CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Andrew Murray, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina, announced today the return of federal indictments against 17 individuals charged with federal firearms violations.

The indictments are the result of Project Guardian, the Justice Department’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by Attorney General William P. Barr in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence, and enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes. The initiative also improves information sharing, and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities.

“Gun violence remains a pervasive problem in communities across this district and our nation,” said U.S. Attorney Murray. “The indictments announced today are a testament to our ongoing coordination with our federal, state and local law enforcement partners and state prosecutors, and our shared commitment to reduce gun violence, remove firearms from the hands of felons, and bring to justice those who violate gun laws.”

“ATF has a long-standing commitment with our law enforcement partners to tackle gun violence and violent crimes in our communities,” said Vince Pallozzi, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. “Removing violent criminals from our neighborhoods and recovering the firearms used in their crimes is a critical step toward stronger and safer neighborhoods.”

“We see every day how gun violence can cause heartache and destroy lives. Thanks to our partner agencies, the work done here is a step in the right direction to making communities safer and holding individuals accountable for their actions,” said Robert Schurmeier, Director of the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation.

“Catawba County is a safer place today thanks to the incredible success of our local, state and federal partnership. The collaboration and teamwork demonstrated in this operation is some of the finest I have witnessed. I’m proud to have my office associated with these law enforcement professionals,” said Sheriff Don Brown, of the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office.

“There is no doubt that these arrests will make our communities safer,” said Chief Thurman Whisnant of the Hickory Police Department. In Hickory, we very much appreciate the continued collaboration and cooperation among our local, state and federal law enforcement and prosecutors who are all committed to pursuing violent offenders that put our communities at risk.”

“The Long View Police department has a solid relationship with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners.  We are committed to disrupting criminal activity and keeping our communities safe. I am extremely proud of the law enforcement partnership and the outcome of this operation,” said Chief T.J. Bates of the Long View Police Department.

The 17 individuals indicted for firearms violations are:

• Trevin Ali Brown, 22, of Hickory, N.C.
• Chaetez Sean Clayton, 30, of Hickory, N.C.
• Shawn Malcolm Davis, 30, of Catawba, N.C.
• Donte Rassan Gore, 28, Hickory, NC.
• Daquan Lashawn Ikard, 30, of Hickory, N.C.
• Martavious Steven Isbell, 26, of Granite Falls, N.C.
• Gevon Marquise King, 36, of Hickory, N.C.
• Line Germaine Linebarger, 33, of Hickory, N.C.
• Robbie Octavion Little, 28, of Hickory, N.C.
• Curese Devin McIlwain, 35, of Hickory, N.C.
• Stanley Earl Reed, 29, of Hickory, N.C.
• Meguel Greylen Robinson, 25, of Hickory, N.C.
• Craig Anthony Ruff, 25, of Newton, N.C.
• Nicholas Anthony Santellan, 37, of Hickory, N.C.
• Michael Dwane Williams, 23, or Hickory, N.C.
• Wilburn Johnathan Wilson, 25, of Hickory, N.C.
• Tou Yang, 38, of Hickory, N.C.

As a result of the initiative, law enforcement have recovered more than 100 firearms, some o which were stolen, unregistered, or used in the commission of other violent crimes, ammunition, and a silencer, among other items. The defendants had their first court appearance in federal court in Charlotte today. Davis, Gore, McIlwain Robinson, Santellan, Wilson and Yang are also facing drug trafficking charges.

The charges in the indictments are allegations. The defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt in a court of law.

In making today’s announcement, U.S. Attorney Murray thanked Scott Reilly, District Attorney for Caldwell, Burke and Catawba Counties. “Our partnership and collaboration with state prosecutors is a vital factor in the success of federal crime reduction initiatives like Project Guardian. I want to thank District Attorney Reilly for his office’s continued assistance and coordination with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and I look forward to our continued joint efforts to increase safety in our communities,” said U.S. Attorney Murray.

