"As surely as our values are shared – and our histories intertwined -- the future progress of our nations is clearly, and permanently, connected,"

After a two day hearing in federal court in Rochester, N.Y., that ended late yesterday, U.S. District Court Judge Charles J. Siragusa sentenced Keith Gordon-Smith, 54, of Rochester, to six years in prison for knowingly violating the Clean Air Act and making false statements to a federal inspector.

The complaint and consent decree were filed today in accordance with an agreement with the defendants resolving numerous violations of the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.

– Alan James Watson, 46, of Clinton Township, Mich., pleaded guilty today to fraudulently soliciting and accepting $40 million from more than 750 members of his investment club and losing nearly all of it through non-disclosed, high-risk investments.

Jesus Espino, 43, of El Paso, Texas, and Lorenzo Espino, 51, aka “Lencho,” and “Oso,” of El Paso, each pleaded guilty today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Norbert Garney in the Western District of Texas, El Paso Division, to participating in a racketeering conspiracy.

A former project manager of a construction company that had substantial business at Fort Bliss, a U.S. Army installation in El Paso, Texas, pleaded guilty today to soliciting and accepting kickbacks from subcontractors on a federal contract with the U.S. Army.

A former member of the U.S. Army employed by a private security firm was arrested at Miami International Airport today on charges of bribery, fraud and theft of government funds, in connection with the award of a contract to provide services to a U.S. government provincial reconstruction team in Farah, Afghanistan.

The Justice Department today resolved claims made by U.S. Army Reserve member Kyle A. Sharp against ServiceMaster 24-Hour and Gregory Tullar, ServiceMaster’s owner and operator, alleging that they violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994.

I appreciate this opportunity to appear before the Committee on behalf of the Department of Justice to offer the Department’s report on implementation of the Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010, Title II of Public Law 111-211 (TLOA).

A former captain in the U.S. Army Reserve stationed in Afghanistan was sentenced today to 120 months in prison for soliciting $1.3 million in bribes from contractors involved in U.S.-funded reconstruction efforts and participating in a conspiracy to traffic heroin from Southeast Asia.

Four alleged members and associates of the New England La Cosa Nostra (LCN), including an alleged Rhode Island leader, have been arrested and charged in a second superseding indictment returned yesterday in federal court in Providence, R.I., with crimes involving racketeering and extortion.

Janika Fernae Bates Millbrook, Ala., was convicted of identity theft, wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and conspiracy to make false claims for tax refunds.

A federal court in Los Angeles has permanently barred Mario Placencia from preparing federal tax returns for others.

Matthew David Howard Smith pleaded guilty today for his role in founding a website that provided millions of users with the ability to illegally download copyright-protected movies and television programs.

A Las Vegas woman pleaded guilty today for her role in a scheme to fraudulently gain control of condominium homeowners’ associations (HOA) in the Las Vegas area so that the HOAs would direct business to a certain law firm and construction company.

Antonio Washington, 22, aka “T.O.,” of Nashville, also was ordered by U.S. District Judge Aleta Trauger to serve five years of supervised release following his prison term.

Under the agreement, which must still be approved by the court, developer, Enclave Development LLC, will make extensive modifications to the complex over the next three years to improve accessibility, and Enclave Development and the other defendants will pay $30,000 to compensate persons who have been harmed by the inaccessible design and construction.

Maritza Vidal, 44, and Richard Diaz, 26, each pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Joan A. Lenard to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.

Peter Labovitz of Alexandria, Va., was sentenced to six months in prison for failing to pay employment taxes to the Internal Revenue Service.

Today, in response to a letter from the Justice Department, the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education voted to grant the Commissioner of Education authority to draft state regulations that will require training of all Sheltered English Immersion teachers who instruct English Language Learner students.

A Detroit federal grand jury returned an indictment today against three former executives from Panasonic Corporation, a Whirlpool Corporation subsidiary and a Tecumseh Products Company subsidiary for their role in an international conspiracy to fix the prices of refrigerant compressors.

Nearly 40 members and associates of the Bandido Outlaw Motorcycle Gang (BOMG) were arrested yesterday and today on various firearms and drug-related charges in three judicial districts as part of a coordinated law enforcement effort.

A superseding indictment was returned today in Milwaukee against Dr. Arvind Ahuja of Greendale, Wis., adding a charge of conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service.

Six Japanese freight forwarders have agreed to plead guilty and to pay criminal fines totaling $46.8 million for their roles in a conspiracy to fix certain fees in connection with the provision of freight forwarding services for air cargo shipments from Japan to the United States.

