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VA: Jury Convicts Dr. Perwaiz of Scheme to Perform Unnecessary Surgeries

VA: Jury Convicts Dr. Javaid Perwaiz of Scheme to Perform Unnecessary Surgeries on Women (STL.News) – A federal jury convicted a Chesapeake doctor today on 52 counts related to his scheme to bill private and governmental insurers millions of dollars for irreversible hysterectomies and other surgeries and procedures that were not medically necessary for his patients. According to court records and evidence presented at trial, Dr. Javaid Perwaiz, an obstetrician-gynecologist who has practiced in Hampton Roads since the 1980s, executed a scheme to defraud health insurance programs between at least 2010 and 2019. During that period, Perwaiz billed private and governmental insurers millions of dollars for irreversible hysterectomies and other surgeries and procedures that were not medically n...

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Va: Peter Andrew Romm Pleads Guilty

Va: Peter Andrew Romm Pleads Guilty in Connection with Fatal Fentanyl Overdose (STL.News) – A Reston man pleaded guilty today to selling fentanyl to an individual who later overdosed on the drug and died. According to court documents, Peter Andrew Romm, 35, regularly traveled to Baltimore to buy heroin and fentanyl that he then sold to customers in Northern Virginia. Romm sold the drugs in two forms: enclosed in small plastic capsules, and folded in small slips of paper. Romm’s customers included an individual identified in court documents as Individual 1. On October 7, 2019, Romm sold fentanyl to Individual 1 through a middle-man. Individual 1 later consumed the fentanyl and fatally overdosed; he was found dead in his home the next morning. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner de...

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Va: Ryan J. Millican Charged with Illegal Possession of Firearm

Va: Ryan J. Millican Charged with Illegal Possession of Firearm and Destructive Device (STL.News) – A federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging a Henrico man with various charges including possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, possession of a destructive device, and receipt of images of child sexual abuse. According to allegations in the indictment, on or about March 8, Ryan J. Millican, 22, knowingly aided and abetted the making of a false and fictitious written statement to Green Top Sporting Goods in connection with the acquisition of a Bravo Company Manufacturing Inc., Model BCM4, .556 caliber rifle. According to allegations in the indictment, from on or about March 8 through April 25, Millican possessed a Bravo Company Manufacturing Inc., Model BCM4, .556 cali...

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Va: U.S. Attorney Terwilliger Appoints Election Officers for EDVA

(STL.News) – United States Attorney G. Zachary Terwilliger announced today that a team of Assistant U.S. Attorneys across the Eastern District will lead efforts in connection with the Justice Department’s nationwide Election Day Program for the upcoming general election. “The franchise is the cornerstone of American democracy,” said G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. “We all must ensure that those who are entitled to the franchise exercise it if they choose, and that those who seek to corrupt it are brought to justice.” District Election Officer(s) Division Assistant U.S. Attorney Heidi Gesch Alexandria As...

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Va: Garrison Courtney Sentenced for Posing as Covert CIA Officer

Va: Garrison Courtney Sentenced for Posing as Covert CIA Officer in Elaborate $4M Fraud (STL.News) – A former Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) public affairs officer was sentenced today to seven years in prison for defrauding at least a dozen companies of over $4.4 million by posing falsely as a covert officer of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). According to court documents, Garrison Kenneth Courtney, 44, of Florida, falsely claimed to be a covert officer of the CIA involved in a highly-classified program or “task force” involving various components of the United States Intelligence Community and the Department of Defense. According to the false story told by Courtney, this supposed classified program sought to enhance the intelligence gathering capabilities of the United Stat...

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Alexandria, Va: Former DARPA Program Manager Dr. Varshneya Agrees to Settle Allegations

Alexandria, Va: Former DARPA Program Manager Dr. Varshneya Agrees to Settle Allegations of Improper Conversion of Government Technology (STL.News) – A former Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Program Manager and Founder and CEO of XeroWind, LLC of Falls Church, has agreed to pay $50,000 and surrender three patents to the United States government to settle allegations relating to his improper patenting of U.S. Government property and technology. In July, the United States filed a lawsuit against Dr. Deepak Varshneya, of Falls Church, and XeroWind alleging conversion of government technology. The government’s complaint contended that while a DARPA Program Manager, Dr. Varshneya worked on a DARPA research program known as “ONE SHOT,” which developed a crosswind and range mea...

