Executive-Level Appointments Announced

Director Robert S. Mueller, III today announced executive appointments at FBI Headquarters in the Cyber and International Operations Divisions.

Joseph M. Demarest, assistant director for International Operations, will move to the Cyber Division as assistant director. Deputy Assistant Director Michael S. Welch of the Cyber Division will become assistant director of the International Operations Division.

Mr. Demarest entered on duty as a special agent in 1988 and served in the Anchorage and New York Field Offices. During that time, he gained a wide range of experience investigating white-collar crime, violent crime, counterintelligence, and drug cases. He was assigned to the Counterterrorism Division in 2002, where he was promoted to unit chief and later acting section chief in the International Terrorism Operations Section. Mr. Demarest returned to New York in 2005, where he held management roles in the International Terrorism Branch, ultimately becoming special agent in charge for counterterrorism. In 2008, he was appointed assistant director in charge of that office. During that time, he created the New York Field Office’s Cyber Branch. He was named assistant director of the International Operations Division in 2010.

“Joe brings a mix of management expertise, operational experience, and vision to the cyber program,” said Director Mueller. “I am confident that under his leadership, the Cyber Division will continue to sharpen its strategic focus and strengthen its operational impact at home and abroad.”

Before joining the Cyber Division, Mr. Welch served as special agent in charge of the Indianapolis Field Office and as section chief in the Office of International Operations. He also has been assigned to the Criminal Investigative Division, as well as the Kansas City, Miami, and Washington Field Offices. Mr. Welch entered on duty as a special agent in 1988.

“In his role as assistant director, Mike will be responsible for hundreds of employees at Headquarters and in 78 locations around the world. His experience in criminal matters and his prior leadership role in International Operations make him the right person for this job,” Director Mueller said.

Additionally, Cyber Division Section Chief James C. Burrell has been appointed deputy assistant director of the Cyber Division. Mr. Burrell entered on duty as a special agent in 1991. He was assigned to the National Infrastructure Protection Center—the precursor to the Cyber Division—in 1998 and later was promoted to unit chief of the Cyber Division’s International Investigative Support Unit. For more than five years, he was a delegate to the G-8 Senior Experts Subgroup on High-Technology Crime. Mr. Burrell also supervised the Computer Intrusion, Cyber Crime, and Computer Analysis Response Team programs in the Boston Field Office and later served as Boston’s assistant special agent in charge with responsibility for the cyber program.

Reward Offered in White Powder Letters Case

Since 2008, more than 380 letters featuring a postmark from North Texas and containing a white powder substance have been sent to various locations around the country—more than 20 were sent last week alone. All of the letters are believed to have come from the same person, who has taken steps to conceal his activities and prevent law enforcement from finding physical evidence of his crimes, including his fingerprints.

At a press conference in Dallas today, the FBI and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service announced a reward of up to $150,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person(s) responsible for these mailings. In a flyer issued at the press conference, the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit provided possible characteristics of the sender. A sample letter was also released, highlighting features common in many of the mailings.

Fortunately, none of the letters—which have been received by schools, day care centers, churches, government offices, U.S. Embassies abroad, restaurants, and other private businesses—have contained hazardous materials. However, no threat is taken lightly. Each incident is treated as a real event, and the response to hoax white powder letters uses law enforcement resources that could be utilized for investigations and emergency response matters.

Anyone with information concerning these letters should contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL FBI (1-800-225-5324) or submit a tip at https://tips.fbi.gov.

Update on Letters with Reported Powdery Substance

Six letters purporting to deliver threats and a powdery substance have arrived at buildings across Portland over the past two weeks. In each and every case, testing has shown that the substance included in the envelopes is non-toxic. While more letters may arrive over the next few days, the FBI and its local partners believe they have stopped the sender or senders’ ability to continue this stream of threats. Additionally, the FBI would like to reassure the public that there is no known risk to public safety.

The person or people responsible for sending these letters potentially face severe penalties for their actions, including up to 10 years for sending a threatening communication through the mail and up to five years for a hoax device.

No charges have been filed at this time. Due to the on-going nature of this investigation, no further information will be released.

The FBI would like to thank the Portland Police Bureau and the Portland Fire Bureau for their continued support in this investigation.