Trident Seafoods Corp., one of the world’s largest seafood processors, has agreed to pay a $2.5 million civil penalty and invest millions in seafood processing waste controls to settle alleged violations of the Clean Water Act.

Bryan Underwood, a former contract guard working at a U.S. Consulate in China, has been charged in a superseding indictment with one count of attempting to communicate national defense information to a foreign government, two counts of making false statements and one count of failing to appear in court pursuant to his conditions of release.

A federal court has permanently barred Dennis Giroud from preparing federal tax returns for others.

The Justice Department today announced an agreement with the town of Warrenton, Va., to improve access to all aspects of civic life for individuals with disabilities. The agreement was reached under Project Civic Access.

Two principals of A&O Resource Management Ltd. have been sentenced for their roles in a $100 million life settlement fraud scheme, which included more than 800 victims across the United States and Canada.

Attorney General Eric Holder joined U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Washington Jenny A. Durkan, the Wales family and the FBI in Seattle today to announce a new media and social media effort to seek information related to the 2001 slaying of Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas C. Wales.

"Although this case remains unsolved, and Tom’s killer remains unknown, our resolve to uncover the truth – and to help Tom’s family, friends, colleagues, and neighbors find the answers and the closure that they deserve – has never been stronger," said Attorney General Holder.

Furukawa Electric Co. Ltd. has agreed to plead guilty and to pay a $200 million fine for its role in a criminal price-fixing and bid-rigging conspiracy involving the sale of parts to automobile manufacturers.

Hana A. Beshara, 29, of Las Vegas, pleaded guilty today for her role in founding NinjaVideo.net, a website that provided millions of users with the ability to illegally download infringing copies of copyright-protected movies and television programs in high-quality formats.

A federal jury in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., yesterday found Manuel Rodriguez guilty of fraud in connection with a coffee machine business opportunity scheme.

Stephan Bekale and Jamal Ibraheem were sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Va., for conspiring to commit wire fraud as part of a matching funds scheme.

Alexander Otis Matthews, a Virginia real estate businessman, was sentenced today to 10 years in prison in connection with mortgage and investment schemes to obtain more than $12 million in fraudulent loans.

A former Colombian maritime training instructor and a co-conspirator were sentenced to federal prison today for conspiring to transport thousands of kilograms of cocaine from various ports along the coast of Colombia to waiting vessels that transported the cocaine to the United States and other countries.

Mark D. Leitner was sentenced to 30 months in prison after pleading guilty in July to filing false liens against federal law enforcement employees and corruptly endeavoring to impede and impair the Internal Revenue Service.

The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit today on behalf of Michael Schutz, a member of the U.S. Army Reserves, against the city of Truman, Minn.

The United States has filed a lawsuit against Annie P. Williams to bar her from preparing federal tax returns for others.

Hitachi-LG Data Storage Inc. has agreed to plead guilty and to pay a $21.1 million criminal fine for its participation in a series of conspiracies to rig bids and fix prices for the sale of optical disk drives.

The Department of Justice today reached a settlement with Morgan Stanley that requires Morgan to pay $4.8 million for violating the antitrust laws by entering into an agreement with KeySpan Corporation that restrained competition in the New York City electricity capacity market.

A settlement agreement has been reached for the cleanup of the Midnite Mine Superfund Site, located on the Spokane Indian Reservation in Northeastern Washington.

Two California real estate investors have agreed to plead guilty today for their roles in a conspiracy to rig bids and to commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Northern California.

A Japanese freight forwarder has agreed to plead guilty and to pay a $1.84 million criminal fine for its role in a conspiracy to fix certain fees in connection with the provision of freight forwarding services for air cargo shipments from Japan to the United States.

Harris County Commissioner Gerald R. Eversole and Houston-based real estate developer Michael D. Surface both pleaded guilty today in federal court in Houston to making false statements.

The Justice Department announced today that C&F Mortgage Corporation of Midlothian, Va., will revise its pricing policies, conduct employee training and pay $140,000 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.

Osman Norales, Genaro De La Fuente, Francisco Ramirez and Ulises Linares were indicted on charges of conspiring to defraud the United States.

LHC Group Inc. has agreed to pay $65 million, plus interest, to the federal government to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act for false home healthcare billings to the Medicare, TRICARE and Federal Employees Health Benefits programs.

The Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), together with its partners, the Departments of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Education, Health and Human Services and Treasury, today announced the selection of the Center for the Study of Social Policy as the Building Neighborhood Capacity Program (BNCP) Training and Technical Assistance Coordinator.