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Federal Criminal Defense Lawyers www.McNabbAssociates.comWednesday, October 12, 2011
Florida Man Arrested in “Operation Hackerazzi”for Targeting Celebrities with ComputerIntrusion, Wiretapping, and Identity TheftMcNabb Associates, P.C. ( Federal Criminal Defense Lawyers )
Submitted at 3:47 PM October 12, 2011
The Federal Bureau of Investigation(FBI) on October 12, 2011 released thefollowing:“LOS ANGELES—A man accused of
targeting the entertainment industry byhacking into the personal e-mail accountsof celebrities was arrested today afterbeing charged with a range of cyber-related crimes, announced André BirotteJr., the United States Attorney in LosAngeles; and Steven Martinez, theAssistant Director in Charge of the FBI’sLos Angeles Field Office.Christopher Chaney, 35, of Jacksonville,
Florida, was arrested this morning by FBIagents without incident. A federal grand
jury in Los Angeles returned a sealed
indictment yesterday charging Chaneywith violations under Title 18 of the U.S.Criminal Code, including: accessingprotected computers withoutauthorization; damaging protectedcomputers without authorization;wiretapping; and aggravated identity theft.According to the indictment, which was
unsealed this morning, Chaney usedseveral aliases while illegally obtainingpersonal information of numerouscelebrities through a series of computerintrusions. The aliases used include:“trainreqsuckswhat,” “anonygrrl,” and
“jaxjaguars911.”Investigators believe that Chaney used
publicly available sources to mine for dataabout his female and male victims, all of whom are associated with theentertainment industry. Once Chaneygained access and control of an e-mailaccount, he would obtain privateinformation, such as e-mails and fileattachments, according to the indictment.In addition, investigators believe thatChaney was led to new victims byaccessing the address books of victims
whose computers he already controlled.Throughout the 11-month investigation,agents identified over 50 victims whose
accounts were illegally accessed byChaney. The 26-count indictment detailsspecific instances in which Chaneyviolated 11 of the victims, some of whomare identified by initials only. The victimsare identified in the indictment as: SimoneHarouche, Mila Kunis, Christina Aguilera,
Scarlett Johansson, Renee Olstead, B.P.,J.A., L.B., L.S., D.F., and B.G.The indictment specifically charges
Chaney with illegally accessing thecomputers, e-mail accounts and accountsettings of several victims, beginningNovember 13, 2010, through February 10,2011. The indictment further alleges thatChaney knowingly caused thetransmission of programs, informationcodes and commands, resulting in damageto e-mail servers, causing losses of at least$5,000 per instance. Chaney also used the
identities of some of the victims toillegally access and control computers,according to the indictment. In otherinstances, Chaney allegedly interceptedand endeavored to intercept wirecommunications; specifically, e-mails andattachments.In most cases, Chaney accessed the
administrative settings on the victims’accounts so that all of their e-mails wouldautomatically be forwarded to a separate e-mail account Chaney controlled. Thisform of wiretapping allowed Chaney tocontinually receive victims’ e-mails even
after a password had been reset.Investigators determined that Chaney
distributed some of the files he obtainedillegally, including photos of celebrities,and offered them to various celebrity blogsites. Some of the illegally obtained files,including private photographs, wereultimately posted online as a result of Chaney’s alleged activities.“While the case against Mr. Chaneyinvolves celebrities who were targetedbecause of their fame, this case reminds usthat we are all potential victims of
computer hackers,” said United StatesAttorney André Birotte Jr. “Everyone cantake simple steps that will help protect a
computer system. Taking these steps willgo a long way in protecting yourself fromthe financial and emotional costs of having someone intrude on your privatelife and potentially steal your identity.”“As we highlight cyber awareness duringthe month of October, it’s important to
remember that, although these victimsappear to have been targeted based ontheir celebrity, similar methods may beused to illegally access any one of ourcomputers,” said Steven Martinez,Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’sLos Angeles Field Office. “Strictcomputer security should be practicedwhen using smart phones, laptops,desktops, iPads, or any other device thatprovides Internet access.”Chaney will have an initial appearance in
United States District Court in
Jacksonville, Florida. It is anticipated thatthe government will request that Chaneybe removed to Los Angeles, the district inwhich he was charged, to faceprosecution.If convicted on all counts, Chaney faces a
statutory maximum penalty of 121 yearsin federal prison. This investigation wasconducted by the FBI. The charges againstChaney will be prosecuted by the UnitedStates Attorney’s Office.An indictment contains allegations that a
defendant has committed a crime. Everydefendant is presumed innocent until and
unless proven guilty beyond a reasonabledoubt.”To find additional federal criminal news,
please read Federal Crimes Watch Daily.Douglas McNabb and other members of
the U.S. law firm practice and write and/ or report extensively on matters involvingFederal Criminal Defense, INTERPOLRed Notice Removal, InternationalExtradition and OFAC SDN SanctionsRemoval.The author of this blog is Douglas
McNabb. Please feel free to contact him
directly [email protected] or at oneof the offices listed above.