The United States Attorney’s Office is prosecuting these cases with support from the following Project Guardian partners: the ATF, the SBI, the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office, the Hickory Police Department, and the Long View Police Department. The U.S. Secret Service, the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service, and the Burke County Sheriff’s Office also assisted with the arrests.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lambert Guinn, Christopher Hess and Sanjeev Bhasker, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte, are handling the prosecutions.

For more information about Project Guardian, please visit: https://www.justice.gov/projectguardian

BOSTON – A Springfield man was sentenced yesterday for sex trafficking female victims through a prostitution business.

William Coleman, 49, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Mark G. Mastroianni to 186 months in prison and five years of supervised release. In February 2020, Coleman pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking and nine counts of sex trafficking. Coleman has been in custody since his arrest on Dec. 23, 2018.

“This sentence is a stern reminder of the consequences facing those involved in the unconscionable practice of sex trafficking,” said United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling. “My office, in tandem with our law enforcement partners, remains steadfast in its resolve to eradicate illegal sex trafficking operations that prey on vulnerable victims.”

“This sentencing is yet another success in the fight against the crime of human trafficking in our region,” said Michael Shea, Acting Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Boston. “We applaud this sentence as a measure of justice for the victims who suffered often brutal sexual exploitation at the hands of Coleman through his web of illegal activity which covered multiple states. This case could never have been completed without the expert, close coordination of our concerned community of stakeholders in the Western Massachusetts Human Trafficking Working Group.”

From 2016 to 2018, Coleman ran a prostitution business in the Springfield area, the greater Hartford, Conn., area, and other parts of Connecticut. Coleman used violence and the drug addictions of eight female victims to coerce them into engaging in commercial sex acts with paying customers. The victims were typically required to turn over all of their earnings to Coleman, and their daily lives were tightly controlled by him. Most of the women were not allowed to keep any of the money they earned, and they were only to obtain their drugs – in most cases, heroin – from Coleman. Victims who did not engage in prostitution for Coleman, or who did not follow his rules, were subjected to physical assaults, sexual violence and the withholding of drugs. Coleman used websites to post prostitution advertisements for the victims working for him.

U.S. Attorney Lelling; Hampden County District Attorney Anthony D. Gulluni; HSI Boston Acting SAC Shea; Hampden County Sheriff Nicholas Cocchi; Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; Springfield Police Commissioner Cheryl Clapprood; and Colonel Christopher Mason, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alex J. Grant of Lelling’s Springfield Branch Office prosecuted the case.

This case is the result of the efforts of the Western Massachusetts Human Trafficking Working Group, which was established in August 2015 to investigate and prosecute crimes involving commercial sex trafficking.

EASTON, CT – John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and David Sundberg, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, today announced that a federal grand jury in New Haven has returned an indictment charging ROBERT McGUIRE, 41, of Easton, Connecticut with production of child [censored]ography.

The one-count indictment, which was returned on September 9, 2020, alleges that McGuire produced images of child [censored]ography between February 2018 and June 2020.

McGuire appeared today via videoconference before U.S. Magistrate Judge William I. Garfinkel and pleaded not guilty to the charge.  He has been detained since his arrest by the Easton Police Department on related state charges on July 10, 2020.

If convicted of the charge, McGuire faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 15 years and a maximum term of imprisonment of 30 years.

U.S. Attorney Durham stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt.  Charges are only allegations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Easton Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Konstantin Lantsman and Sarala V. Nagala.

U.S. Attorney Durham thanked the State’s Attorney’s Office for the Judicial District of Fairfield for its close cooperation in investigating and prosecuting this matter.

This prosecution is part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood Initiative, which is aimed at protecting children from sexual abuse and exploitation.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

SAVANNAH, GA:  A Savannah man has admitted to killing the wife of a deployed U.S. Army soldier on post at Fort Stewart.