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Richmond, Va: Jose Zavala-Higareda Sentenced to Prison for Role in a Multi-State Drug Conspiracy

Richmond, Va: Jose Zavala-Higareda Sentenced to Prison for Role in a Multi-State Drug Conspiracy (STL.News) – A Richmond man was sentenced today to seven years in prison for his participation in a conspiracy to traffic approximately 18 kilograms of heroin into the Richmond area. According to court documents, in June 2019, Special Agents with the Department of Homeland Security (HSI) seized approximately 24 kilograms of heroin, nearly 2 kilograms of fentanyl, and nearly 2 kilograms of methamphetamine from targets in Brownsville, Texas. The substances were packaged in five tractor trailer batteries and various quantities were headed for Chicago, Illinois and Richmond. Agents with HSI, working with Virginia State Police, coordinated a controlled delivery of the heroin which was destined to...

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Roanoke, Va: James Robert Banks Sentenced to 132 Months for Distributing Heroin

(STL.News) – James Robert Banks, a Roanoke man responsible for distributing between one and three kilograms of heroin throughout the Roanoke area in 2019, was sentenced yesterday in U.S. District Court in Roanoke to 132 months in federal prison following his conviction earlier this year on federal drug distribution charges. Acting United States Attorney Daniel P. Bubar and Jesse Fong, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Washington Field Office made the announcement today. Banks, 32, pleaded guilty in June 2020 to one count of possession with the intent to distribute heroin. “Heroin abuse continues to plague our communities in a cycle of painful abuse, and those that distribute it must face justice,” Acting United States Attorney Bubar said today. “Thanks to...

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Roanoke, Va: Kunta Daniels and Joe Daniels Charged in Superseding Indictment

(STL.News) – A pair of Danville men, Kunta Daniels and Joe Daniels, were indicted by a federal grand jury last week and charged via a superseding indictment with a variety of drug and gun charges. Acting United States Attorney Daniel P. Bubar, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives of the Washington Field Division Ashan M. Benedict and Danville City Police Chief Scott Booth made the announcement today. The grand jury has charged Kunta Daniels, 43, with one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, one count of distribution of methamphetamine, one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine, one count of possession with intent to distribute more than 28 grams of crack cocaine, one count of possession with intent to distribute...

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Harrisonburg, Va: James Harold Lichliter and Jonathan Neice Sentenced

Harrisonburg, Va: James Harold Lichliter and Jonathan Neice Sentenced for Roles in Maryland-to-Virginia Heroin Pipeline that Resulted in Fatal Overdose (STL.News) – Two individuals connected with a heroin trafficking conspiracy that brought heroin from Maryland into Shenandoah County, Virginia and caused one fatal and one non-fatal overdose were sentenced last week in U.S. District Court in Harrisonburg. Acting United States Attorney Daniel P. Bubar and Jesse Fong, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Washington Field Office made the announcement today. James Harold Lichliter, 52, of Mauretown, Va., was sentenced to 144 months in federal prison. In a separate hearing, Jonathan Dale Neice, 42, of Woodstock, Va., was sentenced to 132 months incarceration. Both...

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Richmond, Va: Armed Drug Dealer Shamel McLaughlin Sentenced to Prison

Richmond, Va: Armed Drug Dealer Shamel McLaughlin Sentenced to Prison after Vehicular Pursuit (STL.News) – A previously convicted felon was sentenced today to over 12 years in prison for his possession of a firearm and possession of distribution amounts of cocaine hydrochloride and cocaine base following a vehicular pursuit in the City of Richmond. According to court documents, in October 2019, Shamel McLaughlin, 35, of Richmond, engaged Richmond Police Department (RPD) officers in a high-speed vehicular pursuit in a residential neighborhood in the City of Richmond. Upon stopping his vehicle, RPD officers apprehended McLaughlin after a brief foot pursuit. A search of McLaughlin revealed a baggie with 3.45 grams of cocaine hydrochloride and 15 grams of marijuana. Following McLaughlin’s ...

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Norfolk, Va; Two Men Darrius Ford and Daniel Zeigler-Irizarry, Jr. Indicted

Norfolk, Va; Two Men Darrius Ford and Daniel Zeigler-Irizarry, Jr. Indicted for Armed Convenience Store Robberies (STL.News) – A federal grand jury returned an indictment late yesterday charging two men with the armed robbery of multiple convenience stores in the Hampton Roads region. According to the allegations in the indictment, Darrius Ford, 19, of Portsmouth, and Daniel Zeigler-Irizarry, Jr., 21, of Norfolk, robbed several convenience stores of cash and commercial products in the cities of Hampton, Newport News, Portsmouth, and Chesapeake. Unbeknownst to Ford and Zeigler-Irizarry, during the final robbery, a tracker was embedded in the stolen money. Using the signal emitted from that tracker, Newport News Police located the defendants in a stolen vehicle and attempted to initiate a ...

