Extra-judicial killings: Need to change policing in Nigeria

By Okechukwu Nwanguma,

IG Mohammed Abubakar

For years now, human rights abuses remain very rampant and entrenched within the Nigerian Police and Security Forces.

Torture, brutality, and extrajudicial killing by police and security forces are rampant and occur in the context of increasing violent crime and belligerent crime prevention and control strategies by law enforcement and security forces in Nigeria.

Since 2000, several local and international human rights advocacy groups have consistently documented reports of persistent killings and abuse by the police and security forces in Nigeria. A culture of impunity protects members of the police and other security forces involved in extrajudicial killing, corruption and other gross human rights abuse.

Research findings by Network on Police Reform in Nigeria (NOPRIN) published in 2008 and updated in 2010 found that Police in Nigeria commit extrajudicial killings, torture, rape, and extortion with relative impunity. Many members of the Nigeria Police Force are more likely to commit crimes than to prevent them. Police personnel routinely carry out summary executions of persons accused or suspected of crime, rely on torture as a principal means of investigation, and engage in extortion at nearly every opportunity. This shocking pattern of abuse calls into question the legitimacy of the entire Nigeria Police Force. The police hierarchy continues to tolerate massive human rights abuses making it very difficult to achieve change at the lower levels. This is why it is necessary to start changing the whole culture of policing in Nigeria.

Amnesty International reaffirmed in 2009 that: ‘Nigerian security forces have a history of carrying out extra-judicial executions, torture and other ill-treatment. There are consistent reports that the Nigeria Police Force executes detainees in custody, suspected armed robbers under arrest, people who refuse to pay bribes or people stopped during road checks. The Nigerian military are also frequently involved in extra-judicial execution…’ as exemplified by daily news reports of massive killings by the military mainly in the Northeast and Northwest States where a ‘Joint Task Force’ (JTF) of police and military has been deployed to check sectarian violence and ‘terrorist activities’ by the Islamist fundamentalist sect, Boko Haram.’

Human Rights Watch in its 2013 World Report: Nigeria: reports that:

‘Attacks by the militant Islamist group Boko Haram and abuses by government security forces led to spiralling violence across northern and central Nigeria. This violence, which first erupted in 2009, has claimed more than 3,000 lives. The group, which seeks to impose a strict form of Sharia, or Islamic law, in northern Nigeria and end government corruption, launched hundreds of attacks in 2012 against police officers, Christians, and Muslims who cooperate with the government or oppose the group.’

‘In the name of ending Boko Haram’s threat to Nigeria’s citizens, government security forces have responded with a heavy-hand. In 2012, security agents killed hundreds of suspected members of the group or residents of communities where attacks occurred. Nigerian authorities also arrested hundreds of people during raids across the north. Many of those detained were held incommunicado without charge or trial, in some cases in inhuman conditions. Some were physically abused; others disappeared or died in detention. These abuses in turn helped further fuel the group’s campaign of violence.’

Similarly, in the Southeast region, members of the ethnic self-determination group, Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) have remained targets of frequent vicious attack, harassment and intimidation by security operatives with many of their members secretly killed by the police in the States in that region. Over the years several MASSOB activists and sympathizers have been shot at while embarking on peaceful rallies or brutalized and arrested during their meetings. Many have been arrested, detained, tortured and paraded as criminals for canvassing their self determination agenda. In January 2013, following the shocking discovery of ‘over 30 dead bodies’ floating in Ezu river in Anambra State, members of MASSOB and civil society groups in Anambra State have accused the Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS), an anti robbery unit of the Anambra State Police Command of secretly killing persons in its custody and throwing their dead bodies into the river. MASSOB has claimed that among the victims whose dead bodies were found floating in Ezu river were 9 of its members who were arrested during a raid of their meeting place in Onitsha, Anambra State in November 2012 by a joint task force of military, police and secret police who later handed them over to SARS. In the past, NOPRIN researchers have uncovered secret shallow graves where victims of extrajudicial killings were secretly buried by the police in Anambra State.