U.S. v. Maxzone Vehicle Lighting Corp.( Antitrust Division: Criminal Case Filings )
Submitted at 11:29 AM October 12, 2011
Document filed on September 12, 2011• Information
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2 Federal Criminal Defense Lawyers
Prosecutors: Women talk of jihad in recordedcallsMcNabb Associates, P.C. ( Federal Criminal Defense Lawyers )
Submitted at 9:30 PM October 12, 2011
CBS News on October 12, 2011 releasedthe following:“(AP) MINNEAPOLIS — TwoMinnesota women accused of funnelingmoney to a terror group in Somalia talkedabout collecting money for al-Shabab,supporting fighters instead of othercharities and the possibility that FBI waslistening in on their conversations,according to hours of recorded phone callsplayed for jurors.Prosecutors have built the bulk of their
case by playing more than 80 phone calls
recorded during a 10-month wiretap onthe home and cellphones of Amina FarahAli, 35. In those calls, prosecutors allege,Ali is heard talking to her co-defendant,64-year-old Hawo Mohamed Hassan, aswell as leaders of al-Shabab in Somalia.The calls include recordings of teleconferences in which the women gavereligious lectures and collected donations.Ali and Hassan are accused of being part
of a “deadly pipeline” that routed moneyand fighters from the U.S. to Somalia. Thewomen, U.S. citizens of Somali descent,are charged with conspiracy to provide
material support to a foreign terroristorganization. The women have said theywere raising money for needy refugees inSomalia.The recorded calls are all in Somali.
Jurors are following along with writtentranscripts that have been translated intoEnglish by the government.In one October 2008 call between Ali and
Hassan, prosecutors allege that as the twowomen were discussing where the moneyshould go, Ali said the priority be thosewho stand up for Islam. “Let the civilians
die,” she said. In a Feb. 10, 2009,teleconference, Ali told others, “Let’s
forget about the other charities — howabout the jihad?”Ali and Hassan are among 20 people
charged in Minnesota’s long-runningfederal investigations into recruiting andfinancing for al-Shabab, which the U.S.considers a terror group with ties to al-Qaida. Investigators believe at least 21men left Minnesota — home to thecountry’s largest Somali community — to
join al-Shabab. Though others havepleaded guilty to related charges, thewomen are the first to go on trial.Ali faces 12 counts of providing such
support — for allegedly sending morethan $8,600 to the group from September
2008 through July 2009. Hassan facesthree counts of lying to the FBI.Since last week, prosecutors have been
methodically presenting evidence toconnect Ali’s phone conversations to thecounts against her, matching dollar figuresmentioned in calls to phone numbers oraccounts of al-Shabab members, and toreceipts from hawalas, or money transferbusinesses.According to some of the wide-ranging
calls, Ali gets updates from an al-Shababmember about the fighting in Somalia. Inmany, she tells others how to send funds
to Somalia. She gives fictitious names andthe numbers of al-Shabab accounts tothose who will be sending the money, andtalks about sending it in small amounts toavoid detection, prosecutors said.In one call, Ali explains she will not get a
license for her charity because she doesn’twant to report where the money is going.“I don’t want to lie to God,” she said.Ali’s attorney, Dan Scott, noted during
cross-examination of FBI Special AgentMichael Wilson that his client took stepsto ensure the money people donated
specifically for orphans went to theorphans — and nowhere else. In one call
that took place in November 2008, Scottnotes, Ali ticks off a list of donations,totaling $7,000, that went to a variety of
causes including the wounded, mentallyill, poor people — and al-Shabab.Scott also noted that after the U.S.