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Alexandria, Va; Chad Thomas Lamph Bought 7 Firearms for Convicted Felon Pleads Guilty

Alexandria, Va; Chad Thomas Lamph Bought 7 Firearms for Convicted Felon Pleads Guilty (STL.News) – A Fredericksburg man pleaded guilty today to lying on an ATF form in the course of straw-purchasing seven firearms for a convicted felon and criminal street gang member. According to court documents, following the recovery of a firearm by the Metropolitan Police Department that had been purchased just one week prior, ATF agents reviewed firearm transaction records and determined that Chad Thomas Lamph, 22, had purchased that firearm and numerous others from federal firearms licensees in December of 2019. For each firearm that he purchased, Lamph certified on ATF Form 4473 that he was the actual transferee / buyer. However, the ATF’s investigation revealed that Lamph had in fact purchased s...

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Norfolk, Va; Jury Convicts Violent 11-Time Felon Demetrius McGregor of Gun and Drug Charges

(STL.News) – A federal jury convicted a Norfolk man yesterday on all counts charged against him—two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm, one count of possessing with intent to distribute cocaine, and one count of possessing firearms in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime. “Demetrius McGregor has a long record of violent gun crime in Hampton Roads,” said G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. “Serial violent felons who continue to arm themselves are major drivers of the gun crime that plagues our communities, and we will continue to prioritize cases like this one. Additionally, I would like to commend all those involved in this jury trial given the unique challenges posed by COVID-19. Despite the many challenges posed by trying a c...

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Roanoke, Va; Steven Rosine Pleads Guilty to Selling Stolen Night Vision Goggle Components

Roanoke, Va.; Steven Rosine Pleads Guilty to Selling Stolen Night Vision Goggle Components | USAO-WDVA (STL.News) – Steven Rosine, a former employee at a production facility in Roanoke, Virginia that manufactures night vision devices used by the U.S. military, pleaded guilty yesterday in U.S. District Court in Roanoke to stealing night vision devices and other component parts, and selling them over the internet. Acting United States Attorney Daniel P. Bubar and Special Agent in Charge Raymond Villanueva for the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Washington, D.C. field office, made the announcement today. “This defendant used his position with a trusted government contractor to steal critical defense products and parts to sell for his own profit,” Acting United States Attorney Daniel ...

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Abingdon, Va; Jury Convicts Tracy Leonard Brown of Distributing More than 500 Grams of Methamphetamine

Abingdon, Va; Jury Convicts Tracy Leonard Brown of Distributing More than 500 Grams of Methamphetamine, Illegal Possession of Firearm at Conclusion of Three-Day Jury Trial | USAO-WDVA (STL.News) – At the conclusion of a three-day jury trial, jurors sitting in U.S. District Court in Abingdon convicted Tracy Leonard Brown of federal drug and gun charges related to the defendant’s distribution of methamphetamine. Acting United States Attorney Daniel P. Bubar and Ashan M. Benedict, Special Against in Charge of the Washington Field Office for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) made the announcement. The jury convicted Brown, 45, on four counts—one count of possession with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine, one count of possessing a firear...

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Alexandria, Va; Pourkarim Arabi and two other Iranian Hackers Indicted

Alexandria, Va; Pourkarim Arabi and two other Iranian Hackers Indicted for Stealing Data from Aerospace and Satellite Tracking Companies | USAO-EDVA (STL.News) – An indictment was unsealed today charging three computer hackers, all of whom were residents and nationals of the Islamic Republic of Iran (Iran), with engaging in a coordinated campaign of identity theft and hacking on behalf of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a designated foreign terrorist organization, in order to steal critical information related to United States aerospace and satellite technology and resources. “We will relentlessly pursue and expose those who seek to harm American companies and individuals wherever they reside in the world,” said G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern Distri...

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Alexandria, Va; DOJ Awards $1 Million in Grants to Improve School Safety in EDVA | USAO-EDVA

(STL.News) – The Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) announced nearly $50 million in school safety funding through its School Violence Prevention Program (SVPP). SVPP provides up to 75 percent funding for school safety measures in and around primary and secondary schools and school grounds. As part of this grant announcement, $500,000 was awarded to the Alexandria City Public Schools and $500,000 was awarded to the Chesterfield County Public Schools. “These awarded grants will provide a necessary resource to schools during these unprecedented times,” said G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. “Schools should be a welcoming place where students shouldn’t have to live in fear, and these grants will hel...