Human Rights Watch asserts, and in my humble view, correctly, that ‘the failure of Nigeria’s government to address the widespread poverty, corruption, police abuse, and longstanding impunity for a range of crimes has created a fertile ground for violent militancy. HRW estimates that since the end of military rule in 1999, more than 18,000 people have died in inter-communal, political, and sectarian violence.

The majority of cases of abuse go uninvestigated and unpunished. The families of the victims usually have no recourse to justice or redress. Many do not even get to find out what exactly happened to their loved ones.

Only very few of the total killings that occur on a daily basis are reported in the media. The media appear to have become too accustomed to extrajudicial or summary killings and lethargic to reporting each and every single incident. Human rights monitors lack the skill and capacity to monitor and systematically document incidents with a view to fully identifying the victims and perpetrators and engaging government oversight agencies with a view to ensuring that victims secure remedies and perpetrators appropriately brought to account.  Nigerian Government has failed to fulfill its obligations under international human rights standards to institute due diligence in ensuring effective investigation, punishment and redress for human rights atrocities.

Failure to subject to trial and sanction police and security officers implicated in human rights violation has created a climate of impunity which protects perpetrators. As Human Rights Watch noted in its 2005 report ‘Rest in Pieces’, one of the fundamental problems with the police is that abuses are sanctioned or even ordered from the top, i.e. from the most senior officials. The Nigerian government has repeatedly expressed willingness to address the problems in the criminal justice system, improve access to justice and reform the police. But despite several ‘Presidential Committees on Police Reform in Nigeria’ in recent years, which presented detailed recommendations for improvement, little has been done. A review of the 1943 Police Act began in 2004, but the draft bill has been pending since October 2006. Laws, regulations and codes of conduct to protect human rights are not enforced.

Government’s response to public outcries about particular crisis or security situation is to set up a new police reform committee and once public outcry is doused, the report is shelved. Hence, since 2000 up to 2012 at least four police reform committees have been set up by successive governments to reorganize and transform the police. But setting up police reform committees appears to have become a pretext for government to evade responsibility and an avenue to distribute patronage and waste public resources.  Nigerian political authorities endanger public safety by paying lip service to police reform. 

Civil society must, on a continuous basis, promote accountability and respect for human rights. Civil society organizations must continue to lead the charge in pushing Nigerian government to implement genuine reforms. They must interrogate, improve on- if need be, and intensify their advocacy strategies with a view to mobilizing a sustainable public opinion against the culture of impunity, pushing the government to wake up to its obligations to promote and protect human rights, establishing a culture of respect for human rights within the police, ensuring that victims and their families have access to justice, and putting an end to impunity for police and security officers.

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Man Faces Life in Prison for Mass Shooting in 2009

