Investigative Press Releases
Monday, April 5, 2021
Defendant sentenced for conspiracy to fake his wife’s death at the New River Gorge
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Raleigh County man received a sentence of eight months of confinement for his role in a conspiracy to obstruct justice. Rodney Wheeler, 48, of Beckley, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to obstruct justice on January 5, 2021. He was ordered to serve two months of incarceration in federal prison, to be followed by six months of home confinement and then three years of supervised release.
Monday, April 5, 2021
Ocala, FL – Acting United States Attorney Karin Hoppmann announces the return of an indictment charging Wayne Grant, Jr. (27, Orlando) with receipt of a bribe by a public official. If convicted, Grant faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in federal prison.
Monday, April 5, 2021
BILLINGS — A federal jury on April 2 convicted the former chairwoman of the Montana Native Women’s Coalition of crimes related to unapproved spending of federal grant funds, including travel to Las Vegas, Nevada, Acting U.S. Attorney Leif Johnson said.
Monday, April 5, 2021
BOSTON – A Fitchburg woman was sentenced today in federal court in Worcester for fraudulently receiving Social Security disability benefits, MassHealth and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits.
Monday, April 5, 2021
BOSTON – A Cambridge woman was arrested today and charged with stealing Social Security benefits and committing wire fraud to receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (“SNAP”) benefits, formerly known as Food Stamps.
Shirley Buchanan, 66, was indicted on one count of theft of public funds and three counts of wire fraud. She is scheduled to make an initial appearance today before U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge Jennifer Boal this afternoon.
Monday, April 5, 2021
Greenbelt, Maryland – A criminal complaint has been filed charging Rudolph Brooks, Jr., age 45, of Cheltenham, Maryland, on the federal charge of wire fraud. In addition, law enforcement obtained warrants authorizing the seizure of more than $2.2 million held in various bank accounts, as well as a 2018 Tesla Model 3. The criminal complaint was filed on March 29, 2021 and was unsealed following Brooks’s arrest on April 2, 2021.
Sunday, April 4, 2021
PROVIDENCE – A Dominican national living in Pawtucket faces between seven and fifty-seven years in federal prison after admitting to a federal court judge that in addition to operating a drug stash house and arranging for the sale of fentanyl on at least four occasions, he used the identity of an individual unknown to him, including the person’s Social Security number and other personal identifying information, to gain Rhode Island Medicaid benefits and Rhode Island driver’s licenses and permits.
Friday, April 2, 2021
WASHINGTON – Paul Michael Guertin (“Guertin”), 40, of Arizona and former resident of Washington, DC, was indicted on March 29, 2021 by a federal grand jury in the District of Columbia for wire fraud and obstructing an official proceeding. The indictment was announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips and Special Agent in Charge Elisabeth Heller, of the U.S. Department of State, Office of Inspector General.
Friday, April 2, 2021
WASHINGTON – Angelita Aipoalani, 42, of Waianae, Hawaii, pled guilty on April 1, 2021 in federal court to conspiring with her husband, Hanalei Aipoalani, to embezzle $69,000 from AmeriCorps and to fraudulently obtain more than $11,000 in AmeriCorps education grants.
The announcement was made by Acting U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips, Deborah Jeffrey, Inspector General of AmeriCorps, and Eli S. Miranda Special Agent in Charge, FBI Honolulu Field Office.