Respected Community Leader Not the Individual Identified in Federal Arrest Warrant

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On November 12, 2011, an individual named Ali Hammoud with identifiers identical to those of an individual with an active federal warrant, was arrested by the Dearborn Police Department. Once in custody, it was determined that the Ali Hammoud was not uniquely identical to the individual named in the federal arrest warrant. At that time, he was released from custody.

Subsequent press stories linked Mr. Hammoud and his place of business to a known terrorist organization. The FBI would like to reiterate that Mr. Hammoud was not the individual sought by the federal warrant, he has not been tied to any terrorist organization, and he is recognized as a respected community leader.

Colombian Paramilitary Leader Sentenced in Miami to 33 Years in Prison for Drug Trafficking and Narco-Terrorism

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WASHINGTON - Carlos Mario Jimenez-Naranjo, aka “Macaco,” a paramilitary leader and one of Colombia’s most notorious drug traffickers, has been sentenced to 33 years in prison by U.S. District Judge Joan A. Lenard in Miami for leading an international drug trafficking conspiracy that supported a foreign terrorist organization, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer for the Southern District of Florida.

According to court documents, Jimenez-Naranjo was one of the top leaders of the Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia (AUC), a Colombian right-wing paramilitary and drug trafficking organization.   The AUC is a U.S. Department of State-designated foreign terrorist organization.   From the mid 1990s through 2007, Jimenez-Naranjo led the Bloque Central Bolivar (BCB), a group within the AUC, commanding an estimated 7,000 armed combatants.   Jimenez-Naranjo controlled large areas where cocaine was produced, and his organization was responsible for exporting thousands of kilograms of cocaine from Colombia to Central America, Mexico and the United States using seaports and clandestine airstrips.   Jimenez-Naranjo was extradited from Colombia to the United States on May 7, 2008, based on a provisional arrest warrant from separate indictments in the District of Columbia and in the Southern District of Florida.

On Jan. 7, 2010, Jimenez-Naranjo pleaded guilty in the District of Columbia to charges of conspiracy to manufacture and distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine, with intent to import the cocaine into the United States, and to engaging in drug trafficking with the intent to provide something of value to a terrorist organization or narco-terrorism.  

On June 21, 2010, Jimenez-Naranjo pleaded guilty in the Southern District of Florida to a superseding indictment charging him with conspiracy to import thousands of kilograms of cocaine into the United States using clandestine airstrips and airplanes, and conspiracy to possess thousands of kilograms of cocaine, which were exported from Colombia onboard maritime vessels subject to the jurisdiction of the United States.  

The two cases were consolidated in the Southern District of Florida for sentencing.   Jimenez-Naranjo was sentenced on May 9, 2011, and the sentencing was unsealed today.

“Mr. Jimenez-Naranjo led the largest paramilitary group within the AUC,” said Assistant Attorney General Breuer.   “Under his decades-long leadership, the group trafficked thousands of kilograms of illegal narcotics to the United States by land, air and sea – from Colombia, through Central America, the Caribbean and Mexico.   Mr. Jimenez-Naranjo’s sentence is a step forward in our efforts to stem the illegal flow of narcotics to the United States and hold dangerous drug traffickers accountable.”

 “Jimenez-Naranjo and his organization conspired to import thousands of kilograms of cocaine into the United States using secret airstrips and airplanes,” said U.S. Attorney Ferrer.   “Transnational drug trafficking organizations, like this one, threaten the security of our borders and endanger the safety and well-being of our citizens.  For this reason, we in South Florida remain determined and focused on the mission of eradicating these dangerous organizations.”

 “Investigations such as this clearly define the connection between drugs and terrorism,” said Special Agent in Charge Mark R. Trouville of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Miami Field Office.  “International narco-terrorist organizations oppress communities in their home countries through force and corruption, and fund these activities by supplying illegal drugs in our communities. Every time DEA and our federal and international law enforcement partners dismantle a drug trafficking organization that funds or supports terrorism, we remove a serious threat and stop a funding source for terrorist acts.”

 “The FBI continues working to eradicate international narco-traffickers, like Carlos Mario Jimenez-Naranjo, who infiltrate our shores and pollute our society with cocaine,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge William Maddalena of the FBI’s Miami Field Office.  “I especially want to thank the Colombian National Police for their assistance and cooperation in this case.”