Alexis Candelario-Santana, 41, faces life in prison following his conviction of murdering eight people and an unborn child and attempting to murder 19 others during a mass shooting at a Puerto Rico pub in 2009, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico Rosa Emilia Rodríguez-Vélez.
On March 8, 2013, Candelari-Santana was convicted of 28 counts of violent crime in aid of racketeering activity, one count of racketeering conspiracy, nine counts of using a firearm in relation to a crime of violence, one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance, and one count of possession of a firearm with a prior conviction. These offenses occurred on October 17, 2009, in what became known as the “La Tombola Massacre.”
The counts of conviction on capital murder charges necessitated a separate penalty phase of the trial. That phase began on Monday, March 15, 2003. On Saturday, March 23, 2013, the jury announced it was unable to reach a unanimous sentencing verdict. As a result, a sentence of life in prison will be imposed. There is no parole in the federal system.
According to the evidence presented at trial, from approximately 1993 through 2003, Candelario-Santana was the leader of the drug trafficking organization that operated principally in Sabana Seca, Toa Baja, Puerto Rico. The organization purchased its drugs in bulk, processed and packaged the drugs, and sold them at Sabana Seca through numerous sellers, runners, and enforcers under Candelario-Santana’s control. The organization sold crack, cocaine, heroin, and marijuana, and members of the organization routinely possessed firearms in order to protect the drug points. In addition, the evidence introduced at trial established that, between 1995 and 2001, Mr. Candelario-Santana either personally killed, or ordered others to kill, 13 individuals whom he viewed as threats to his drug trafficking organization or as being disloyal members of his drug trafficking organization.
In approximately 2002, Candelario-Santana was arrested and charged in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico with numerous murders. Sometime after Candelario-Santana’s arrest, co-defendant Carmelo Rondón-Feliciano took charge of the organization. Candelario-Santana ran the drug trafficking organization from prison until approximately 2006, when he was marginalized by co-conspirator Wilfredo Semprit-Santana and Rondón-Feliciano. According to evidence presented at trial, Candelario-Santana was infuriated at being removed from power within the drug trafficking organization.
On September 25, 2006, Rondón-Feliciano was arrested and charged in the District of Puerto Rico with federal drug trafficking crimes. These charges stemmed, in part, from Rondón-Feliciano’s distribution of narcotics in Sabana Seca. After Rondón-Feliciano’s arrest, co-conspirator Semprit-Santana took charge of the organization.
In February 2009, Candelario-Santana was released from prison.
On October 17, 2009, Semprit-Santana held the grand opening of a pub he rented called La Tómbola, located in Toa Baja, Puerto Rico. The event was heavily attended, with people congregating inside and outside the establishment. At approximately 11:50 p.m., Candelario-Santana, co-defendant David Oquendo-Rivas, and others drove to La Tómbola. When they arrived, they immediately opened fire on the patrons located outside. Candelario-Santana and Oquendo-Rivas entered La Tómbola and opened fire on the people inside. Nine people and an 8-month unborn child were killed as a result of the gunfire, and 19 other victims were shot and injured. The individuals killed included Candelario-Santana’s godson, Rondón-Feliciano’s stepson, and Candelario-Santana’s cousin. The evidence introduced at trial demonstrated that 335 expended shell-casings were recovered from the La Tombola crime scene. The ballistics evidence established that eight .9 mm semi-automatic pistols, three 40 caliber semi-automatic pistols, two 45 caliber semi-automatic pistols, three AK-47-type assault rifles, and one AR-15-type assault rifle were used at the La Tombola crime scene.
Candelario Santana will be formally sentenced on June 21, 2013.
The case was investigated by FBI and the Puerto Rico Police Department, with the collaboration of U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Instituto de Ciencias Forenses; and the Puerto Rico Department of Justice. The case is being prosecuted by First Assistant U.S. Attorney María Dominguez-Victoriano and Assistant U.S. Attorney Marcela Mateo of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Puerto Rico and Trial Attorney Bruce R. Hegyi of the Criminal Division’s Capital Case Unit.