Stafon Jamar Davis, 28, of Savannah, pled guilty to Premeditated Murder and to Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon in the July 9, 2018 shooting death of Abree Boykin, 24, a resident of post housing at Fort Stewart Army Reservation, said Bobby L. Christine, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia.

“Stafon Davis’ admission of guilt in the cold-blooded murder of Abree Boykin will help bring some degree of closure in this horrific crime against the spouse of a deployed American soldier,” said U.S. Attorney Christine. “Our law enforcement agencies and prosecutors have performed outstanding work in bringing this killer to justice.”

Abree Boykin was the wife of SGT Shawn Boykin, a member of the U.S. Army who was assigned to Fort Stewart’s 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division. At the time of the murder, SGT Boykin was deployed in South Korea.

Davis admitted to being a childhood friend of Abree Boykin and to shooting and killing her in the early morning hours of July 9, 2018, in her on post residence and fleeing Fort Stewart in her vehicle. Davis, who had been released from prison after serving a federal sentence for armed robbery, later was apprehended in West Palm Beach., Fla.

“This was a horrific and senseless murder of a member of our Army family,” said Chris Grey, spokesperson for the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command. “Our highly-trained special agents worked tirelessly and methodically with our law enforcement partners to bring this individual to justice.”

“The outcome of this case is a direct result of the partnership we have with the U.S. Army and the U.S. Attorney’s Office Southern District of Georgia,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Abree Boykin’s family and friends will never be rid of the pain and suffering this senseless murder has caused them, but it does give them some sense of resolve to know that justice will be served.”

This case is being investigated by the FBI and the Army Criminal Investigation Command, with assistance from the Savannah Police Department and the U.S. Marshals Service, and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer G. Solari and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Katelyn Semales.

John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ARCADIO DONES, also known as “Gordo,” 45, of Hartford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to 100 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, for fentanyl distribution and firearm possession offenses.

According to court documents and statements made in court, law enforcement received information that Dones was distributing fentanyl from a restaurant parking lot in Hartford’s North Meadows neighborhood.  On three occasions in September 2018, investigators conducted controlled purchases of fentanyl from Dones.

Dones was arrested on September 27, 2018.  On that date, a court-authorized search of his residence revealed a loaded Smith and Wesson .40 caliber pistol, more than 200 rounds of ammunition, approximately 200 grams of fentanyl, more than one kilogram of cocaine, a drug ledger, numerous items used in the processing and packaging of narcotics for street sale, $2,110 in cash, and other items.  Investigators also seized more than $2,200 in cash from Dones’ person and vehicle.

Dones’ criminal history includes felony convictions for narcotics, firearm, aggravated battery, robbery and larceny offenses.

It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm or ammunition that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce.

Dones has been detained since his arrest.  On February 4, 2020, he pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl, and one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Northern Connecticut Gang Task Force and the Hartford Police Department.  The Task Force includes members of the Hartford Police Department, East Hartford Police Department, Connecticut State Police and Connecticut Department of Correction.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian P. Leaming.

NEW ORLEANS – The United States Attorney’s Office announced that ARVIND “MIKE” VIRA (“VIRA”), age 74, a resident of New Orleans, Louisiana, pled guilty today to a years-long conspiracy with First NBC Bank president Ashton J. Ryan to defraud the New Orleans-based bank that failed in April 2017.

According to court documents, in 2006, Ryan lobbied VIRA to move his business accounts to First NBC Bank.  VIRA agreed and became a customer of First NBC Bank.  Thereafter, Ryan provided VIRA with preferential treatment.  Although VIRA was assigned another loan officer, Ryan acted as his de facto loan officer at the bank.  Ryan provided VIRA with low interest rates for VIRA’s loans.  He also ensured that VIRA received high interest rates on his savings and checking accounts.  Ryan personally approved 3% interest rates for savings and checking accounts held by VIRA, his businesses, and his family members.  Ryan instructed VIRA to inflate his assets on bank loan documents, and VIRA complied by claiming to have substantial real estate and outside bank accounts that did not exist.

