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U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced today the first Continued Presence (CP) resource guide to assist federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial law enforcement agencies nationwide with their human trafficking investigations and prosecutions.

Irregular migration to the United States is dangerous and may carry long-term immigration consequences. The journey is especially dangerous for families and children, including teenagers.

According to court documents, HSI and VBPD first identified Marco Viscomi, 36, of Ontario, in 2012 after a father of two girls, who were 13 and 17 years old at the time, reported to VBPD that his daughters had been sexually extorted by someone they met online.

Charges in the indictment include seven murder allegations, kidnappings, numerous assaults, robberies and large-scale drug distribution.

Michelle Sunshine Betters, 44, of Tucson, Arizona, was previously indicted on three counts by a federal grand jury. The court ordered Betters detained pending trial, which is scheduled for Sept. 8.

From July 19 through July 26, law enforcement agencies with the Southeast Arizona Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (AZICAC), arrested two individuals for attempting to lure minors to engage in sexual conduct.

Eric S. Jarvis, a licensed criminal defense attorney, pleaded guilty before a U.S. federal judge to using a cellular phone and the PACER database to assist and promote the drug trafficking activities of known drug traffickers since at least July 24, 2017, through May 10.

Operation SOAR is a coordinated enforcement operation that builds on ongoing efforts to arrest and remove noncitizen sex offenders from our communities.

The fraudulent websites allegedly offer a number of drugs for sale for the experimental and unapproved treatment or prevention of COVID-19. Instead, the domains were allegedly used to collect the personal information of individuals visiting the sites in order to use their information for nefarious purposes, including fraud, phishing attacks and/or deployment of malware.

Marc Anthony Bane, 32, from Porter, Texas and Tara Renee Dillon, 33, from Conroe, Texas appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Christopher Dos Santos who charged the couple for their role in human smuggling.

As a result of the operation: Three minors were recovered; 75 minors were located; Two minors remain outstanding; The minors recovered and located were offered services that help identify the potential exploitation of at-risk children.

A 43-year-old resident of Rosharon is set to make an appearance in Laredo federal court on allegations he attempted to smuggle dozens of undocumented non-citizens, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Jennifer B. Lowery.

Kenneth Hall, 38, a previously convicted felon, sold a total of 383.6 grams of methamphetamine in Henderson and Las Vegas between March 6, 2018, and April 3, 2018. According to court documents, the April 3, drug sale, Hall showed and offered to sell a handgun to the buyer.

Seven co-defendants were sentenced throughout the week, including Jonathon “Luke” Paz, Drew Wilson Crandall, Alexandrya Marie Tonge, Katherine Lauren Anne Bustin, Mario Anthony Noble, Sean Michael Gygi and Ana “Gabby” Noriega, while Christopher Sean Kenny was sentenced last month in a separate hearing.

As a result of an investigation by HSI Los Angeles, Jerome Terry Jr., 45, of Chicago, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to one count of conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking. In his plea agreement, Terry agreed to a prison sentence of between seven and 15 years in federal prison.

Bradley Scott Helton, 33, previously pleaded guilty to communicating with the victim via an app called “Kiss Kiss: Spin the Bottle.” He admitted to chatting with the victim, sending sexual videos and pictures, and requesting the victim send sexual videos in return.

A federal criminal complaint filed this afternoon charges Erik Christopher Younggren, 34, of Cherry Valley, with attempted possession of firearms and dangerous weapons in a federal facility, a misdemeanor offense that carries a sentence of up to one year in federal prison.

The operation known as “Behind the Mask” was an undercover operation that targeted the demand for child sex crimes and human trafficking. Throughout the operational period, undercover detectives placed ads on websites commonly sought out by suspects seeking illegal sex acts. The suspects reportedly solicited and/or brokered deals for various sex acts and were subsequently arrested.

Charles Joshua Petty, 31, pleaded guilty March 15, to possession with intent to distribute controlled substances. Petty also was ordered to forfeit $8,500 seized in the case.

Special agents with ICE's HSI and officers with the Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) investigated the case. A state Grand Jury indicted Lynwood Jennet and her co-conspirator, Paul Petersen, in October 2019.

Fernando Ramirez, 53, from Tamaulipas, Mexico, was sentenced July 13, in federal court to 70 months in federal prison to be followed by four years of supervised release.

As the result of a probe by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Los Angeles and the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office, Carlos Ayala Hernandez, aka “Juan Juarez,” 45, of Granada Hills, was sentenced today to 30 months in federal prison, and Miguel Juarez Guerrero, 24, of Van Nuys, was sentenced to 20 months in federal prison.

Alejandro Nario, 65, and Mylene Casupanan, 42, both citizens of the Republic of the Philippines, were taken into custody, without incident, for possible involvement in a visa fraud scheme.

Beginning on July 8, 2021, the operation focused on identifying and recovering potential human trafficking victims as well as identifying those seeking to engage in commercial sex acts with minors. Law enforcement placed several decoy advertisements on websites known to be linked to prostitution and commercial sex cases.

According to court documents, Ramiro Ramirez-Barreto, 44, from the Mexican State of Morelos, operated a criminal enterprise with ties to Virginia, North Carolina and California.