FBI Seeks Suspect in Connection with Series of White-Collar Crimes

Paul David Cardwell is wanted in Wyoming for committing a series of white-collar crimes. On or about February 10, 2011, Cardwell accepted an offer of employment to serve as CEO of Powell Valley HealthCare (PVHC) in Powell, Wyoming. Cardwell started work at PVHC around March 7, 2011. As CEO, he reported to PVHC’s board of directors. He resigned on September 23, 2011. During Cardwell’s six-and-a-half months of employment, Cardwell, together with a co-conspirator, allegedly executed a scheme to defraud PVHC. Through this scheme, Cardwell and his co-conspirator improperly misappropriated PVHC funds, which totaled almost $850,000.
The scheme involved the following: Cardwell allegedly authorized PVHC to make payments to a straw vendor, who kicked back approximately 75 percent of the payments to Cardwell. The payments to the fake company, a purported physician-recruiting firm based in Indiana, were supposedly for physician recruiting services. The payments were simply the means to funnel the paid amounts to the co-conspirator, who kicked approximately 75 percent of the paid funds back to Cardwell and kept 25 percent for himself. None of the misappropriated funds (nearly $850,000) were legitimately earned.
Through investigation, it was discovered that Cardwell and his co-conspirator had allegedly pulled the same scheme while Cardwell was CEO at a hospital in White County, Indiana, from 2001 to 2009. It is believed that at least $800,000 was stolen allegedly, from the hospital, by Cardwell and his co-conspirator. On March 13, 2012, a Wyoming grand jury returned an indictment charging Cardwell and his co-conspirator with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, wire fraud, and mail fraud. A summons was issued to both men to appear in federal court in Cheyenne, Wyoming, on March 27, 2012.
On this same day, Cardwell and his co-conspirator turned themselves in to law enforcement in Cheyenne, Wyoming, in response to the arrest warrants issued in this matter. On this day, their initial appearance and arraignments were held. Both were released on $50,000 bond with a trial date of June 4, 2012, which was later postponed to September 18, 2012. Among the stipulations made by U.S. Probation and Parole regarding their pre-trial release, both Cardwell and his co-conspirator had to surrender their U.S. Passports and make no attempts to obtain a new passport.
On or about August 29, 2012, Cardwell attempted to obtain a new U.S. passport in his birth name, Paul David Sappington. When Home Land Security was advised, Cardwell’s application was denied. On this same day, an arrest warrant was issued by the United States District Court, for the District of Wyoming, for violation of Cardwell’s pre-trial release.
If you have any information concerning this person, please contact your local FBI office or the nearest American Embassy or Consulate.
Details:

• Name: Paul David Cardwell
• Alias: Paul David Sappington
• Date of Birth Used: July 11, 1966
• Place of Birth: Indiana
• Height: Approximately 5’8” tall
• Weight: Approximately 220 pounds
• NCIC: W025749843
• Build: Hefty
• Hair: Brown
• Eyes: Blue
• Sex: Male
• Race: White
• Nationality: American
• Remarks: Cardwell has ties to Indiana and very close ties to Thailand.

Robbery of Bank of the West

The FBI and Albuquerque Police Department are looking for a man who robbed Bank of the West, 5228 Central Ave SW, on Monday, March 25, 2013.
The suspect is described as Hispanic with a dark complexion, approximately 6’2” tall with a slender build and in his mid-30s.
He wore sunglasses, a black hooded sweatshirt with a large white cross on it, a black baseball cap with a blue bill, blue jeans, and black and white running shoes.
The suspect carried a blue and black backpack.
Witnesses say he entered the bank shortly before 3 p.m. and handed a teller a note demanding money.
The teller gave an undisclosed amount of money to the suspect, who was last seen walking east on Central Avenue NW.
Bank robbery is punishable by a 20-year prison sentence for each offense, and the penalty increases if a dangerous weapon is used in the commission of the crime.
Anyone with information about this bank robbery is asked to call the Albuquerque FBI Office at (505) 889-1300 (24 hours) or Albuquerque Metro Crime Stoppers, anonymously, at (505) 843-STOP.
The FBI may pay a reward of up to $1,000 for information leading to the suspect’s arrest and conviction.
Photos of the suspect:

Gang Member Sentenced in California to 40 Years in Federal Prison for Role in Ambush Killing of Young Father