VIRA, in turn, provided personal loans to Ryan at Ryan’s request.  Ryan, knowing that such a loan relationship was prohibited by banking regulations, instructed VIRA to conceal this personal loan relationship from First NBC Bank employees.  During an FDIC regulatory exam in December 2012, FDIC examiners discovered that Ryan had borrowed money from First NBC Bank using VIRA’s loan proceeds. When examiners questioned him, Ryan admitted to their relationship, but claimed that he had not been aware that the source of the funds were First NBC Bank loan proceeds.

In order to further conceal the loans that he made to Ryan, VIRA misrepresented or omitted the interest payments he received from Ryan on his personal tax returns from 2011 through 2015.  From 2011 through 2017, VIRA received approximately $1,220,271.07 in profits from Ryan’s interest payments and from Ryan’s preferential treatment at First NBC Bank.

“The FBI and our law enforcement partners have dedicated significant time and resources toward investigating the failure of FNBC, which resulted in nearly a billion dollar loss to the FDIC. Individuals like Mr. Vira who engage in fraudulent schemes that impact the security of financial institutions are being held accountable. His guilty plea today should be a deterrent to others who would attempt to defraud our nation’s banking system,” said Bryan Vorndran, FBI New Orleans Special Agent in Charge.

“We are pleased to work with our law enforcement partners in bringing to justice those who conspire to defraud financial institutions regulated and supervised by the Federal Reserve Board,” said Stephen Donnelly, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Eastern Region, Office of Inspector General for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection.

“We are pleased to join our law enforcement colleagues in bringing Mr. Vira to justice,” stated Laurie Younger, Special Agent in Charge of the Office of Inspector General for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

VIRA pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 371 and 1344.  The maximum penalties that may be imposed at sentencing are five years in prison; a fine of $250,000 or the greater of twice the gain to VIRA or twice the loss to any victim; and up to three years of supervised release.

U.S. District Judge Nannette Jolivette Brown set VIRA’s sentencing for January 7, 2020.

This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Office of Inspector General; and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sharan E. Lieberman, Matthew R. Payne, Nicholas D. Moses, and J. Ryan McLaren are in charge of the prosecution.

ST. LOUIS, MO – Chief United States District Judge Rodney W. Sippel sentenced Roy William Burris, Jr., 40, of Paramount, California, to 25 years in prison for his role in a conspiracy to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine.

On February 12, 2020, at the conclusion of a 10-day jury trial, Burris was found guilty of the crime of conspiracy to distribute cocaine, and the jury further found that the quantity of cocaine involved in the conspiracy attributable to Burris was five kilograms or more.

Trial evidence established that this was an organized crime conspiracy in which Burris and others purchased hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of cocaine in multi-kilogram amounts for further distribution and sale.  As part of the conspiracy, Burris, operating in Southern California and elsewhere, obtained bulk quantities of cocaine from suppliers with ties to the Sinaloa Cartel.  Burris then organized multi-kilogram sales of cocaine to others for further distribution.

Burris was originally arrested at the Long Beach Airport in California on February 29, 2016, en route to St. Louis, carrying a loaded handgun, seven cellular phones, drug ledgers reflecting hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of drug transactions, and other indicia of drug trafficking.  Following his release in California, Burris continued to traffic cocaine and was arrested again on March 30, 2016, in Hawaiian Gardens, California, in possession of 5 kilograms of cocaine and approximately $150,000 in U.S. Currency.   Burris was again released and ultimately traveled to Culiacán, Mexico, to meet with members of the Sinaloa Cartel about distributing bulk amounts of cocaine in St. Louis, Missouri.  On September 7, 2016, Burris, along with other members of the conspiracy, succeeded in having approximately 10 kilograms of cocaine shipped via UPS to the Silver Lining bar in South St. Louis.  DEA agents were able to successfully intercept the shipment, and Burris was subsequently arrested in California.

