Nine Charged In Interstate Human Trafficking Conspiracy

The U.S. Justice Department released the below information:

PANAMA CITY, FL—A federal grand jury returned a 32-count indictment charging nine defendants, all residing in the United States illegally, in an interstate human trafficking case. The defendants were arrested yesterday in the Northern District of Florida and other locations. Their initial appearances in federal court took place yesterday and today. The indictment was announced by Christopher P. Canova, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

The defendants are:

• Edegardo Osorno Rodriguez, 37, Santa Rosa Beach, Florida;
• Antonio Flores-Esparza, 31, Pensacola, Florida;
• Jose Juan Ruiz Prudencio, 40, Montgomery, Alabama;
• Jose Alvaro Trujillo-Santiz, 45, Panama City Beach, Florida;
• Rosa Mirtha Cruz Vidal, 34, Santa Rosa Beach, Florida;
• Mauro Gonzalez-Lira, 24, McComb, Mississippi;
• Romon Tobon, 45, Starkville, Mississippi;
• Lazaro Juarez-Juarez, 33, Atlanta, Georgia; and
• Emerson Corvera, 30, Montgomery, Alabama.

The indictment alleges that, between July 2014 and August 2015, the defendants engaged in a conspiracy to transport, harbor, and market female aliens for prostitution in Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana, and thereafter, wired the prostitution proceeds outside the United States. In addition to the conspiracy, the defendants are also charged with: 13 counts of enticing individuals to travel in interstate commerce to engage in prostitution; 4 counts of money laundering; 7 counts of transporting individuals in interstate commerce to engage in prostitution; 6 counts of harboring an alien for the purpose of prostitution; and illegal entry by a deported alien. The trial is scheduled for January 4, 2016, at 8:15 a.m.

As part of this investigation, federal agents executed six search warrants yesterday at the following locations: two in Pensacola, one in Santa Rosa Beach, one in Panama City Beach, one in Montgomery, Alabama, and one in Laurel, Mississippi.

This case resulted from a 15 month investigation into human trafficking activities in the Northern District of Florida by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI)-Panama City Resident Agent in Charge. It is a follow-up prosecution to a previous kidnapping case prosecuted in federal court in Panama City. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Stephen M. Kunz and Kathryn D. Risinger.

An indictment is merely an allegation by a grand jury that a defendant has committed a violation of federal criminal law and is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. The office strives to protect and serve the citizens of the Northern District of Florida through the ethical, vigorous, and impartial enforcement of the laws of the United States, to defend the national security, to improve the safety and quality of life in our communities through the protection of civil rights, and to protect the public funds and financial assets of the United States. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.

Mexican National Sentenced To 5 Years For Participating In A Brutal Family-Run Sex Trafficking Organization

The U.S. Justice Department released the below information:

The Department of Justice today announced that United States District Judge Jose E. Martinez of the Southern District of Florida sentenced defendant Carmen Cadena, 48, a Mexican national, to serve five years in prison for her role in a brutal family-run sex trafficking organization.  The defendant shall also be ordered to pay restitution and hearing is set on August 10, 2015 to determine the amount.

The defendant pleaded guilty on Jan. 26, 2015, for her role in furthering the criminal conspiracy to lure vulnerable, undocumented Mexican women and girls—some as young as 14 years old—into the United States on false promises of legitimate jobs.  Members of the Cadena organization would then use force and violence, sexual assaults and threats to harm to the victims and their families to compel the victims to engage in prostitution in South Florida, 12 hours a day, six days a week and turn over the proceeds to the defendants in order to pay smuggling debts the defendants imposed.  When victims ran away, members of the Cadena organization searched for them and subjected them to beatings and rapes upon capture. 

Sixteen defendants were charged in a superseding indictment filed in 1998.  Mexican authorities arrested Cadena and extradited her to the U.S. in December 2014.  Five other family members have been convicted, including Cadena’s husband, Juan Luis Cadena-Sosa, who pleaded guilty in 2008 and was sentenced to 15 years; Cadena’s uncle-in-law, Rogerio Cadena, who pleaded guilty in 1999 and was sentenced to 15 years; and three of Cadena’s brothers-in-law, Abel Cadena-Sosa, who was convicted in Mexico and sentenced to 24 years, and Hugo and Rafael Cadena-Sosa, who pleaded guilty in 2002 and 2014, and were sentenced to five years and 15 years respectively.

