Two Additional Defendants Plead Guilty In Nationwide Racketeering Conspiracy Targeting The Elderly

The U.S. Attorney’s Office Southern District of California released the below information: 

SAN DIEGO – Two more members of a nationwide “grandparent scam” network have pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act known as RICO.

Lyda Harris of Laveen, Arizona, pleaded guilty in federal court today; Tracy Glinton of Orlando, Florida, pleaded guilty on June 9, 2022. They are the fifth and sixth of eight defendants to plead guilty; two remain fugitives.

According to court documents, the defendants were members and associates of a criminal enterprise that engaged in extortion and fraud to swindle more than $2 million from 70-plus elderly victims across the nation.  At least 10 elderly victims who resided in San Diego County lost over $300,000 to the fraud.  From approximately November 1, 2019, until October 14, 2020, the members of the criminal enterprise targeted elderly Americans, contacting them by phone and feeding them phony stories that their grandchildren were in legal trouble and needed money to pay for bail, pay medical expenses for car accident victims, or prevent additional charges from being filed. Members and associates obtained money from victims through in-person cash pick-ups, by mail or commercial carriers, or via wire transfers. Conspirators laundered the proceeds by transferring the funds or converting from fiat currency to cryptocurrency.

Defendant Lyda Harris was arrested in the Republic of Albania in August 2021 and extradited to the United States.  According to Harris’s plea agreement, she received and funneled victim proceeds for a coconspirator to convert from fiat currency to cryptocurrency.  As part of the guilty plea, Harris agreed to forfeit $6,243 in proceeds she personally received from the offense.  Harris will also be subject to an order of restitution to the victims of the offense in the amount of at least $1,208,291.93.

According to defendant Tracy Glinton’s plea agreement, Glinton’s primary role was helping codefendant Tracy Knowles receive proceeds from coconspirators who obtained victim money.  Glinton knew that the money she received for Knowles constituted proceeds of grandparent scams.  In their phone messages, Glinton and Knowles discussed the “grandma scam.”  As part of her guilty plea, Glinton agreed to forfeit $9,950 in proceeds she personally received from the offense and pay at least $471,600 to the victims in restitution.

“The defendants participated in a sophisticated conspiracy that exploited our nation’s most vulnerable citizens,” said U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman. “The elderly victims were financially and emotionally shattered by these heartless crimes. Fortunately, the coordinated efforts of our prosecution team and law enforcement partners held the defendants accountable and obtained justice for their victims.”  Grossman commended the Assistant U.S. Attorney and law enforcement agents who diligently pursued this matter.  

“Scammers continue to target our elderly population at an ever-increasing rate across the country. These defendants intentionally preyed upon and systematically stole from their victims without a second thought,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Stacey Moy. “Today’s guilty pleas send a clear message that the FBI is committed to identifying, investigating, and bringing to justice those who are committing financial crimes. The FBI will continue to work with our partners on the San Diego’s Elder Justice Task Force to protect our elders.”

This case was investigated by the San Diego Elder Justice Task Force, which is a collaboration between the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the FBI, the District Attorney’s Office and all San Diego County law enforcement agencies. The Elder Justice Task Force, established in February 2021, is believed to be the first comprehensive law enforcement effort for this purpose anywhere in the country. The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Branch.

DEFENDANTS                                             Case Number 21cr2216-CAB                                       

Tracy Adrine Knowles                                   30        Orlando, Florida

Fugitive                                                      

Adonis Alexis Butler Wong                           30        Northbay Village, Florida

Fugitive

Timothy Ingram, AKA Bleezy                       29        North Hollywood, California

In custody.  Sentencing set for July 29, 2022.                                                                                              

Anajah Gifford                                                23        North Hollywood, California

In custody.  Sentencing set for August 26, 2022.

Lyda Harris                                                     74        Laveen, Arizona

Released on bond. Sentencing set for September 30, 2022.

Joaquin Lopez                                                 46        Hollywood, Florida

Released on bond. Sentencing set for August 19, 2022

Jack Owuor                                                     25        Paramount, California                                           

Released on bond.  Sentencing set for August 17, 2022. 

Tracy Glinton                                                 35        Orlando, Florida

Released on bond. Sentencing set for September 2, 2022.

SUMMARY OF CHARGES

Title 18, U.S.C., Sec. 1962(d) – Conspiracy to Conduct or Participate in an Enterprise

Through a Pattern of Racketeering Activity

Maximum penalty: Twenty years in prison and a fine of not more than the greater of twice the amount of gain or loss associated with the offense or $250,000

AGENCIES

Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Branch

San Diego Elder Justice Task Force, which includes:

San Diego FBI

San Diego County District Attorney’s Office

San Diego Police Department

San Diego Sheriff’s Department

Carlsbad Police Department

Oceanside Police Department

Escondido Police Department

Chula Vista Police Department

El Cajon Police Department

La Mesa Police Department

National City Police Department

Coronado Police Department

 

 

 

 

David Keene: Good Guys With Guns: Concealed Carry Saves Lives

David Keene, the editor-at-large at the Washington Times, where my On Crime column regularly appears, offers a piece on good guys with guns. 

On May 24, trained police stood by for an hour while a crazed gunman killed 19 students and two teachers in a Uvalde, Texas, school.