At the sentencing hearing, Chief Judge Sippel discussed the seriousness of the offense, including the immeasurable and tragic consequences of Burris’s distribution of over 100 kilograms of cocaine into American communities, and noting the countless families who have lost a loved one to addiction and illegal drugs.

At the time Burris participated in the instant conspiracy, he was on probation for a prior drug trafficking offense committed in Kentucky.

This case was investigated by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, specifically DEA Chicago, DEA St. Louis, DEA Los Angeles; the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department; LA IMPACT (Los Angeles Interagency Metropolitan Police Apprehension Crime Task Force); California State Highway Patrol; ICE (Homeland Security Investigations, Los Angeles, CA); U.S. Customs and Border Protection (San Ysidro, CA); and the Long Beach Police Department.  This case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri with assistance from the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois.

EUGENE, Ore.—U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williams announced today that a Colorado man has been charged with a hate crime after stabbing a Black man from Ontario, Oregon while the man was sitting in a fast food restaurant.

A federal grand jury in Eugene has returned a one-count indictment charging Nolan Levi Strauss, 26, a Colorado resident, with a hate crime involving an attempt to kill.

According to the indictment, on the morning of December 21, 2019, a 48-year-old Black man arrived at an Arby’s fast food restaurant adjoining the Pilot Travel Center in Ontario where he planned to provide final documentation for a pending job application. The man sat in the lobby of the restaurant while waiting for the manager.

Unprovoked and without warning, Strauss approached the man from behind and stabbed him in the neck. Following a struggle for the knife, the man freed himself and Strauss was detained by store employees. When asked by the store employee why he attacked the man, Strauss stated he did so because the man “was Black, and I don’t like Black people.”

The stabbing resulted in two lacerations to the victim’s neck. Afterward, he was life-flighted to Boise, Idaho for emergency surgical intervention.

Strauss will make his first appearance in federal court on October 19, 2020. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of life in federal prison.

This case was investigated by the FBI with assistance from the Ontario Police Department, Oregon State Police, and the Malheur County District Attorney’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Gavin W. Bruce, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon, and Cameron A. Bell, Trial Attorney for the Civil Rights Division.

An indictment is only an accusation of a crime, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

GREAT FALLS – A California man who admitted to trafficking meth for supplying almost two pounds of the drug, which was drug hidden in a peanut butter jar and a piñata and mailed to the Fort Peck Indian Reservation, was sentenced today to six years in prison and five years of supervised release, U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme said.

Don Fred Baldwin, 47, of Merced, CA, pleaded guilty in May to distribution of meth.

Chief U.S. District Judge Brian Morris presided.

The prosecution said in court documents that Baldwin, through another person, mailed a package on Nov. 7, 2019 from California to Brockton, located on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation. Law enforcement officers intercepted the package, obtained a search warrant and found meth hidden inside a jar of peanut butter and a piñata. The amount of meth totaled about 776 grams, which is 1.7 pounds and the equivalent of approximately 6,208 doses. Baldwin provided the meth to the other individual, who mailed the drug.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Cassady Adams prosecuted the case, which was investigated by the FBI, Fort Peck Tribal Criminal Investigators and the Merced, CA, Police Department.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a U.S. Department of Justice initiative to reduce violent crime. According to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports, violent crime in Montana increased by 36% from 2013 to 2018. Through PSN, federal, tribal, state and local law enforcement partners in Montana focus on violent crime driven by methamphetamine trafficking, armed robbers, firearms offenses and violent offenders with outstanding warrants.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A former emergency medical technician at Mercy Medical Center pleaded guilty in federal court today to stealing fentanyl and hydromorphone from dozens of vials used by ambulances in Carthage and Mount Vernon, Missouri, and replacing the drugs with saline or water solution.

