and owning or operating a tax return preparation business, the Justice Department announced today.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Maine Resident Pleads Guilty to Engaging in Cyber “Sextortion” of New Hampshire Victim

A Maine resident pleaded guilty today in federal court to engaging in a type of cyberstalking known as “sextortion.”



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Associate Attorney General Tony West Delivers Remarks at the Native American Issues Subcommittee Meeting

Every U.S. Attorney with jurisdiction in Indian country has now appointed at least one tribal liaison, and we’ve designated a Native American Issues Coordinator to provide advice and assistance to U.S. Attorneys’ Offices on legal and policy issues.




b

Halliburton Pleads Guilty to Destruction of Evidence in Connection with Deepwater Horizon Disaster and Is Sentenced to Statutory Maximum Fine

Halliburton Energy Services Inc. (Halliburton) pleaded guilty today to destroying evidence pertaining to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster and was sentenced to the statutory maximum fine, the Justice Department announced.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Two Fujikura Ltd. Executives Indicted for Roles in Fixing Prices on Automobile Parts Sold to Subaru to Be Installed in U.S. Cars

A federal grand jury in Detroit returned an indictment against two Fujikura Ltd. executives for their roles in an international conspiracy to fix prices of auto parts used in automotive wire harnesses sold to Subaru and installed in U.S. cars.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Attorney General Eric Holder Delivers Remarks at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Criminal Justice Issues Forum

America’s criminal justice system is in need of targeted reform. Throughout this country, too many Americans are trapped – and too many communities are weakened – by a vicious cycle of poverty, criminality, and incarceration. Too many people go to too many prisons for far too long – and for no truly good law enforcement reason. The U.S. prison population has grown at an astonishing rate over the last three decades – by almost 800 percent since 1980, despite the fact that America’s overall population has increased by only about a third.




b

Justice Department Participates in Child Cyber Safety Night at Nationals Park, Saturday, September 21st

Child Cyber Safety Night at the Ballpark is the latest effort by the Justice Department and its law enforcement and community partners to encourage parents to speak with their children about online and cell phone safety and provide prevention materials. As part of the event, the Department will receive the Washington Nationals Spirit Award.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Attorney General Eric Holder Delivers Remarks at the Congressional Black Caucus Gathering on Voting Rights

It was nearly half a century ago when President Lyndon Johnson signed the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965 into law – in order to preserve what he called “the dignity of man, and the decency of democracy.” Near the height of the Civil Rights Era, he reaffirmed his commitment to President Kennedy’s ambitious agenda by joining countless Americans – seemingly ordinary, but all extraordinary – in rejecting the forces of bigotry and injustice.




b

Former Federal Contractor Petitions to Plead Guilty to Unlawfullly Disclosing National Defense Information and Distributing Child Pornography

Donald John Sachtleben, a former FBI bomb technician who later worked as a government contractor for the agency, has filed a petition to plead guilty to newly filed charges of unlawfully disclosing national defense information relating to a disrupted terrorist plot. Sachtleben previously had filed a petition to plead guilty to charges of possessing and distributing child pornography resulting from a separate investigation.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Former President of Qualcomm’s Global Business Operations Indicted for Insider Trading

Jing Wang, 51, of Del Mar, Calif., a former Executive Vice President and President of Global Business Operations for Qualcomm Inc., was charged with insider trading in shares of both Qualcomm and Atheros Communications Inc. using a secret brokerage account and an offshore shell company in the British Virgin Islands. Wang was also charged with conspiring with his brother, co-defendant Bing Wang, 53, and his former stock broker to obstruct an ongoing U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigation and laundering the proceeds of his insider trading using a second offshore shell company and secret brokerage account.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Alabama State Employee Sentenced for Providing Names in Identity Theft Scheme

Lea’Tice Phillips, of Montgomery County, Ala., was sentenced to serve 94 months of incarceration today, announced Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally of the Justice Department's Tax Division and U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama George L. Beck Jr.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Panasonic Executive Indicted for Role in Fixing Prices on Automobile Parts Sold to Toyota to Be Installed in U.S. Cars