 “ICE HSI will continue to stand shoulder to shoulder with our law enforcement partners to identify and dismantle drug trafficking organizations smuggling large quantities of drugs into the country,” said Michael Shea, Acting Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigrations and Custom Enforcement – Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) in Miami.   “Those who think that they are safely beyond our reach should think twice.   HSI and its partners are vigilant and these criminal actors will be arrested and brought to justice.”

 The evidence from the two cases established that Jimenez-Naranjo’s drug trafficking organization processed and manufactured multi-ton quantities of cocaine in Colombia-based laboratories and exported that cocaine from Colombia to Central America, Mexico and elsewhere, some of which was ultimately imported into the United States .  During the same time, Jimenez-Naranjo permitted the proceeds of his cocaine production and trafficking activities to be used to facilitate and finance the activities of the AUC.   Jimenez-Naranjo’s laboratories processed coca paste and crystallized and converted it into cocaine HCL, producing between 200 and 500 kilograms of cocaine HCL per month at their peak.   Jimenez-Naranjo sold this cocaine to transportation specialists, who used fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters and go-fast boats, among other forms of transportation, to move the cocaine within Colombia and to export the cocaine to Central America and Mexico.   Jimenez-Naranjo also maintained his own airstrips for his narcotic trafficking and charged other traffickers a fee to use his airstrips.

According to court documents, Jimenez-Naranjo also earned money through the BCB’s control of certain areas of Colombia.   Specifically, taxes were levied upon other narcotics traffickers who needed passage through BCB-controlled territories.   Jimenez-Naranjo used the proceeds from his drug trafficking activities to finance the activities of the AUC and specifically the BCB.   Narcotics profits enabled the BCB to purchase weapons and other needed supplies for the BCB narcotics trafficking and other AUC activities.   In addition, the cocaine profits were used to pay taxes to other AUC groups who similarly charged the BCB for the passage of the BCB’s narcotics through their territories.   The BCB and Jimenez-Naranjo were able to maintain tight control of their territories in Colombia through bribery and intimidation of corrupt members of the Colombia government, including law enforcement, politicians and the military.

Following the demobilization of Jimenez-Naranjo and the BCB in 2005 as part of Colombia’s Justice and Peace Law, Jimenez-Naranjo was incarcerated but continued his cocaine trafficking activities.   In conjunction with those activities, Jimenez-Naranjo continued to support individuals and organizations that had engaged in, or were engaging in, terrorism or terrorism-related activity, including individuals who had been part of his armed group but who had not demobilized.   Jimenez-Naranjo used co-defendants and others to continue to manage the organization’s drug trafficking operations from prison in Colombia, including collecting taxes from other drug traffickers, some of whom continued their involvement in the AUC .

Under the terms of the to the extradition request, the United States provided assurances to the Government of Colombia that a life sentence would not be sought, but would seek instead a term of years.   This assurance is made for all defendants extradited from Colombia to the United States.

The U.S. government expressed its grateful appreciation to the government of Colombia and the Colombia National Police for their assistance and support during the investigations, arrest and extradition (international police coordination).  

The District of Columbia charges were obtained by the Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section (NDDS) of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and resulted from an investigation conducted by the DEA Bogota, Colombia, Country Office.  

The Southern District of Florida charges were obtained by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Miami and resulted from a separate joint investigation conducted by the FBI’s Miami Field Division, the DEA’s Miami Field Division and the Miami ICE-HSI office.

These cases were prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrea Hoffman and Alejandro O. Soto from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Southern District of Florida, and Trial Attorneys Robert J. Raymond of the Criminal Division’s NDDS, and Glenn C. Alexander, formerly of NDDS and presently in the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section.   NDDS Judicial Attachés in Bogotá provided crucial support and assistance on this matter.   The Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs also provided assistance.   The Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) Fusion Center provided investigative and administrative support in this case.

Criminal Aliens Apprehended By Border Patrol Convicted, Imprisoned Pending Deportation

Tucson, AZ –Two Mexican nationals apprehended by Tucson, Ariz. Border Patrol agents for attempting to illegally re-enter the United States were sentenced to prison on Sept. 16.