A veteran member of the Pueblo Bishops Bloods street gang was sentenced today to 40 years in federal prison for his role in a racketeering plot that resulted in the death of a young man with no gang affiliation who was executed in front of his 2-year-old son.
Anthony Gabourel, also known as “Bandit,” 23, of South Los Angeles, was sentenced by United States District Judge S. James Otero for violating the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act in relation to the murder of 24-year-old Francisco Cornelio.
During the sentencing hearing, Judge Otero stated Gabourel and other Pueblo Bishops “executed Cornelio, who was minding his own business” simply because “he was of Mexican descent.”
A federal jury determined that Gabourel plotted with other members of the Pueblo Bishops to retaliate against a Latino because members of the rival 38th Street Gang had recently shot and killed a member of the Pueblo Bishops (see: http://www.justice.gov/usao/cac/Pressroom/2012/094.html).
In papers filed in relation to today’s sentencing hearing, prosecutors asserted that Gabourel and another Pueblo Bishops members, armed with shotguns, ambushed the unarmed Cornelio while he was vacuuming his car with his young son. The Pueblo Bishops shot Cornelio once in the back without saying a word. Federal prosecutors argued to Judge Otero that Gabourel was the shooter.
The incident was unsolved prior to a federal racketeering indictment that was unsealed in August 2010. Gabourel was first tried in state court in relation to the Cornelio murder, but a jury acquitted him in August 2011.
Two other men were convicted at trial with Gabourel. Gary White, also known as “Big J-Killa,” 47, who resided in Los Angeles and Victorville, was sentenced to 14 years in prison. Jermaine Hardiman, also known as “Lil’ J-Killa,” 31, of South Los Angeles, is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Otero on April 8.
According to evidence presented at trial, the Pueblo Bishops Bloods street gang has been active in and around the Pueblo Del Rio Housing Projects of Los Angeles for decades. This case is the first federal RICO action in this district alleging that a Bloods or Crips street gang was a racketeering enterprise.
As a result of the federal investigation into the Pueblo Bishops Bloods, a total of 45 defendants were charged in federal indictments. Prosecutors have secured convictions of 40 of those defendants. Two defendants are in state custody, and two are fugitives. The 45th defendant, Rondale Young, who is charged with conspiring with Gabourel in the murder of Cornelio, is scheduled to be tried before Judge Otero on November 5, 2013.
One of the 40 defendants convicted in this case, Marquis Edwards, 23, who was known by the moniker “Baby Uzi,” and who pleaded guilty in relation to the murder of two people (see: http://www.justice.gov/usao/cac/Pressroom/2012/046.html), was sentenced in November to 40 years in prison.
The investigation into the Pueblo Bishops Bloods was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Los Angeles Police Department, the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development-Office of Inspector General, and the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.

FBI Seeks Public’s Assistance in Locating the Clearinghouse Bandit

Special Agent in Charge (SAC) Mark F. Giuliano, in conjunction with SAC James F. Yacone, FBI Denver Field Office, requests the public’s assistance in identifying and locating a serial bank robber that has struck the Denver, Colorado area 13 times, with his first robbery having occurred there on August 1, 2012. Denver, Colorado authorities believe that this individual may have relocated to the Atlanta, Georgia area.
Law enforcement agencies from Denver to Colorado Springs, along with the FBI Rocky Mountain Safe Streets Task Force (RMSSTF), are investigating 13 bank robberies that recently occurred. It is believed that all were committed by the same individual.
This individual has been dubbed the Clearinghouse Bandit by the RMSSTF.
Witness accounts and several of the photographs (at the end of this release) of the suspect show him carrying what appears to be a magazine. Publishers Clearing House is an American multi-channel direct-marketing company that offers discounted magazine subscriptions.
The suspect is described as a black male, 25 to 40 years of age, approximately 6’0” to 6’5” in height, 220 to 260 pounds, with a heavy build.
The Clearinghouse Bandit is believed to be responsible for the following bank robberies:

1. Wednesday, August 1, 2012, 12:35 p.m.
   TCF Bank 640 16th Street, Denver, Colorado
2. Monday, August 20, 2012, 2:45 p.m.
   Public Service Credit Union 815 N Colorado Blvd., Denver, Colorado
3. Wednesday, September 19, 2012, 12:00 p.m.
   Public Service Credit Union 1113 N Abilene Street, Aurora, Colorado
4. Tuesday, September 25, 2012, 12:34 p.m.
   Space Age Federal Credit Union 2495 S Havana Street, Aurora, Colorado
5. Tuesday, September 25, 2012, 12:48 p.m.
   Public Service Credit Union 815 N Colorado Blvd, Denver, Colorado
6. Wednesday, October 3, 2012, 11:19 a.m.
   Chase Bank 2986 N Speer Blvd, Denver, Colorado
7. Friday, October 19, 2012, 10:25 a.m.
   Compass Bank 4988 N Federal Blvd. Denver, Colorado
8. Wednesday, October 24, 2012, 10:55 a.m.
   Chase Bank 747 S Colorado Blvd., Denver, Colorado
9. Wednesday, October 31, 2012, 4:20 p.m.
   Security Services Federal Credit Union 1901 N Academy Blvd., Colorado Springs, Colorado
10. Thursday, November 1, 2012, 11:07 a.m.
    Credit Union of Colorado 13732 E. Quincy Ave., Aurora, Colorado
11. Thursday, November 1, 2012, 12:37 p.m.
    Wells Fargo Bank 1777 W. 38th Ave., Denver, Colorado
12. Friday, November 23, 2012, 12:25 p.m.
    TCF Bank 640 16th St. Denver, Colorado
13. Monday, December 10, 2012, 12:00 p.m.
    Wells Fargo Bank 1777 W. 38th Ave. Denver, Colorado

The suspect enters the bank, presents a demand note, and flees.
Bank robbery is punishable by a 20-year prison sentence for each offense and increases if a dangerous weapon is used in the commission of the crime.
If anyone has any information on the bank robbery above, please call the FBI Atlanta Field Office at (404) 679-9000.

Forty-Four Individuals Indicted in Health Care Fraud and Drug Distribution Scheme Seven Doctors, Four Pharmacists, Three Home Health Agency Owners Among Those Indicted

Forty-four individuals have been charged in a health care fraud and drug distribution scheme, U.S. Attorney Barbara L. McQuade announced today.
McQuade was joined in the announcement by Special Agent in Charge Robert L. Corso of the Drug Enforcement Administration; Special Agent in Charge Robert D. Foley, III of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Acting Special Agent in Charge Gilbert Salinas of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; Lamont Pugh, Special Agent in Charge of the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services; Acting Special Agent in Charge William Hayes of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations; Special Agent in Charge Erick Martinez of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation; Detroit Police Chief Chester Logan; and Portsmouth, Ohio Police Chief Robert Ware, II.
The 13-count superseding indictment charges 44 new defendants with a drug conspiracy involving prescription drug controlled substances such as Oxycontin, Opana, Vicodin, and other drugs. Health care fraud charges were filed against 32 of the defendants, while three defendants were charged with money laundering and three defendants were charged with being felons in possession of firearms.
The superseding indictment alleges that Sardar Ashrafkhan, Deepak Kumar, John Check, and David Vezzossi, owners of home health agencies, would provide kickbacks, bribes, and other illegal benefits to physicians to induce them to write prescriptions for patients with Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance. Patients were recruited into the scheme by patient recruiters or “marketers,” who would pay kickbacks and bribes to patients in exchange for the patients’ permitting the pharmacies and physicians to bill their insurance for medications and services that were medically unnecessary and/or never provided. During this conspiracy, prescriptions were presented to the Sav-Max (pharmacist Ahab Elmadhoun), Sav-Mart (pharmacist Waleed Yaghmour), Atrium (pharmacist Krina Patel and manager Sanjay Patel), or Caremax (pharmacist Jayshriben Gandhi and manager Guarang Gandhi) Pharmacies for filling. The medical professionals and health care agency owners would then bill the relevant insurers for services supposedly provided to the patients, without regard to the medical necessity of those prescriptions and services. Some of the pharmacists would bill insurers, including Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurers, for dispensing the medications, despite the fact that the medications were medically unnecessary and, in many cases, never provided. Other times, the pharmacists accepted cash from the recruiters for filling and dispensing medications.
The indictment further alleges a conspiracy to distribute controlled substances by the health care owners, physicians, pharmacies, and recruiters to facilitate the submission of false claims to Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurers. The home health care owners paid physicians associated with the scheme kickbacks in exchange for prescriptions for controlled substances for their patients which were filled at the respective pharmacies. The controlled substances involved included the Schedule II drug oxycodone (Oxycontin), the Schedule III drug hydrocodone (Vicodin, Lortab) the Schedule IV drug alprazolam (Xanax), and the Schedule V drug cough syrup with codeine.
The indictment further alleges illegal money laundering by pharmacists Waleed Yaghmour and Ahab Elmadhoun, and also by home health agency owner Sardar Ashrafkhan, a.k.a. “Dr. Khan.” The indictment further alleges individual charges of felon in possession of a firearm against marketers Toney Taylor and Troy Ivory and home health agency owner John Stephen Check.
The 44 new defendants named in the 13-count indictment are

