Back in July of 2009, we considered one of the largest political corruption sting operations in the nation’s history, FBI Operation "Bid Rig," which resulted in the arrest and charging of 44 individuals, primarily in New Jersey. Well, at least one of the individuals, former New Jersey State Assemblyman Louis Manzo, fought the charges, as… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Noteworthy Cases
Subscribe to Noteworthy Cases RSS Feed78 Year-Old Indicted Warner Robbins City Councilman Released After Violating Probation for Alleged Fiancee Less Than Half His Age
Posted in Noteworthy CasesFormer City Councilman of Warner Robins, Georgia, John Williams, was released last Friday after spending two days in prison for violation of his Federal pretrial release, according to 13WMAZ in Macon. Williams has been charged with extortion in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Georgia for trying to obtain money from a car dealer… Continue Reading
Julian Heicklen, 80 Year-Old Jury Nullification Advocate, Charged With Jury Tampering
Posted in Noteworthy Cases"No free man shall be captured, and or imprisoned, or disseised of his freehold, and or of his liberties, or of his free customs, or be outlawed, or exiled, or in any way destroyed, nor will we proceed against him by force or proceed against him by arms, but by the lawful judgment of his… Continue Reading
Atlanta/Fulton County Sheriff’s Deputy Sentenced to Ten Years
Posted in Noteworthy CasesA deputy sheriff with the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office in Atlanta was sentenced in federal court today to serve 10 years in federal prison. Brian Anthony pleaded guilty earlier this year, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, to multiple counts in a superseding indictment. According to the plea agreement, Anthony entered into a binding plea… Continue Reading
Chinese-American Former Motorola Employee Acquitted on Espionage Charge
Posted in Acquittal, indictment, Noteworthy CasesImage source: World Military Forum On February 28, 2007, Hanjuan Jin, a Chinese-American and engineer for Motorola, attempted to board a one-way flight for Beijing, China, at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport. She was stopped by Federal agents before she could board the flight and found to be carrying a computer and other electronic storage devices… Continue Reading
Alabama Legislators and Casino Employees to Be Re-Tried
Posted in Acquittal, Noteworthy CasesThe U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama has postponed the retrial of eight defendants on corruption charges relating to the gambling industry and various State legislators and employees, originally scheduled to commence on October 3, until January 9, 2012, according to Forbes.com. The charges stemmed from an FBI investigation into alleged… Continue Reading
New York Senator May Be Retried in Wake of Supreme Court’s “Honest Services” Fraud Decision
Posted in Acquittal, Fraud, Noteworthy CasesNew York Senator Joseph L. Bruno was indicted in January of 2009 on eight counts of fraud. A jury in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York acquitted Bruno, who is now 81 years old and the former Republican Majority Leader of the New York State Senate, on five of the remaining… Continue Reading
Life in Shambles for New Hampshire Psychiatrist Acquitted of VA Charges
Posted in Acquittal, Noteworthy CasesDr. William Weeks had a life many would envy. He was a prominent psychiatrist, a professor at Dartmouth College, a physician at the local Department of Veterans’ Affairs hospital, a nationally-recognized expert on rural healthcare, the head of his town’s School Board and treasurer of his church. However, as reported by Fox News, his life… Continue Reading
Alabama Contractor Roger Taylor Acquitted of Conspiracy, Bribery and Obstruction Charges Following Federal Trial; Avoyelles Parish Sheriff Bill Belt and Family Acquitted
Posted in Fraud, Noteworthy CasesOn Tuesday, a jury in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama in Tuscaloosa found construction contractor Roger Taylor not guilty on one count of conspiracy, five counts of bribery and two counts of obstructing justice, according to Tuscaloosa News. Mr. Taylor was one of numerous individuals investigated in relation to Alabama’s Community… Continue Reading
Massachusetts Defendants Convicted for Shipping Electronics Equipment to China’s Military
Posted in Noteworthy CasesYesterday, after a five week trial, a jury in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts found Zhen Zhou Wu, a/k/a Alex Wu; Yufeng Wei, a/k/a Annie Wei; and Chitron Electronics, Inc., a corporation based in Shenzhen, China, with an office in Walthan, Massachusetts, guilty of conspiring to violate U.S. export laws and illegally… Continue Reading
Developer, Bank Executives Indicted Over $80 Million in Loans/Failure of Integrity Bank
Posted in Fraud, Noteworthy CasesLast week, an indictment was unsealed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, charging Guy Mitchell of Coral Gables, Florida, and Douglas Ballard and Joseph Todd Foster, of Atlanta, with bribery, insider trading and securities fraud, as reported in the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Mitchell was a hotel developer and Ballard was… Continue Reading
Georgia Trio Claim $1 Million in False Tax Refunds; Locust Grove Couple Sentenced for Illegal Disposal of Napalm Bursts
Posted in Fraud, Noteworthy CasesIn Georgia federal criminal news, Jamil Flowers pled guilty on Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia to conspiracy to defraud the government and making false claims and statements to the IRS for defrauding the federal government of more than $1 million in tax refunds, according to the AJC. Flowers, Rico… Continue Reading