Six other defendants previously pleaded guilty in federal court in connection with the scheme, and one was convicted in state court for a murder outside a Cadena-run brothel.

“Today’s sentence marks the culmination of our long fight for justice over the past 16 years on behalf of the young women and girls whose lives were torn apart by the unspeakable violations they endured at the hands of their traffickers,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta of the Civil Rights Division.  “The relentlessness of our efforts is rivaled only by the courage the survivors demonstrated in coming forward and partnering with us for over a decade to see the perpetrators brought to justice.  We are humbled by their resilience and resolve, and we are unwavering in our commitment to combating modern-day slavery.”

“Since 1998, the U.S. Attorney’s Office has worked tirelessly with international, federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to bring to justice sixteen defendants who preyed on vulnerable women and children through documented violence and horrific sexual abuse,” said U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida.  “Today’s sentencing of Defendant Carmen Cadena allowed those who were exploited to bear witness to justice.”

“The sentencing of Carmela Cadena concludes a significant investigation of human trafficking and civil rights violations that included the investigative efforts and collaboration of several federal, state and local law enforcement agencies,” said Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of the FBI’s Miami Field Office.  “This investigation brought to an end a brutal family-run sex trafficking organization and helped raise awareness about human trafficking and involuntary servitude in the form of forced prostitution.”

Acting Assistant Attorney General Gupta and United States Attorney Ferrer praised the collaborative efforts of multiple law enforcement agencies involved throughout the investigations and subsequent prosecutions over the years, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Homeland Security’s Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, West Palm Beach Police Department, Okeechobee County Sheriff’s Office, Fort Pierce Police Department, Avon Park Police Department, Boynton Beach Police Department, and Lee County Sheriff’s Office.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Adam McMichael and Trial Attorney Matthew Grady of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit.

Ten Members And Associates Of New Jersey's Decavalcante Organized Crime Family Arrested

The U.S. Attorney's Office District of New Jersey released the below information:

NEWARK, N.J. – Ten members and associates of the DeCavalcante organized crime family of La Cosa Nostra were arrested today and charged with various plots to commit murder, distribute drugs and run a prostitution business, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.

Charles Stango, 71, of Henderson, Nevada; Frank Nigro, 72, of Toms River, New Jersey; and Paul Colella, 68, of Toms River, were arrested this morning and charged by complaint for their roles in a plot to kill a rival gang member. Charles Stango was also charged along with his son, Anthony Stango, 33 of Brick, New Jersey, with conspiring with members of his New Jersey-based “crew” to distribute cocaine and run a prostitution business. John Capozzi, 34, of Union, New Jersey; Mario Galli, 23, of Toms River, New Jersey; and Nicholas Degidio, 37, of Union, New Jersey, were also charged with cocaine distribution.

“Though its ranks have been thinned by countless convictions and its own internal bloodletting, traditional organized crime remains a real problem,” U.S. Attorney Fishman said. “As today’s complaint shows, members and associates of a long-standing organized crime family continue to ply their illegal trade, selling dangerous drugs and illegal cigarettes, promoting prostitution and threatening to settle internal scores with violence and death.”  

“Today Newark FBI arrested 10 members of the DeCavalcante organized crime family, disrupting one of the most notorious crime families,” FBI Special Agent in Charge Richard M. Frankel said. “The FBI is confident this is a severe blow to the La Cosa Nostra family. It is also a message to La Cosa Nostra that FBI Newark will do everything possible within in its legal powers to eradicate La Cosa Nostra from New Jersey.  

“The Commission remains committed to working with all its law enforcement partners to eliminate organized crime in and around the port district,” Walter Arsenault, Executive Director of the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor, said.

According to the complaint unsealed today:

Stango, a captain in the DeCavalcante family, allegedly sought and obtained permission from Nigro, the crime family’s consigliore – or counsel – and other upper-echelon members of the crime family, to kill a rival member living in New Jersey. Colella’s role was to speak on behalf of Charles Stango to ensure the killing would be approved by other ranking members. Charles Stango discussed his plans with an undercover agent, which included hiring two members of an outlaw biker gang to shoot the rival gang member.