• pharmacist Krina Patel, 35, of Shelby Township
• office manager Sanjay Patel, 39, of Shelby Township
• Jayshriben Gandhi, 43, of Canton
• office manager Guarang Gandhi, 39, of Canton
• pharmacist Ahab Elmadhoun, 40, of Canton
• pharmacist Waleed Yaghmour, 46, of Dearborn
• physician Adelfo Pamatmat, 67, of Farmington Hills
• physician John Geralt, 84, of Beverly Hills
• physician Malik Dababneh, 53, of Oxford
• physician Paul Kelly, 76, of Bath
• physician Ravi Iyer, 42, of Novi
• physician Muhammad Ahmed, 65, of Ypsilanti
• physician assistant Timothy Spencer, 64, of Inkster
• Wayne State Medical School graduate Javar Myatt-Jones, a.k.a. “Dr. Jones,” 33, of Chicago
• foreign medical student Faraj Ghabag, 33, of Oregon, Ohio
• home health agency owners Sardar Ashrafkhan, a.k.a. “Dr. Khan,” 55, of Warren
• home health agency owner Deepak Kumar, 45, of Washington Township
• his assistant Mohammad Mian, 44, of Oak Park
• home health agency owner John Stephen Check, 53, of Dearborn Heights
• business partner co-owner David Vezzossi, 52, of West Bloomfield
• marketer Frederick Till Jackson Sr., a.k.a. “Big Fred,” 52, of Detroit
• marketer Tiffany Walker, a.k.a. “Mary Reed,” 45, of Detroit
• Sierra Walker, a.k.a. “Tosha,” 25, of Detroit
• marketer Toney Taylor, 44, of Detroit
• marketer Jimmy Foster, 35, of Detroit
• marketer James Blake, 32, of Sterling Heights
• marketer Troy Ivory, 47, of Warren
• marketer Jackie Renee Ivory, 32, of Ecorse
• marketer Eric Hester, 40, of Ionia
• marketer Felicia Jackson, 27, of Eastpointe
• marketer Ayesha McCray, 30, of Detroit
• marketer Jamall Gibson, 30, of Eastpointe
• couriers Alfornia Johnson, a.k.a. “Con,” a.k.a “Alex,” a.k.a. “ShiCon,” 34, of Detroit
• Phillip Burnett, a.k.a. “Frank,” a.k.a “Frank Burns,” 33, of Detroit
• Ronnie Moses, a.k.a. “Red,” 23, of Detroit
• Corey Williams, a.k.a. “CoCo,” 44, of Detroit
• William Ashley Smith, a.k.a. “Cash,” of Portsmouth, Ohio
• Robert Scott Dials, 25, of Portsmouth, Ohio
• Cherish Lewis, 26, of Whe! elersburg, Ohio
• distributors Willie David Jackson, a.k.a. “Lil’ Dave,” 24, of Eastpointe
• Lance Hatten, 29, of Columbus, Ohio
• Josh Barnes, 33, of Wheelersburg, Ohio
• Nathan Reed, a.k.a. “Reed,” 31, of Portsmouth, Ohio
• electronic transfer nominee Garland Holman, 30, of Detroit