“A former paramedic abused his position of trust by stealing and diluting drugs that were meant to ease the pain of those he was responsible to aid in an emergency,” Garrison said. “He should rightly be held to a high standard, and will be held accountable for his criminal actions.”

“The FDA oversees the U.S. drug supply to ensure that they are safe and effective, and those who knowingly tamper with medicines put patients’ health at risk,” said Special Agent in Charge Charles L. Grinstead, FDA Office of Criminal Investigations Kansas City Field Office. “We will continue to protect the public health and bring to justice health care professionals who take advantage of their unique position and compromise their patients’ health and comfort by tampering with needed drugs.”

James Poole, 37, of Webb City, Missouri, waived his right to a grand jury and pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge David P. Rush to a federal information that charges him with one count of tampering with a consumer product.

On Jan. 23, 2020, paramedics with Mercy Medical Center in Carthage, Mo., noticed what appeared to be puncture marks on a fentanyl vial that was being used to administer the pain-killing medication to a patient. Paramedics then reported a second incident in which they drew fentanyl from a vial, into a syringe, and observed that there was not enough fluid in the vial to administer a dose to the patient.

The remaining narcotics in the ambulances and the office stock were examined by officials at Mercy Carthage EMS, who observed that the fentanyl and hydromorphone on the ambulances and in the office stock appeared to have visible signs of tampering. The Mount Vernon Mercy EMS facility supplies were also examined since the facility is a sister ambulance location to the Carthage facility, with the same paramedics working at both locations. Officials observed signs of tampering for one fentanyl vial that were similar to those observed at the Carthage facility.

On the same day, officials with Mercy Medical Center in Springfield, Mo., contacted the Federal Drug Administration-Office of Criminal Investigations. Mercy Medical Center officials reported that 26 fentanyl and 43 hydromorphone vials appeared to have physical signs of tampering. Officials with Mercy Medical Center had the vials that were identified as being tampered with tested, and lab reports revealed that the vials had some of their original contents replaced with either saline or water solution.

Supervisors and other personnel were drug tested on the date the tampering was discovered, and Poole tested positive for norfentanyl, an analog of fentanyl.

Poole admitted that he was an opioid addict and had been since he was injured in an ambulance accident in December 2018. Poole admitted that he tampered with and stole 50mcg fentanyl on an EMS call that he responded to approximately three weeks earlier, on Jan. 1, 2020, before the additional tampering was discovered and he was drug tested. Poole admitted he documented giving a patient with abdominal pain 100 mcg of fentanyl, but tampered with the dosage by only administered 50 mcg to the patient. Poole stole the syringe with the remaining narcotic and injected himself with the remaining fentanyl after his shift.

Under federal statutes, Poole is subject to a sentence of up to 10 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Carney. It was investigated by the Food and Drug Administration – Office of Criminal Investigations.

BILLINGS—A Laurel man was arraigned today on an indictment alleging he attempted to illegally obtain $35,000 from the Paycheck Protection Program, a federal loan program created through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act to help businesses struggling with the financial effects of the coronavirus pandemic, U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme said today.

Matthew Jason Welch, 38, pleaded not guilty to two counts of wire fraud as charged in an indictment filed on Aug. 21. An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed, and defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Wire fraud carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release.

The indictment against Welch is the first PPP fraud case to be charged in Montana.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Timothy J. Cavan presided. Welch was released pending further proceedings.

The indictment alleges Welch attempted to unjustly enrich himself by submitting an application on April 23 to obtain a PPP loan under false and misleading pretenses by making false statements about his criminal history. It is also alleged he intended to use the loan proceeds to pay for restitution and other costs related to pending criminal cases against him. The indictment further alleges that Welch, in the name of Welch Sole Proprietorship, sought $35,000 in PPP funds to support payroll, lease and mortgage-interest costs and utility costs and that he falsely certified he was not subject to criminal charges.