declared al-Shabab a terror group inFebruary 2008, the FBI made no attemptto “inform her that she should not besending money to this newly declaredforeign terrorist organization.”In one call between Ali and Hassan, dated
May 6, 2009, Hassan and Ali talk aboutsending girls out to collect money inSeattle, North Carolina, and elsewhere. Inthat call, Hassan says others should
“forget about the families at this moment,because the frontline is empty.”In another call between Ali and Hassan,
on April 3, 2009, the two women talk about how anyone could be listening in tothe teleconferences, including “alltroublemakers, FBI and people sent bythem and filth.”In a teleconference on Feb. 10, 2009, an
unidentified man asks who the fundraisingis for. Ali replies: “Brother, whom do youwant to give it to? The orphans, the poor… the Mujahidin (holy warriors)?Actually, jihad is your duty brother. What
are you going to pledge?”"To find additional federal criminal news,
please read Federal Crimes Watch Daily.Douglas McNabb and other members of
the U.S. law firm practice and write and/ or report extensively on matters involvingFederal Criminal Defense, INTERPOLRed Notice Removal, InternationalExtradition and OFAC SDN SanctionsRemoval.The author of this blog is Douglas
McNabb. Please feel free to contact himdirectly at
[email protected] or at oneof the offices listed above.
Virginia Man Accused of Actingas Unregistered Agent of SyrianGovernment and Spying onSyrian Protestors in America( USDOJ: Justice News )
Submitted at 9:27 AM October 12, 2011
Mohamad Anas Haitham Soueid, 47, aresident of Leesburg, Va., has beencharged for his alleged role in aconspiracy to collect video and audio
recordings and other information aboutindividuals in the United States and Syriawho were protesting the government of Syria and to provide these materials toSyrian intelligence agencies in order tosilence, intimidate and potentially harmthe protestors.
Husband and WifeIndicted for InvestmentFraud Scheme( USDOJ: Justice News )
Submitted at 10:27 AM October 12, 2011
John Robert Graves, 52, and SaraTurberville Graves, 44, both of Fredericksburg, Va., are charged in theEastern District of Virginia with one countof conspiracy to commit mail and wirefraud, one count of mail fraud and fourcounts of wire fraud.
Statement of Attorney GeneralEric Holder on Guilty Plea byUmar Farouk Abdulmutallab( USDOJ: Justice News )
Submitted at 12:40 PM October 12, 2011
“Contrary to what some have claimed,today’s plea removes any doubt that ourcourts are one of the most effective toolswe have to fight terrorism and keep theAmerican people safe," said Attorney
General Holder.
Federal Criminal Justice
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3Federal Criminal Defense Lawyers
Several remain at large in Ark. corruption probeMcNabb Associates, P.C. ( Federal Criminal Defense Lawyers )
Submitted at 9:17 PM October 12, 2011
The Associated Press (AP) on October12, 2011 released the following:
“By NOMAAN MERCHANT, AssociatedPressLITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Federal
officials continued their searchWednesday for several people whoremained at large following a widespreadcrackdown on corruption that culminatedin the arrests of dozens of others this week in eastern Arkansas.FBI spokesman Steve Frazier said the
bureau and other law enforcementagencies were still hunting for the last of the 70 people indicted on racketeering,money laundering and drug charges as
part of the four-year investigation knownas “Operation Delta Blues.” Five lawenforcement officers were among thoseindicted.Fifty-one people were arrested Tuesday,
and another five were arrestedWednesday, including some who turnedthemselves in, Frazier said. Thosedetained were expected to appearThursday morning in federal court.U.S. Attorney Christopher Thyer said in
an interview that he expected somedefendants to take guilty pleas “relatively
quickly.” He declined to say if any of thedefendants had agreed to cooperate withthe ongoing investigation.“If they want their day in court, we’rewilling to give it to them,” Thyer said.News of the investigation rocked Helena-
West Helena, a Mississippi Delta town
plagued for years by crime, poverty andallegations of corruption. Some residentsawoke Tuesday to the sound of helicoptersbuzzing overhead.“I’m thankful,” said Linda Walters, a
school bus driver who waited outside apress conference Tuesday afternoon afterhearing the news.She said the constant gunfire outside her
home had forced her to look into movingto another city.“I have to go sleep, hit the floor everytime I hear a bullet shot,” she said. “I’mso upset.”Helena-West Helena Mayor Arnell Willis
sat next to reporters during the newsconference. Willis had gone to Little Rock a month ago to plead with Thyer forfederal help. Thyer didn’t tell Willis about
Operation Delta Blues until Tuesday’sarrests, but Willis said he didn’t mind.“Welcome to the dawning of a new day inthe Delta,” he told reporters afterward.The indictments accused the five officers
of taking payments to guard shipments of cocaine and other drugs. Phillips Countysheriff’s deputy Winston Dean Jackson isallegedly caught on a federal wiretaptalking to another deputy about a paymentby a defense lawyer in exchange for“failing to perform law enforcementduties.”
The unidentified deputy said the paymentfell under “the good old boy” system andthat anyone not involved would “getrolled over.”Thyer would not comment on any future
indictments but said the investigation wasstill ongoing.
