For Immediate Release
October 19, 2007
|
Washington D.C.
FBI National Press Office
(202) 324-3691
|
FBI'S
Top Ten News Stories
For the Week Ending October 19, 2007
1.
FBI Participates in TOPOFF 4 National Preparedness Exercise
From
October 15-19, 2007, the FBI took part in a multi-agency
national preparedness exercise known as Top Officials, or
TOPOFF. The exercise is the fourth segment of the TOPOFF
series of congressionally mandated exercises administrated
by the Department of Homeland Security and designed to strengthen
the nation's capacity to prevent, prepare for, respond to,
and recover from large-scale terrorist attacks. The exercise
simulated the response to a radiological dispersal device
attack. Full
Story
2.
Anchorage: Former State Representative Sentenced
Thomas
T. Anderson, former member of the Alaska State House of
Representatives, was sentenced to 60 months in prison for
extortion, conspiracy, bribery, and money laundering. Full
Story
3.
New York: Hedge Fund Manager Sentenced to Prison for $88
Million Securities Fraud Scheme
Former
hedge fund manager John H. Whittier was sentenced to 36
months in prison following his May 2007 guilty plea to charges
of securities fraud stemming from a scheme that resulted
in investor losses of approximately $88 million. The case
was investigated jointly by the SEC and the FBI. Full
Story
4.
Boston: New Jersey Man Convicted of Wire Fraud for Advance
Fee Loan Scheme
Michael
Wyatt of Plainfield, NJ, was convicted of conspiracy to
commit wire fraud based upon an advance-fee loan scheme
that he participated in with Larry and Christopher Stallings
of Watauga, Texas, and others. The Stallings were previously
convicted for their role in the scheme. The conspirators
collected over $2 million in advance payments during the
course of the scheme, which they spent on personal purchases.
Full
Story
5.
San Francisco: "Chinese Inheritance" Scam Warning
Shiu
Chau Wang pleaded guilty to money laundering by using the
"Chinese Inheritance" scam, in which a victim
is told he has received an inheritance from a relative in
China, but before receiving it, must pay an "inheritance
tax" to the U.S. government. The scam is common in
the San Francisco area. Full
Story
6.
Sacramento: Man Sentenced to More than 33 Years on Child
Pornography Charges
Richard
Matuck was sentenced to 405 months in prison based on his
guilty pleas on three counts of production by a custodial
person of visual depictions of his minor son engaging in
sexually explicit conduct, and one count of possession of
such visual depictions. The case is part of an extensive
investigation by the Marysville Police Department, the Yuba
County Sheriff's Office, the Yuba County District Attorney's
Office, and the FBI's Chico Safe Streets Task Force as part
of the Department of Justice's Project Safe Childhood initiative.
Full
Story
7.
Chicago: Reward Offered in Chicago Kidnapping
The
Chicago Division of the FBI announced a $25,000 reward for
information leading to the identification and arrest of
the individuals responsible for the September 2007 kidnapping
and murder of two men and a 13-year-old boy from the northwest
side of Chicago. Full
Story
8.
Salt Lake City: First 'Two Strikes and You're Out' Life
Sentence in Montana for a Recidivist Sex Offender
William
J. Gallerando was sentenced to life in prison for sexual
exploitation of children and to a concurrent sentence of
240 months for possession of child pornography. Gallenardo
is the first recidivist sex offender sentenced to life in
prison in Montana pursuant to the "two strikes and
you're out" law. Full
Story
9.
New Haven: FBI Asks for Public Assistance in Locating Serial
Bank Robber
The
FBI and multiple police departments in Connecticut and New
York are seeking public assistance in locating a serial
bank robber believed responsible for nine bank robberies.
Full
Story
10.
Cincinnati: Former NCFE President and Associate Arrested
for Witness Tampering, Conspiracy, and Obstruction of Justice
Lance
K. Poulsen and Karl A. Demmler were arrested on federal
conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and witness tampering
charges. Poulsen, the former president and chief finance
officer of National Century Financial Enterprises, used
Demmler to attempt to bribe a witness to prevent her from
giving damaging testimony against Poulsen in his fraud trial
scheduled for February 2008. Full
Story
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