A Detroit federal grand jury returned an indictment against a Panasonic Automotive Systems Corporation executive for his role in an international conspiracy to fix prices of switches and steering angle sensors sold to Toyota and installed in U.S. cars.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

ICAP Brokers Face Felony Charges for Alleged Long-Running Manipulation of LIBOR Interest Rates

Two former derivatives brokers and a former cash broker employed by London-based brokerage firm ICAP were charged as part of the ongoing criminal investigation into the manipulation of the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR), the Justice Department announced today.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

California Mobile Lab and X-ray Provider, Diagnostic Laboratories and Radiology, to Pay $17.5 Million for Falsely Billing Medicare and Medi-CAL

Kan-Di-Ki LLC, formerly known as Kan-Di-Ki Inc., doing business as Diagnostic Laboratories and Radiology (Diagnostic Labs), will pay $17.5 million to settle allegations that the California-based company violated the federal and California False Claims Acts by paying kickbacks for referral of mobile lab and radiology services subsequently billed to Medicare and Medi-Cal (the state of California’s Medicaid program), the Justice Department announced today.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Justice Department Settles Lawsuit Alleging Religious Discrimination by the City of Birmingham, Ala., Police Department

The Department of Justice announced today that it has reached a settlement agreement with the City of Birmingham, Ala., that, if approved by the court, will resolve the Department’s complaint alleging religious discrimination in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Remarks as Prepared for Delivery by Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman at Libor Manipulation Press Briefing

Good morning everyone, and thank you for being here today as we announce the latest law enforcement action in our ongoing, criminal investigation of the manipulation of LIBOR, a critical benchmark interest rate used by banks around the world. I am joined here today by our close partners – David Meister, the head of enforcement for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and Timothy Gallagher, the Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office’s Criminal Division.




b

Nine Automobile Parts Manufacturers and Two Executives Agree to Plead Guilty to Fixing Prices on Automobile Parts Sold to U.S. Car Manufacturers and Installed in U.S. Cars

Nine Japan-based companies and two executives have agreed to plead guilty and to pay a total of more than $740 million in criminal fines for their roles in separate conspiracies to fix the prices of more than 30 different products sold to U.S. car manufacturers and installed in cars sold in the United States and elsewhere, the Department of Justice announced today. The department said that price-fixed automobile parts were sold to Chrysler, Ford and General Motors, as well as to the U.S. subsidiaries of Honda, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Toyota and Fuji Heavy Industries–more commonly known by its brand name, Subaru.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Aryan Brotherhood of Texas Gang Leader Sentenced in Houston for Role in Racketeering Conspiracy

A high-ranking member of the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas (ABT) was sentenced today to serve 360 months in prison for his role in the ABT’s criminal enterprise, announced 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.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Justice Department Reaches Settlement with Southport Bank to Resolve Allegations of Mortgage Lending Discrimination

The Justice Department announced today that Southport Bank of Kenosha, Wis., will pay $687,000 to African-American and Hispanic wholesale mortgage borrowers as part of a settlement to resolve allegations that it engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination on the basis of race and national origin.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Justice Department Resolves Citizenship Status Discrimination Charge Against Pennsylvania Employer Huber Nurseries

The Justice Department announced today that it has reached a settlement agreement with Huber Nurseries, based in Manheim, Pa., resolving allegations that Huber engaged in citizenship status discrimination by preferring to hire temporary visa holders over recent lawful permanent residents from Nepal.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Federal Court Bars Kansas City, Mo., Man from Preparing Tax Returns for Others

The Justice Department announced today that a federal district judge in Kansas City, Mo., permanently barred Mark Steven Hall from preparing federal income tax returns for others.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Six Charged in Ohio with Operating an Illegal Gambling Business and Other Related Offenses

The Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today that Reece Powers II, the former co-owner of R&s Las Vegas Supply (RLVS), a gambling supplies store located in Dayton, Ohio, was charged with illegal gambling, tax fraud and obstruction-of-justice-related offenses in an eight-count indictment unsealed today.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Remarks as Prepared for Delivery by Attorney General Eric Holder at Auto Parts Press Conference

Today, we are announcing that nine Japan-based companies and two executives have agreed to plead guilty – and to pay a total of more than $740 million in criminal fines – for their roles in separate conspiracies to fix the prices of more than 30 different products sold to U.S. car manufacturers and installed in cars sold in the United States and elsewhere.




b

Attorney General Eric Holder, Justice Department and Other Officials, Cities Work to Break Cycle of Violence

Justice Department officials along with other senior officials from the Administration yesterday convened the third annual National Summit on Preventing Youth Violence to share strategies on how to prevent and reduce violence and gang activity and improve opportunities for young people.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Justice Department Settles Citizenship Status Discrimination Claim Against IBM

The Justice Department announced today that it reached an agreement yesterday with International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) resolving allegations that the company violated the anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) when it placed online job postings for application and software developers that contained citizenship status preferences for F-1 and H-1B temporary visa holders.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Two New Jersey Investors Plead Guilty for Their Roles in Bid-rigging Schemes at Municipal Tax Lien Auctions

Two financial investors who purchased municipal tax liens pleaded guilty today for their roles in a conspiracy to rig bids at auctions conducted by New Jersey municipalities for the sale of those tax liens, the Department of Justice announced.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Pennsylvania Man Admits Conspiring with Alleged Members of Organized Crime Family and Others in Fraud Scheme

A Pennsylvania man today admitted he conspired to defraud FIRSTPLUS Financial Group Inc. (FPFG), a Texas-based financial services company allegedly targeted for extortionate takeover and looting by a group led by alleged Lucchese organized crime family member Nicodemo S. Scarfo.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Justice Department Files Lawsuit Against Ruston, La. Public Housing Authority Alleging Race Discrimination in Housing Practices

The Justice Department today announced that it has filed a lawsuit alleging that the Housing Authority for the City of Ruston, La., has engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination against African-American tenants, in violation of the federal Fair Housing Act.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

North Carolina Businessman Sentenced for Tax Fraud

William Robert Hupman Jr., of Mebane, N.C., was sentenced to serve 17 months in prison followed by one year of supervised release for tax fraud today, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Justice Department Reaches Fair Lending Settlement with Chevy Chase Bank Resulting in $2.85 Million in Relief for Homeowners

The Justice Department filed a settlement agreement and order today that resolved allegations that Chevy Chase Bank F.S.B. engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination against qualified African-American and Hispanic borrowers in its home mortgage lending from 2006 through 2009.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Remarks as Prepared for Delivery by Attorney General Eric Holder on the Lawsuit Against the State of North Carolina

We are here to announce that the Justice Department will file suit today against the State of North Carolina to challenge portions of the State’s highly restrictive new voting law.




b

Boston Scientific and Subsidiaries to Pay $30 Million for Guidant’s Sale of Defective Heart Devices for Use in Medicare Patients

Boston Scientific Corp. and its subsidiaries, Guidant LLC, Guidant Sales LLC and Cardiac Pacemakers Inc. (Guidant), have agreed to pay $30 million to settle allegations that, between 2002 and 2005, Guidant knowingly sold defective heart devices to health care facilities that in turn implanted the devices into Medicare patients.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Attorney General Holder and President Obama Welcome Employees Back to Work

The following message from the Attorney General was emailed to Justice Department employees on October 17, 2013.




b

Additional Charges Brought Against Tax Return Preparers Previously Charged with Helping Clients Hide Millions in Offshore Israeli Banks

David Kalai and Nadav Kalai face additional charges after a federal grand jury in the Central District of California returned a second superseding indictment yesterday.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Columbus, Ohio, Tax Return Preparation Firm with Large Portion of Elderly Customers Shut Down