 

Weeks later, a 22-year-old Hoosier saw another young man gunning down shoppers at an Indiana mall. Within seconds, he got others to safety while drawing his own gun and expertly shooting the terrorist. Not surprisingly, it is little wonder that a recent opinion poll revealed that far more Americans have faith in an armed civilian to stop a mass shooting than in either local or federal law enforcement officers.

 

The Trafalgar Group poll was actually taken days before young hero Eli Dicken carried his newly legal Glock into the mall. Indiana had just adopted what is called a “constitutional carry law,” enabling law-abiding gun owners to carry a concealed firearm without a special license or permit, thanks to the Supreme Court decisions that make these laws more likely. The poll results might well have been even starker now.

 

The national poll showed that 41.8% of respondents have more faith in a nearby armed civilian, while only 25.1% would trust the police under such circumstances, and 10.3% of those surveyed who would have more faith in a federal agent. Another 22.8% rather fatalistically seemed to believe that none of these “good guys” with a gun would be able to do much to stop a “bad guy” with a gun.

 

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

Good guys with guns: Concealed carry saves lives - Washington Times 

U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland Called Mexico’s Secretary of Foreign Affairs Marcelo Ebrard Casaubon to Discuss the Extradition of Rafael Caro-Quintero

 On Friday, U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland spoke by phone with Mexico’s Secretary of Foreign Affairs Marcelo Ebrard Casaubon. The two leaders previously met in Mexico City during the first U.S.-Mexico High-Level Security Dialogue (HLSD). During today’s call, Attorney General Garland expressed his gratitude to Secretary Ebrard and the Government of Mexico for successfully arresting Rafael Caro-Quintero. The Attorney General also offered his condolences to the families and loved ones of the Mexican servicemembers who gave their lives in service to their country last week. The two leaders reaffirmed their shared commitment to working expeditiously on the extradition of Caro-Quintero, who is wanted in the United States on a number of criminal charges, including his alleged involvement in the kidnapping and murder of Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena in 1985.

A Little Humor: I'm A Writer

 

Bristol PA Fire Chief Receives Award From American Legion Department Of Pennsylvania

I was pleased to read that Herb Slack received the "Firefighter of the Year" award from the American Legion.

I knew and worked with Herb Slack back when he was the Naval Support Activity’s safety officer, and later the security officer, at the naval base in Northeast Philadelphia.

I was at the time the administrative officer of a Defense Department tenant command on the naval base, and as I oversaw security and safety programs for the command, I often worked with Herb Slack on base safety and security issues. I also served with him on several inter-agency committees.          

Levittownnow.com offers a report on the award:

The American Legion Department of Pennsylvania presented Bristol Borough Fire Chief Herb Slack with an award Saturday at their annual statewide convention in Harrisburg.

Slack, who has spent his life in the fire service, was awarded the 2022 Firefighter of the Year Award from the Pennsylvania chapter of the organization.

Slack was nominated by the Levittown Memorial American Legion Post 960 in Middletown Township’s Levittown section for the award and was selected from all nominations across the state. 

Slack joined the fire service at 16 and worked his way through Bristol Borough’s service with roles as a captain, assistant chief and was first elected chief in 1975.

Slack has served as Bristol Borough’s fire marshal and was appointed borough-wide chief in 2005. He has command over all fire operations within the borough.

“Chief Slack also served his community as a social studies teacher, a local coach and retired after 33 years from a civil service position with the U.S. Department of the Navy having worked at the Philadelphia Navy Yard and the Naval Support Activity Philadelphia,” a statement said.

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

Bristol Fire Chief Receives Award From American Legion Department Of Pennsylvania - LevittownNow.com  

Celebrating 40 Years At The Washington Times: An important, Contrarian Voice In The Media Landscape

Like Michael McKenna, I too am proud to be a contributor to the Washington Times. 

I’ve been a contributor to the Washington Times since 2012, offering op-eds, book reviews and a regular On Crime column. 

Unlike most daily newspapers, the Washington Times offers fair news coverage and four full pages of conservative commentary. The Washington Times is a national newspaper, which is read across the country online or in subscription digital form.   

In his column, Michael McKenna looks back at the newspaper’s’40 years. 

On May 16, 1982, the media world was dominated by the editors and other gatekeepers at just a handful of major media organizations. 

The New York Times routinely set the national agenda, the television networks built their news broadcasts around those stories, and other participants in the legacy media followed their lead. These gatekeepers, monochromatic in tone, temperament, beliefs, experience and education, were a pretty well-run conspiracy against the American public and a bulwark against any threat of a truly operational first amendment. 

The next day, May 17, 1982, The Washington Times published its first edition and helped change all of that. 

To those who came of age after the ubiquity of the internet and the absolute immediacy of communication, it is difficult to imagine how revolutionary, how transformative, how important The Washington Times was and is. For those of us who came of age in the 1970s and 1980s, however, it is easy to remember the thunderbolt that was the creation of The Washington Times. 

For the first time in a generation, the information monopoly — dominated by New York print and television outlets — was challenged. 

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

Celebrating 40 years at The Washington Times - Washington Times  

You can also read my On Crime columns via the below link:

Paul Davis On Crime: My Washington Times 'On Crime' Columns 

And you can read my many op-eds and book reviews via the below link:

Paul Davis On Crime: My Washington Times Op-Eds And Book Reviews   

I Agree With Mike