News Releases and Statements

Renjie Huang and Yong Xu, two Chinese nationals from the Los Angeles area, made their initial appearance in federal court Friday afternoon following their arrest on charges stemming from their role in a retail theft ring that used counterfeit credit cards to buy high-end electronics from Wal-Mart stores throughout the Los Angeles area.

Two individuals were making thousands per month selling packages of fraudulent documents for about $150 to $200.

Two members of a highly sophisticated and violent fraudulent document trafficking organization based in Mexico, with cells in 19 cities within the United States and 11 states, including three cells in Virginia, have been sentenced for their roles in the operation.

Following an investigation and audit of Form I-9 documents by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), 14 New England employers have been fined this fiscal year for various violations that enabled companies to hire illegal aliens.

Three individuals were indicted Thursday on federal criminal charges for operating two document mills in Fresno and Madera counties that were used to produce phony immigration and identity cards.

On July 20, a federal grand jury returned an indictment against Julio Rodriguez-Del Valle, 45, of Yabucoa, Puerto Rico, for using, persuading, enticing and coercing a male and female minors to engage in sexually explicit conduct, specifically lascivious exhibition of the genital areas, for the purpose of producing a video image using a hidden..

Man from the Netherlands identified through ICE's Secure Communities program

Four members of a Flagstaff family are facing federal charges following their arrest Thursday for exploiting Vietnamese nationals for nearly a decade in an elaborate forced labor scheme at their I Do, I Do Wedding Shop in Flagstaff, Ariz.

Sergey Korznikov, a Russian national, was sentenced Thursday for his role in a conspiracy to smuggle military equipment, including rifle scopes, magazines for firearms and other material out of the United States, in violation of the Arms Export Control Act. This sentence resulted from an investigation by U.S. ICE's Homeland Security Investigations.

"Nearly 2,000 individuals have been arrested on narcotics-related charges as part of a 20-month, multi-agency law enforcement investigation known as ""Project Delirium,"" which targeted the La Familia Michoacana drug cartel. "

Ramadan Rama was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for failing to notify a commercial carrier of a firearm and exporting defense articles without a license, following an investigation by U.S. ICE 's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

John Tai, of Carson, Calif., pleaded not guilty this week to charges in a superseding indictment accusing him and eight others of conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and related methamphetamine-trafficking offenses.

U.S. ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. CBP, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), Virginia Port Authority, and other federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies today announced the launch of the Hampton Roads Border Enforcement Security Task Force (BEST), which is dedicated to security at the Port of Virginia.

Jack Labrosse, 42, of Green Bay, Wis., was convicted of knowingly transporting images and videos of child pornography on a U.S. Airways flight from Green Bay to New Orleans on July 18, 2010. A computer forensic examination of Labrosse's computer by ICE HSI agents revealed 5,853 images and 51 videos depicting the sexual victimization of children. According to statements Labrosse made to federal agents, he flew from Wisconsin to Louisiana with his laptop computer that contained images and videos depicting child pornography.

A Mexican citizen wanted in his native country for the murder of an off-duty Border Patrol agent eight years ago was turned over to prosecutors from the Mexican Attorney General's Office at the border crossing here Wednesday morning by officers from U.S. ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO).

More than 20 Border Enforcement Security Task Forces (BESTs) exist throughout the country at major gateways to the United States like the Miami Seaport, the Southwest Border and the New York Seaport/Canadian Border. Virginia's Hampton Roads region is home to the third largest port on the East Coast - the Port of Virginia - and now, the newest BEST.

Nineteen individuals in Florida and California were charged in Tampa Federal Court on Wednesday for their involvement in a nationwide drug-trafficking and money-laundering conspiracy, following an investigation led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

A Chicago resident was convicted on Tuesday for conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute more than 50 kilograms (110 pounds) of marijuana, announced U.S. Attorney Jose Angel Moreno, Southern District of Texas.

Thomas C. Briggs, a former employee of the University of North Carolina at Charlotte (UNCC), pled guilty to concealing and shielding foreign college students who were in violation of the terms of their student visas, following an investigation by U.S. ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

A fourth person charged in a firearms-trafficking case pleaded guilty in federal court on Monday following a multi-agency investigation led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Jesus Francisco Lopez, 35, was convicted following a jury trial April 21. Evidence at the trial showed that between October 2009 and December 2010, Lopez purchased several hundred thousand rounds of various calibers of ammunition.

Manu Panatkul, 51, was taken into custody Friday night by agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) shortly after arriving on a Korean Airlines flight from his native country.

A Croatian national wanted for fleeing a murder sentence in his native country was deported on Monday by officers with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO).

Following the arrest of those charged, an indictment was unsealed on Tuesday which charges seven area residents with operating an interstate over-the-counter (OTC) drug theft and fencing ring, structuring and money laundering.

Robert Hedrick, 60, is president of the Brownsville-based Pan American Airways which provides cargo air service between the United States and Mexico. Hedrick is expected to make his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Felix Recio on July 19. The United States expects to request that the court detain Hendricks in federal custody without bond pending further criminal proceedings.