Eleventh Circuit Hears Arguments From NFL and Retired Players in Appeal Over Suit Arising From $11 Million Ponzi Scheme
Posted in Fraud, Noteworthy CasesToday’s Fulton County Daily Report contains a story concerning Tuesday’s oral arguments before the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals in an appeal by retired professional football players against the National Football League and the NFL Players Association. The former players are seeking to reverse a ruling last year dismissing the players’ suit against the NFL and… Continue Reading
SEC Charges Prominent South Florida Cuban-American Couple with $135 Million Ponzi Scheme
Posted in Fraud, Noteworthy CasesThe Securities and Exchange Commission has charged prominent Miami businessman Gaston E. Cantens and his wife, Teresita Cantens, with allegedly running a $135 million Ponzi scheme targeting elderly Cuban-Americans, according to the Miami New Times. Specifically, the Cantens allegedly used their development company, Royal West Properties, to sell promissory notes to finance the purchase of properties,… Continue Reading
Forensic Accountant Lewis Freeman Indicted for Alleged Misappropriation of $6 Million in Funds from Fiduciary Accounts
Posted in Fraud, Noteworthy CasesAs reported in the South Florida Business Journal, Lewis B. Freeman, one of the best-known forensic accountants in South Florida was indicted yesterday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida on charges of conspiracy to commit mail fraud. Freeman is alleged to have misappropriated funds from fiduciary accounts from 2000 through… Continue Reading
Former Head of SK Foods Indicted for Food Fraud and Mislabeling
Posted in Fraud, Noteworthy CasesFrederick Scott Salyer, 54, former owner of California-based SK Foods, which grows, processes and distributes tomatoes, was indicted on Friday on charges of racketeering, wire fraud, mail fraud, money laundering and obstruction of justice. Tomatoes from SK Foods are widely used in tomato-based products including sauces, ketchups and juices. Salyer is alleged to have manipulated… Continue Reading
Edward Stein, Architect of $46 Million Hedge Fund Ponzi Scheme, Sentenced to 9 Years
Posted in Fraud, Noteworthy CasesEdward T. Stein, a former hedge fund manager, was sentenced to nine years in prison in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York for a Ponzi scheme which defrauded investors of $46 million, according to BusinessWeek. Stein was arrested last April and pled guilty last June to counts of securities fraud… Continue Reading
Investment Advisor Jailed for Refusing to Locate Assets from $130 Million Alleged Investment Scheme
Posted in Fraud, Noteworthy CasesTrevor Cook was 37 year-old Minneapolis, Minnesota-based investment advisor. He is alleged to have defrauded investors of at least $130 million. U.S. District Judge Michael Davis found Cook in contempt of an order by the Court requiring Cook and his associates to turn in investor assets to a receiver, according to an article in the Minneapolis… Continue Reading
DeKalb County Man Arrested in Multimillion Dollar Ponzi Scheme; Victims Included Parents
Posted in False Claims, Fraud, Money Laundering, Noteworthy CasesAs reported by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and WSB Radio, Anthony Ray, a DeKalb County resident, solicited money from investors by promising them large returns from real estate investments by his company, Key Funding Group. He would frequent local churches to locate victims, making presentations to the congregations. Ray lulled his victims by giving them… Continue Reading
VA Doctor Pleads Guilty to Issuing Between 50K to 100K Prescriptions Online
Posted in Noteworthy CasesOnline pharmaceuticals are big business and, frequently big sources of violations of the Food and Drug Act, including criminal ones. Accordingly, Mechanicsville, Virginia, doctor Torino Jennings pled guilty last week in federal court to seven counts of introducing misbranded drugs into interstate commerce and four counts of tax evasion. Jennings was charged with issuing between… Continue Reading
“Nuwaubian” Leader and Mass Child Molestor Dwight York Seeks to Vacate 135 Year Sentence Based on Alleged Prosecutorial Misconduct
Posted in False Claims, Fraud, Money Laundering, Noteworthy CasesAs reported in the Macon Telegraph, Dwight "Malachi" York, former leader of the United Nuwaubian Nation of Moors who was indicted and convicted on over 100 counts of child molestation in April 2004 and setenced to 135 years, has filed a motion in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia to vacate his… Continue Reading
Jerry McDevitt on the Wecht Trial – Part II
Posted in Noteworthy CasesDr. Wecht’s attorney, Jerry McDevitt, comments on his trial strategy and ultimate victory
Alleged Middle Georgia Ponzi Schemer Release on Bond / Entire U.S. District Court for the Middle District Recused
Posted in Noteworthy CasesAlleged Middle Georgia fraudster, Saundra McKinney Pyles, 52, was ordered released on a $20,000 secured bond yesterday, as reported in the Macon Telegraph. As we have noted, Pyles and Sheldon Hutcheson, 56, were indicted in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Georgia in April on mail fraud and money laundering charges for… Continue Reading
All Charges Dropped in Wecht Case
Posted in Noteworthy CasesThe U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania announced yesterday that it would drop all charges against former Allegheny County Medical Examiner Dr. Cyril Wecht, in a major victory for the defense, as reported by WTAE in Pittsburgh. The government had charged the 78 year-old Dr. Wecht with various alleged offenses, including using his county staff… Continue Reading