Charles and Anthony Stango also allegedly planned to operate a high-end escort service targeting white collar businessmen and professionals in the Toms River area. As part of the plan, their crew would establish a legal club as a front for the prostitution business in order to avoid law enforcement scrutiny.

On several occasions between Dec. 12, 2014, and March 9, 2015, Stango and various conspirators were audio or video recorded conducting drug transactions with an undercover law enforcement officer.

Authorities also arrested three members of a separate “crew” of the crime family: James Heeney, 35, of Elizabeth, New Jersey, and Rosario Pali, 35, of Linden, New Jersey, were charged with conspiring to distribute more than 500 grams of cocaine. Heeney and Pali were recorded on various occasions between Aug. 29, 2012, and March 14, 2013, providing undercover officers with quantities of cocaine in exchange for cash and counterfeit goods. Luigi Oliveri, 41, of Elizabeth, was charged with the possession of contraband cigarettes. Between June 6, 2013, and Nov. 6, 2013, Oliveri bought multiple cases of untaxed cigarettes from undercover law enforcement officers.

All of the defendants arrested in New Jersey are scheduled to appear this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark Falk in Newark federal court. Charles Stango is scheduled to appear later today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Nancy Koppe in Las Vegas, Nevada, federal court.

U.S. Attorney Fishman credited the members of the FBI’s Organized Crime Task Force under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Richard M. Frankel in Newark; the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor, under the direction of Executive Director Walter Arsenault; the Bayonne Police Department, under the direction of Chief Drew Niekrasz; and the N.J. State Commission of Investigation, under the direction of Chairman Joseph F. Scancarella, with the investigation leading to today’s charges. He also thanked the FBI’s Las Vegas office and the Union County Prosecutor’s Office for their roles in the investigation.

The government is represented by Senior Litigation Counsel V. Grady O’Malley and Assistant U.S. Attorney James Donnelly of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Organized Crime/Gangs Unit.

Congress To Probe Navy Contracting Practices And Multimillion-Dollar Bribery Scheme

The Navy Times offers a piece on Congress looking into the Navy's contracting practrices and the bribery scandal.  

SAN DIEGO — The House Oversight Committee is looking into Navy contracting practices amid a widening federal probe into a multimillion-dollar bribery scheme involving a Singapore-based defense contractor accused of offering prostitution services and pricey vacations to Navy officers.

Rep. Darrell Issa’s office said Friday that Navy Secretary Ray Mabus is expected next week to brief the committee, which the California Republican chairs.

In a Jan. 28 letter sent to Mabus, Issa asked for copies of contracts between the Navy and defense contractor Leonard Glenn Francis, since 2009. He also requested the Navy’s total expenditures on port services — food, fuel, etc. — for the last five fiscal years.

You can read the rest of the piece via the below link:

http://www.navytimes.com/article/20140131/NEWS05/301310020/Congress-looks-Navy-contracting-practices

You can also read an earlier post on the Navy's bribery scandal via the below link:

http://www.pauldavisoncrime.com/2013/11/us-navy-suspends-contractors-with.html

Pope Francis Urges Mafia To Stop Exploitation Of Others

Frances D'Emilio at the Associated Press offers a piece on Pope Francis's call for Italian organized crime to reform.

VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis paid tribute to a courageous priest murdered by the Sicilian Mafia as a martyr and urged mobsters on Sunday to abandon their evil ways, particularly the exploitation of people in trafficking rackets such as prostitution.

Francis issued his call to organized crime members to convert their hearts, a day after the beatification of the Rev. Giuseppe "Pino" Puglisi in Palermo. The Vatican honored Puglisi as a martyr in the ceremony, 20 years after he was slain in the city by mobsters for defiantly preaching against the Mafia in a neighborhood where Cosa Nostra held sway.

You can read the rest of the story the below link to Philly.com:

http://www.philly.com/philly/news/nation_world/20130526_ap_popeurgesmafiositostopexploitationofothers.html?c=r