“The merger of health care fraud and drug trafficking is a disturbing trend that is not only robbing taxpayers but also fueling addictions to prescription drugs,” McQuade said. “Prescription drug abuse has become a national epidemic, with more Americans dying from overdoses than from gunshot wounds.”
Robert L. Corso, Special Agent in Charge of DEA’s Detroit Field Division stated, “Confronting the illegal diversion and abuse of controlled pharmaceuticals is a top priority of DEA and our law enforcement partners. The indictment alleges that this drug distribution organization includes members of the medical profession who abused their positions of trust and endangered the lives of countless people for pure profit. This was done by illegally distributing opiate painkillers and other controlled prescription medications throughout southeast Michigan and stretching to the southern reaches of Ohio. This investigation makes it clear that the DEA and our partners in law enforcement will continue to investigate and bring to justice those individuals that are responsible for the illegal distribution of prescription medicines.”
FBI Special Agent in Charge Foley stated, “These arrests are the result of countless hours of hard work by the FBI and its law enforcement partners. We remain dedicated to pursuing and prosecuting any individuals who illegally exploit the health care system for their own personal gains.”
Acting ATF Special Agent in Charge Gil Salinas stated, “The combined law enforcement intelligence and resources were crucial in addressing this criminal element and in making our communities safer. ATF continues to pursue the those who continually endanger our communities. I commend the outstanding collaboration of our Violent Crime Task Force and our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners in undertaking this sweeping investigation.”
Special Agent in Charge Erick Martinez, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation added that these crimes committed by doctors and pharmacists were worse than many typical schemes: “These illegal activities are done primarily to make money, and once the money is in the hands of the suspects, it’s hard for them to deny their involvement.”
“The public rightfully expects that doctors will uphold professional standards rather than exploit patients for personal gain,” said Lamont Pugh, III, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General’s region including Michigan. “Working closely with our law enforcement partners, we will investigate and bring to justice those who harm the Medicare program and taxpayers by fraudulently submitting claims related to illegal diversion and/or distribution of addictive drugs.”
Detroit Police Chief Logan stated, “The investigation of this case exemplifies the strong teamwork between the men and women of the Detroit Police Department and our state and federal law enforcement partners, along with members of the Portsmouth, Ohio Police Department. Having the United States Attorney’s Office prosecute this criminal case will be sending a strong message to those who choose to break the law. Together, we will make a difference.”
Police Chief Robert Ware stated, “Portsmouth is along a corridor of U.S. Route 23, better known as the drug pipeline. The flow of drugs from Detroit to Portsmouth and to neighboring cities such as Huntington, West Virginia, has changed lives and communities forever. Behind the scenes are some very dedicated, hardworking officers, deputies, state troopers, federal agents and prosecutors working together to bring justice to those poisoning our communities. What you have before you today is the culmination of some of those joint efforts to curb the flow of illegal drugs into our neighborhoods.”
Of the 10 defendants charged in the earlier indictment, all have been convicted by pleas over the last year. Those defendants included Detroit and Ohio residents. Several have been sentenced already and others are due to be sentenced in the near future.
The investigation in this case was handled by the Drug Enforcement Administration; the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; Detroit Police Department; Portsmouth, Ohio Police Department; Scioto County Sheriff’s Office; the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation; the U.S. Immigration and Custom’s Enforcement’s Department of Homeland Security Investigations; the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General; and the Detroit Violent Crimes Task Force and Michigan State Police. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Terrence R. Haugabook, Michael Martin, and Wayne F. Pratt. They will be assisted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan Grey and Gjon Juncaj of the Forfeiture Section.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.