SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment today against Walter Smith, 68, of Nevada City, charging him with attempted coercion and enticement and receipt of child pornography, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. According to court documents, between April 1, 2023, and April 13, 2023, using the Kik cellphone app, Smith […]
DOJ Eastern District of California
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Leader of Nevada City-Based Mortgage Fraud Scheme Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — James Christopher Castle, 57, formerly of Petaluma, was sentenced today to 15 years in prison for a bank fraud scheme that sought to fraudulently eliminate home mortgages and then profit on the subsequent home sales, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. On Aug. 2, 2021, a jury found Castle guilty of 35 […]
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Arsonist Indicted for Setting Fires Behind Firefighters Fighting Dixie Fire
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a five-count indictment today against Gary Stephen Maynard, 47, of San Jose, charging him with arson to federal property and setting timber afire, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. According to court documents, Maynard engaged in an arson spree in the vicinity of the then ongoing […]
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DC Solar Owner Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison for Billion Dollar Ponzi Scheme
SACRAMENTO, Calif. November 10, 2021 – An owner of DC Solar, a Benicia-based company, was sentenced yesterday for a billion-dollar Ponzi scheme— the biggest criminal fraud scheme in the history of the Eastern District of California, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez sentenced Jeff Carpoff, 50, of Martinez, […]
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Jury Convicts Leader of Nevada City-Based Mortgage Fraud Scheme
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — On Monday, a federal jury found James Christopher Castle, 57, formerly of Petaluma, guilty of 35 counts in a bank fraud scheme that sought to fraudulently eliminate home mortgages and then profit on the subsequent home sales, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. This was the first jury trial in the […]
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Woman Pleads Guilty to Arson in the Tahoe National Forest in Yuba County
SACRAMENTO, Calif. January 12, 2021 – Sharon Ann Perkins, 39, pleaded guilty today to setting fire to lands owned by the United States, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. According to court documents, on Sept. 15, 2020, Perkins intentionally set two wildland fires in the Tahoe National Forest near Camptonville in Yuba County. At the […]
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Rocklin Business Owners Charged with Laundering over $1 Million in Drug Money
SACRAMENTO, Calif. October 15, 2020 – A federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment today against Daniel Stewart, 56, of Lincoln, and Luke Burroughs, 56, of Rocklin, charging them with money laundering and money laundering conspiracy, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. According to court documents, Stewart and Burroughs own and operate Western Baler and Conveyor, […]
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Redding Man Charged with Serial Arson in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest
SACRAMENTO, Calif. October 14, 2020 — Eric Michael Smith, 38, of Redding, has been charged with setting fire to lands owned by the United States, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. According to court documents, between June 23, and July 29, 2020, Smith allegedly set four wildland fires on the Shasta-Trinity National Forest within Shasta […]
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Grass Valley and Placer County men indicted for Fentanyl trafficking conspiracy in Placer County and other narcotics offenses
SACRAMENTO, Calif. July 23, 2020 – A federal grand jury returned a five-count indictment today against Steven Lawrence Robinson, 34, of Granite Bay, and Nathaniel Opondo Hubbert, 39, of Grass Valley, charging them with a conspiracy to possess and distribute fentanyl and other narcotics offenses, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. According to court documents, between June […]
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Federal Government Warns of Potential Fraud Scams Surrounding COVID-19 Economic Impact Payments
SACRAMENTO, Calif. April 2, 2020 — The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California and the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) is warning California taxpayers to be alert about possible scams relating to COVID-19 economic impact payments. U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott and Kareem Carter, Special Agent in Charge IRS […]
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Aryan Brotherhood Charged with Racketeering for Directing Murders, Crimes in CA Prisons
SACRAMENTO, Calif. June 6, 2019 — Sixteen members and associates of a prison-based gang have been charged after a long-running investigation into drug trafficking and murders inside and outside of California’s prisons. Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott, and Special Agent in Charge Chris Nielsen […]
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Grass Valley man sentenced for child pornography and online child enticement crimes
SACRAMENTO, Calif. May 17, 2019 – Samuel C. Thompson, 34, of Grass Valley, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. to 10 years and four months in prison for receipt of child pornography and attempting to use the internet to entice a child to engage in sexual activity, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. […]
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South Lake Tahoe Man Sentenced to Prison for Destruction of Archaeological Sites
SACRAMENTO, Calif. February 26, 2019 – Timothy Brian Harrison, 50, of South Lake Tahoe, was sentenced today by United States District Judge John A. Mendez to one year and one day in prison and ordered to pay $113,000 in restitution for two counts of excavation and removal of archaeological resources from public lands and one […]
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Sierra Pacific Mortgage Agrees to Pay $3.67 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations re: FHA Loan Program
SACRAMENTO, Calif. Feb. 13, 2019 — U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced today that Sierra Pacific Mortgage Company Inc. (SPM), a national mortgage lender headquartered in Folsom, has agreed to pay the United States $3,670,000 to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by falsely certifying compliance with Federal Housing Administration (FHA) mortgage […]
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Member of Nevada City-based conspiracy sentenced to over 7 years in prison for multi-million dollar bank and title fraud scheme
SACRAMENTO, Calif. September 24, 2018 – Larry Allen Todt, 66, formerly of Malibu, was sentenced to over seven years in prison and ordered to pay over $3,000,000 in restitution for his role in a fraudulent mortgage elimination scheme, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. On December 6, 2017, Todt was convicted following trial on one […]
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Nevada County man found in possession of 1,283 pounds of marijuana is charged in interstate marijuana trafficking conspiracy
SACRAMENTO, Calif. March 22, 2018 – A federal grand jury returned a three-count indictment today against Jose Gregorio Luna, 33, of Nevada City, charging him with conspiracy to distribute marijuana, possession with intent to distribute marijuana, and manufacturing marijuana, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. According to court documents, Luna operated an interstate marijuana trafficking […]
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KMART Corporation pays $525,000 to settle false claims act allegations of improper Medi-Cal billings
SACRAMENTO, Calif. March 9, 2018 – Kmart Corporation has paid $525,000 to resolve allegations that it violated the federal False Claims Act when it knowingly submitted claims for reimbursement to California’s Medi‑Cal program that were not supported by applicable diagnosis and documentation requirements, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced yesterday. Kmart is an Illinois corporation […]
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Dark web gun trafficker from Grass Valley indicted for unlawful dealing in firearms and possession of unregistered firearms
SACRAMENTO, Calif. March 1, 2018 – A federal grand jury returned a nine-count indictment today against Michael Paul Grisham Smith, 44, of Grass Valley, charging him with unlawful dealing and manufacturing in firearms and unlawful possession of unregistered firearms, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. According to court documents, Smith contacted a firearms vendor on […]
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Physician practicing in Grass Valley and Yuba City sentenced to over 4 years in prison for illegal prescription practice
SACRAMENTO, Calif. February 22, 2018 – A formerly licensed physician, Nicholas J. Capos Jr., 67, of Yuba City, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Morrison C. England Jr. to four years and four months in prison for selling prescriptions of controlled substances such as oxycodone and methadone, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. “By […]
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Soper-Wheeler Company To Pay $1.7 Million In Settlement For Plumas National Forest Fire
SACRAMENTO, Calif. February 3, 2017 – Soper-Wheeler Company LLC has agreed to pay $1.7 million to settle a lawsuit brought by the United States for damages resulting from a 2009 wildfire that burned 307 acres of national forest land, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced today. The fire, known as the “Silver Fire,” ignited on September […]