According to the indictment, Jacksonresponded, “You get rolled over, exactly.Cause nobody say … ain’t nothing but thegood old boy system.”Helena-West Helena police officers
Herman Eaton, Robert “Bam Bam”Rogers and Marlene Kalb allegedlyescorted drug shipments, each receiving$500 from someone posing as a drugdealer. A Marvell police officer, RobertWahls, is charged with accepting moneyfrom an informant and escorting a drugshipment.It was not immediately clear if the five
officers had attorneys yet. Relatives of theofficers could not be reached. The federalpublic defender’s office in Little Rock didnot return requests for comment.Hundreds of officers from the FBI,
Arkansas State Police and other agencieshelped make Tuesday’s arrests. An FBIspecial agent was shot during one arrest,but was not seriously injured and laterreleased from the hospital.”To find additional federal criminal news,
please read Federal Crimes Watch Daily.Douglas McNabb and other members of
the U.S. law firm practice and write and/ or report extensively on matters involvingFederal Criminal Defense, INTERPOLRed Notice Removal, InternationalExtradition and OFAC SDN Sanctions
Removal.The author of this blog is DouglasMcNabb. Please feel free to contact himdirectly [email protected] or at oneof the offices listed above.
‘Underwear bomber’ pleads guilty in trialMcNabb Associates, P.C. ( Federal Criminal Defense Lawyers )
Submitted at 9:45 AM October 12, 2011
CNN on October 12, 2011 released thefollowing:“Umar Farouk AbdulMutallab, theNigerian man accused of trying todetonate an explosive device in hisunderwear aboard a Christmas 2009 flightto Detroit, pleaded guilty in courtWednesday.On Tuesday, the prosecution finished its
opening statement and the defense said itwould reserve the right to give an openingstatement at a later point in the trial.The judge in the trial refused to prevent
the prosecution from calling the device he
allegedly carried a “bomb.”
U.S. District Judge Nancy Edmunds alsorefused to exclude a photo of AbdulMutallab’s burned genitals from theevidence.While at previous court appearances
AbdulMutallab has had outbursts —including yelling “Osama’s alive,” areference to Osama bin Laden — heremained calm Tuesday.AbdulMutallab was indicted on charges
including attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction, conspiracy to commit anact of terrorism, and possession of afirearm or destructive device infurtherance of an act of violence.He was a passenger on Northwest
Airlines Flight 253 en route from the
Netherlands to Detroit on Christmas Day
2009.U.S. officials say the terror group al
Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula wasbehind the alleged bombing attempt.”To find additional federal criminal news,
please read Federal Crimes Watch Daily.Douglas McNabb and other members of
the U.S. law firm practice and write and/ or report extensively on matters involvingFederal Criminal Defense, INTERPOLRed Notice Removal, InternationalExtradition and OFAC SDN SanctionsRemoval.The author of this blog is Douglas
McNabb. Please feel free to contact himdirectly [email protected] or at one
of the offices listed above.Oil Company Pleads Guilty to Clean Air Act and Obstruction of Justice Crimesin Louisiana( USDOJ: Justice News )
Submitted at 5:14 PM October 12, 2011
Pelican Refining Company LLC, pleadedguilty today to felony violations of the
Clean Air Act and to obstruction of justicecharges in federal court in Lafayette, La.
Federal Criminal Justice
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4 Federal Criminal Defense Lawyers
Owner of Houston Health CareCompany Sentenced to 33Months in Prison for MedicareFraud( USDOJ: Justice News )
Submitted at 7:21 PM October 12, 2011
The owner and operator of a Houston
durable medical equipment (DME)company was sentenced yesterday inHouston federal court to 33 months inprison for his role in a Medicare fraudscheme.
Florida Couple and Utah ManIndicted for Alleged Roles inProcurement Fraud SchemeInvolving Foreign MilitaryMaterials( USDOJ: Justice News )
Submitted at 7:20 PM October 12, 2011
Three individuals were charged in anindictment returned today by a federalgrand jury in Utah for their alleged rolesin a bribery and fraud scheme involvingfederal procurement contracts.
U.S. v. BridgestoneCorporation( Antitrust Division: Criminal Case Filings )
Submitted at 11:38 AM October 12, 2011
Document filed on September 15, 2011• Criminal Information
U.S. v. Allen K. French( Antitrust Division: Criminal Case Filings )
Submitted at 11:47 AM October 12, 2011
Document filed on September 15, 2011• Plea Agreement
Justice Antitrust
