A Missouri man was sentenced in federal court for transporting child pornography over the internet. Kevin Michael Downey, 35, of Fulton was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark to 12 years in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Downey to pay a total of $30,000 in restitution to 10 of his victims. […]
The service and sacrifice of federal, state, and local law enforcement are recognized during National Police Week. This year, the week is observed from Sunday, May 9 through Saturday, May 15, 2021. Acting U.S. Attorney Teresa Moore said, “National Police Week provides an opportunity to express our gratitude and to honor the memories of law […]
A Missouri, man was sentenced in federal court for transporting a Kansas minor across state lines to engage in criminal sexual activity. Nathan Roger Belcher, 31, of Carl Junction, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark to 12 years in federal prison without parole. The court also sentenced Belcher to serve 20 years on […]
A Missouri, man was sentenced in federal court for his role in a conspiracy to distribute large quantities of methamphetamine in southwest Missouri. Stephan D. Samons, 31, of Camdenton, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark to 12 years in federal prison without parole. On Aug. 28, 2019, Samons pleaded guilty to participating in […]
A Missouri, man has been convicted in federal court for his role in a $1 million conspiracy to steal more than 1,400 cell phones in dozens of commercial burglaries across several states, as well as for obstruction of justice. Bryan C. Kirkendoll II, of Kansas City, also known as “B Boy” and “Blockboy,” 31, was […]
A Missouri man pleaded guilty in federal court to fraudulently obtaining more than $500,000 in Paycheck Protection Program loans under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Brian Ruth, Sr., 44, of Deepwater, waived his right to a grand jury and pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge David P. Rush to federal information […]
Two men traveling through Kansas City, Missouri, were charged in federal court for possessing nearly 24 pounds of heroin aboard a bus en route from California to New York. Darwin G. Morales-Sagastume, 23, and Cristian J. Lopez-Catalan, 28, were charged in a criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., with […]
A former paraprofessional at Blue Springs High School pleaded guilty in federal court to producing and distributing child pornography. Steven B. Allen, 45, of Independence, Mo., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark to two counts of producing child pornography and one count of distributing child pornography over the internet. Allen, who has been […]
A Missouri, man who was scheduled to begin his criminal jury trial instead pleaded in federal court to receiving child pornography over the internet. Scott James Wells, 55, of Springfield, withdrew his plea of not guilty before U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool in order to enter a nolo contendre, or “no contest,” plea, neither […]
A Union, Missouri, man who was scheduled to begin his criminal jury trial instead pleaded guilty in federal court to possessing six pounds of methamphetamine to distribute. Felix Franz Forjan, 71, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to one count of possessing methamphetamine with the intent to distribute. According to the plea […]
A Missouri man has pleaded guilty in federal court to multiple charges of illegally possessing firearms, including stolen firearms, and drug trafficking. Brandon L. Hill, 33, of Independence, Missouri, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Greg Kays on Thursday, April 29, to three counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm, two counts […]
A soldier in the Army National Guard pleaded guilty in federal court to sexually abusing four minors over several years while he was the youth ministry director at Fort Leonard Wood U.S. Army Base. David J. McKay, 42, of Waynesville, Missouri, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge David P. Rush to one count of transporting […]
Three Georgia men were indicted by a federal grand jury in the Southern District of Georgia and charged with hate crimes and the attempted kidnapping of Ahmaud Arbery. The indictment also charges two of the men with separate counts of using firearms during that crime of violence. Travis McMichael, 35; Travis’s father, Gregory McMichael, 65; […]
A Missouri man pleaded guilty in federal court to the robberies (and attempted robberies) of five businesses. Joshua A. West, 28, Overland Park, Kansas, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Howard F. Sachs to five counts of robbery and two counts of brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a violent crime. By pleading guilty, West […]
A California man was charged in federal court with transporting more than four kilograms of fentanyl from Los Angeles, California, to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, aboard a bus that stopped at a Kansas City, Missouri station. Miguel Angel Duran, 28, was charged with one count of possessing fentanyl with the intent to distribute in a criminal complaint […]
A Missouri man who distributed a video of himself holding a gun to the head of a blindfolded man pleaded guilty in federal court to illegally possessing firearms. Sean A. Winston, 44, of Kansas City, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Howard F. Sachs to being a felon in possession of firearms. By pleading guilty, […]
An Iowa woman pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court to hate crime charges for attempting to kill two children because of their race and national origin. According to admissions Nicole Poole Franklin, 42, made during the hearing, on the afternoon of December 9, 2019, Poole Franklin was driving her Jeep Grand Cherokee on Creston Avenue […]
A Missouri woman who led police officers on a high-speed chase in a stolen car pleaded guilty in federal court to illegally possessing a firearm. Erin D. Bisby, 29, of Kansas City, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Howard F. Sachs to being a felon in possession of a firearm. According to court documents, Bisby was […]
A Missouri, man has been sentenced in federal court for his leadership role in a multi-million dollar conspiracy that distributed more than 2,000 kilograms of cocaine in the metropolitan area. “This heavily-armed drug dealer was still on court-supervised release for a prior federal drug-trafficking conviction while he was engaged in this drug trafficking conspiracy,” said […]
An Arkansas man pleaded guilty in federal court to illegally damaging and removing more than two dozen trees from a national forest. Jamie R. Edmondson, 46, pleaded guilty before U.S. Chief Magistrate Judge David P. Rush to one count of depredation of government property. By pleading guilty, Edmondson admitted that he illegally cut and removed […]