Jorge Arriega-Hernandez, a 39-year-old male from Zitácuaro, Michoacán, México, was sentenced to 30 months in prison for re-entry of an aggravated felon.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted Jorge Arriega-Hernandez after he was apprehended April 5. During processing at the Ajo Station, the Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System revealed he was convicted in Fresno County, Calif., in 2005 for possession with intent to manufacture methamphetamine and was sentenced to 151 days in prison. Record checks also indicated he was previously deported from the U.S. after serving his sentence.

Following initial processing, the Tucson Sector’s Prosecution Unit submitted the case to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Following his incarceration in federal prison, Arriega-Hernandez will be formally removed from the country.

José Eleazar Amaya-García, a 43-year-old male from San Juan Tumbio, Michoacán, México, was sentenced to 64 months in prison for re-entry of an aggravated felon.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted Amaya-García after he was apprehended March 18. During processing at the Tucson Station, IAFIS revealed Amaya-García was convicted in Orange County, Calif., in 1999 for making terrorist threats toward an individual.

Record checks also indicated Amaya-García was previously deported from the U.S. through San Ysidro, Calif., after serving a two-year sentence. Following initial processing, the case was submitted to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for re-entry of an aggravated felon. Following his incarceration in federal prison, Amaya-García will be formally removed from the country.

All individuals apprehended by the Border Patrol undergo criminal history checks using IAFIS. This vital tool accesses criminal records throughout the United States, thereby assisting agents in quickly identifying violent criminals and wanted persons.

Customs and Border Protection welcomes assistance from the community. Report suspicious activity by calling the Border Patrol toll free at (877) 872-7435. All calls will be answered and remain anonymous.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.

FBI in Montana: In Resident Agencies, Agents are ‘Jacks of All Trades’

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In the early days of the FBI under J. Edgar Hoover, popular lore has it that agents who botched a job risked exile to the Bureau’s remote field office in Butte, Montana. The field office closed in 1989, but the FBI still sends plenty of agents to the Big Sky state. It’s not a punitive measure, but a concerted effort to tackle the same threats confronting the rest of the country.

“If you think this is a sleepy little burg, think again,” says Scott Cruse, an assistant special agent in charge in Helena, one of 10 satellite offices, or resident agencies, in Montana under the governance of the Salt Lake City Field Office, which also covers Utah and Idaho. Priorities here largely mirror those of every other field office: fraud, corruption, cyber scams, child pornography, terrorism, criminal networks. “We may not have the large enterprises in Montana, but we work it up the chain,” Cruse says. “We follow that thread.”

Oftentimes, the thread extends well beyond the state’s expansive borders. In one recent case, an agent in Helena working with local police peeled back the seedy layers of a child pornography web spanning at least five states. In another case, an agent in Bozeman unraveled a local conman’s ruse to trick investors into pouring millions into a fictitious gold-mining scheme. The cases, which we will feature in the coming days on fbi.gov, illustrate how despite the region’s relative remoteness it is not immune to the prevailing threats of the modern era.

“It’s not a small world for us anymore,” says Special Agent Greg Rice, who works in the Bozeman resident agency. “We tend to find a lot of cases that are connected to other states, or even foreign nationalities.” In one such case, a local bank received a fax on what appeared to be the letterhead of a local business. The fax actually originated in Russia, instructing the teller to transfer $50,000 to a foreign account.

“There’s a lot of wealth here,” Rice says. “The people are very nice. They’re very trusting.”

The FBI has 56 field offices and about 400 resident agencies across the U.S. While in the larger field offices agents might work on terrorism or white-collar squads, agents like Rice in the small resident agencies have to be generalists—capable of working any case anytime.

“You have to learn to handle them all,” says Rice. “If people are calling in about fraud you’ve got to deal with it. You can’t wait for the fraud guy to come back.”

The Montana offices support each other on large operations, but individual cases are generally handled locally. Agents in the Kalispell office in Northwest Montana, for example, might focus more heavily on domestic terrorist threats, while in Bozeman and Billings the agents might be tracing the interstate flow of drugs or cyber scams. The 600-mile border with Canada also presents special challenges.