A federal court in Columbus, Ohio, has permanently barred Tobias Elsass and his companies, “Fraud Recovery Group Inc.” and “Sensible Tax Services Inc.,” from preparing federal tax returns, promoting the availability of theft loss deductions, or engaging in any other tax-related business in the future.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Vietnamese National Charged in Widespread International Scheme to Steal and Sell Hundreds of Thousands of U.s. Persons’ Personally Identifiable Information

A Vietnamese national has been indicted in the District of New Hampshire for allegedly participating in an international scheme to steal and sell hundreds of thousands of Americans’ personally identifiable information (PII) through various underground websites that he operated.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Diebold Incorporated Resolves Foreign Corrupt Practices Act Investigation and Agrees to Pay $25.2 Million Criminal Penalty

Diebold Inc. (Diebold), the Ohio-based provider of integrated self-service delivery and security systems, including automated teller machines (ATMs), has agreed to pay a $25.2 million penalty to resolve allegations that it violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) by bribing government officials in China and Indonesia and falsifying records in Russia in order to obtain and retain contracts to provide ATMs to state-owned and private banks in those countries.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

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

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.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Georgia Real Estate Investment Company and Owner Plead Guilty to Conspiracies to Rig Bids and Commit Mail Fraud for the Purchase of Real Estate at Public Foreclosure Auctions

A Georgia real estate investor and his company pleaded guilty today for their role in conspiracies to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Georgia.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

U.S. Deputy Attorney General Cole and Panamanian Attorney General Belfon Sign Agreement to Share Forfeited Assets

Deputy Attorney General James M. Cole and Panamanian Attorney General Ana Belfon today signed an agreement in Panama City, Panama, to share more than $36 million in forfeited criminal assets with the Government of Panama.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Las Vegas Street Gang Member Sentenced to Life in Prison_for Racketeering, Murder, Firearm, and Drug Charges

A member of the Playboy Bloods street gang was sentenced today to life in prison for the retaliation murder of a man in November 2004 and the armed robbery of a Henderson, Nev., casino in 2002, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Daniel G. Bogden of the District of Nevada.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Former Commander of Mexican State Police and Member of the Gulf Cartel Sentenced for Drug Conspiracy

Gilberto Lerma Plata, a former commander of the Mexican State Police and member of the Gulf Cartel, was sentenced today to serve 151 months in prison for conspiring to import multi-ton quantities of marijuana into the United States, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Administrator Michele M. Leonhart of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Indictment Unsealed and “Wanted” Posters Issued for Fugitives Charged with Multimillion Dollar International Cyber Fraud Scheme

Earlier today, charges were unsealed against Romanian fugitive Nicolae Popescu, the leader of an international organized crime syndicate that ran a multimillion dollar cyber fraud scheme, and six other fugitives charged with participating in the same scheme. Interpol has issued red notices to foreign law enforcement partners seeking assistance in the apprehension of these fugitives, and the FBI has also released “Wanted” posters to facilitate their arrests.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Alabama Man Pleads Guilty to Stealing Tax Refunds

Tarrish Tellis of Montgomery County, Ala., pleaded guilty today to conspiracy, theft of public funds and aggravated identity theft, announced Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally of the Justice Department's Tax Division and U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama George L. Beck Jr.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Rhode Island Man Sentenced to Life in Prison for Murder and Robbery of Gas Station Manager

Jason W. Pleau, 35, of Providence, R.I., was sentenced today to life in prison for the murder and robbery of Woonsocket, R.I., gas station manager David D. Main. Pleau chased, shot at close range and robbed Main on Sep. 20, 2010, as Main approached the doorstep of a Woonsocket bank where he was to have deposited receipts belonging to the gas station that he managed.



  • OPA Press Releases

b

Alabama Man Pleads Guilty to His Involvement in an Identity Theft Scheme Using Stolen Prisoner Names and a Corrupt Postal Employee

Harvey James pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft for his role in a Stolen Identity Refund Fraud (“SIRF”) scheme, announced Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally of the Justice Department's Tax Division and U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama George L. Beck Jr.



  • OPA Press Releases