Agent Cruse says it takes a special type of agent to work in a resident agency, or RA. “You have to be a jack of all trades,” he says. “You’ve got to be willing to work long, odd hours, you’ve got to be able to get along with the local police, you’ve got to be diplomatic, and you’ve got to have a tough skin.”

“When you’re in a small RA,” Agent Rice adds, “you are the face of the FBI.”

Combating Transnational Organized Crime

Today, the Obama Administration announced the release of the President’s Strategy to Combat Transnational Organized Crime. In the words of the message from President Obama that accompanies the Strategy: “This strategy is organized around a single, unifying principle:  To build, balance, and integrate the tools of American power to combat transnational organized crime and related threats to our national security—and to urge our partners to do the same.

As the Cabinet agency charged with securing our nation, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) plays an integral role in the Obama Administration’s efforts to combat transnational organized crime (TOC) both at home and with our partners abroad.

Reading and studying organized crime books often helps law enforcement officials combat organized crime.  Due to the DHS’s mission, the Department is uniquely positioned to leverage and deploy resources of many components in the fight against organized crime everywhere, while working closely with other federal, state and local agencies, foreign governments and partners in the private sector.

The most effective way of curbing corruption and other illicit activities, including cybercrime, drug and human trafficking, and terrorism, is through enhanced intelligence gathering and information sharing throughout the federal government. Examples include:

•In November 2010, the DHS Office of Intelligence and Analysis established the Border Intelligence Fusion Section (BIFS)—in collaboration with the Departments of Justice and Defense, and the U.S. intelligence community— to provide law enforcement, border enforcement, and investigative agencies with multi-source intelligence to support investigations and operations conducted along the Southwest border.

•In support of this strategy, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is implementing a new "Illicit Pathways Attack Strategy," which will prioritize, and integrate its authorities and resources in a focused and comprehensive manner to attack criminal organizations along the entire pathway, or continuum of crime, both at home and abroad. 

Once TOC threats have been identified, the Department works with our partners to interdict them through strengthened interdiction, investigations, and prosecutions. Some examples of these include:

•Cybercrime—As a result of close collaboration with the private sector regarding developing technologies and trends in the financial payments industry, the U.S. Secret Service has apprehended individuals charged with committing some of the world’s most advanced cybercrimes.

•Securing our borders—In 2006, ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) worked with other federal, state, local, and foreign partners to establish the BEST, in order to break down TOC networks that attempt to conduct illegal activities across and along our borders. Since the inception of this initiative, there are now 21 BESTs spread out along the Southwest and Northern borders as well as at major seaports.  .

In addition to securing our nation’s Southwest and Northern borders to disrupt drug trafficking, DHS has multiple maritime agreements with our international partners to facilitate cooperation in counterdrug operations in U.S. and foreign waters. Earlier this month, DHS unveiled an unprecedented cross-component Maritime Operations Coordination plan to enhance the Department’s coordination capabilities, and the U.S. Coast Guard utilizes intelligence gathered across the federal government to intercept and apprehend traffickers before they reach the United States.

Iowa Man Pleads Guilty to Providing False Information Related to Terrorist Hoax

ROCK ISLAND, IL—Sentencing has been scheduled for October for a Bettendorf, Iowa, man who pled guilty today to providing false information related to a terrorist hoax in Moline in April 2010. Don Lawrence Asheim, 59, of the 2500 block of Devils Glen Road, appeared this morning before U.S. District Judge James E. Shadid in Rock Island.

Asheim entered an open plea to an indictment that charged him with placing a white powdery substance in an envelope addressed to the attention of an individual at the Internal Revenue Service. The envelope was discovered on April 30, 2010, during a routine collection of outgoing mail at the Deere & Company facility, located at 501 River Drive in Moline. As a result, the Deere facility was locked down, employees quarantined for a time, and a hazardous materials response team responded to the scene. Testing of the substance determined that the white powder was harmless.

The envelope also contained Asheim’s tax bill, which Asheim admitted he had altered to remove and obliterate his personally identifiable information to conceal his identity. Asheim further admitted that he had written various hostile and profane statements on the tax bill and placed it in the envelope in the box designated for outgoing mail at the Deere & Company facility.

Sentencing has been scheduled on October 14. The offense carries a statutory penalty of up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration—Office of Investigations; the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; and, the Moline Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John K. Mehochko.