A Fair Grove, Missouri, man who is a member of the Southwest Honkys violent prison gang pleaded guilty in federal court to his role in a drug-trafficking conspiracy in which investigators intercepted a shipment of nearly 9.5 kilograms of methamphetamine. William F. Jones, 45, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool to participating […]
An employee of the West Plains, Missouri, R-7 School District was charged in federal court with soliciting children to send him sexually explicit photos and videos through Snapchat and Instagram. Cody Ashton Ary, 29, of West Plains, was charged in a criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Springfield, Missouri, with one count […]
A man who escaped from a Springfield, Missouri, halfway house 17 months ago pleaded guilty in federal court after being caught crossing the border from Mexico into San Diego, California. Benjamin E. Garnica, 34, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool to escaping from federal custody. Garnica was sentenced on March 20, 2014, […]
A Chicago, Illinois, man who was arrested while driving through northern Missouri was sentenced in federal court for possessing nearly a kilogram of methamphetamine to distribute. Kevin M. Phyfiher, 29, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Greg Kays to 15 years in federal prison without parole. On Oct. 29, 2019, Phyfiher pleaded guilty to one […]
A Springfield, Missouri, man has been charged in federal court with sexually assaulting three teenagers and recording the abuse on his cell phone. William Shane Berg, 47, was charged in a criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Springfield on Wednesday, May 6, with one count of producing child pornography. According to an […]
An Independence, Missouri, man who was arrested on Tuesday, the same day he shared pornographic images over the internet that he had just taken of a 5-year-old child victim, was charged in federal court. Justin Swift, 35, was charged in a two-count criminal complaint with producing child pornography and with distributing child pornography over the […]
Public safety agencies in the Western District of Missouri are eligible for more than $3.2 million in Department of Justice grants announced today to aid their response to the challenges posed by the outbreak of COVID-19. The Coronavirus Emergency Supplemental Funding program, authorized by the recent stimulus legislation, will allow eligible state and local and […]
The FBI says a man shot and killed Tuesday in Belton, near Kansas City, was the subject of a monthslong domestic terrorism investigation and was actively planning a bombing. KMBC-TV in Kansas City reports agents were attempting to arrest Timothy Wilson, 36, in Belton. Wilson, who was armed with a weapon, was injured and taken […]
U.S. Attorney Tim Garrison urges the public to report suspected fraud schemes related to COVID-19 (the coronavirus) by calling the National Center for Disaster Fraud hotline (1-866-720-5721) or writing to the NCDF email address at [email protected]. The Department of Justice is committed to preventing, pursuing, prosecuting, and punishing individuals and businesses that take advantage of […]
A total of 17 defendants, primarily from the Kansas City metropolitan area, have been indicted for their roles in a nearly $10 million conspiracy to distribute almost 1,000 kilograms of methamphetamine. Fahrudin F. Fejzic, also known as “Frank,” 48, Steven M. Lyons, also known as “Pops,” 60, Shelly Marie Exton, 38, Mary L. Corona, 38, […]
A Republic, Missouri, truck driver pleaded guilty in federal court to transporting two Missouri teenagers across state lines and sexually assaulting them. Cleveland Lee Crumsey, 37, pleaded guilty before U.S. Chief Magistrate Judge David P. Rush to one count of transporting a minor across state lines to engage in criminal sexual activity. By pleading guilty, […]
A Springfield, Missouri, man who has been charged separately in state court with multiple crimes against children was sentenced in federal court for failing to register as a sex offender during the time he allegedly committed those state crimes. Frank Patrick Lambert, 61, was sentenced by U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips to three years […]
A Springfield, Missouri, man was sentenced in federal court for illegally possessing heroin to distribute and illegally possessing 10 firearms. William C. Merriweather, 37, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool to 12 years in federal prison without parole. On Sept. 4, 2019, Merriweather pleaded guilty to one count of participating in a […]
An Aurora, Missouri, man has been sentenced in federal court for receiving and distributing child pornography. Michael Steven Copfer, 38, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Brian C. Wimes on Monday, Feb. 24, to 12 years and seven months in federal prison without parole. The court also sentenced Copfer to 15 years of supervised release […]
NCMC students Katie Blanchard from Lucerne, MO Cash Miller from Warsaw, MO and were two of the 98 collegiate students that participated in the 33rd Annual Missouri Governor’s Student Leadership Forum on Faith and Values held February 14-16, 2020, in Jefferson City, Missouri. The forum challenges students’ character development by encouraging them to reflect on […]
An Appleton City, Missouri, man was sentenced in federal court for sending images of child pornography to an undercover law enforcement officer. Anthony Dale Smith, 38, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to 13 years in federal prison without parole. The court also sentenced Smith to 15 years of supervised release following […]
A former Camden County, Missouri, sheriff’s deputy was sentenced in federal court for receiving child pornography. Leonard Jerome Wilson, 41, formerly of Camdenton, Missouri, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to eight years in federal prison without parole. The court also sentenced Wilson to serve 10 years of supervised release following incarceration. […]
United States Attorney Tim Garrison praised the cooperation of state and local law enforcement agencies in the Western District of Missouri today, as U.S. Attorney General William Barr addressed the problem of sanctuary cities elsewhere in the nation. “We appreciate the cooperation in this district among state, local, and federal law enforcement agencies,” said Garrison. […]
A Lee’s Summit, Missouri, woman and her brother, a Denver, Colorado, man, were sentenced in federal court for their roles in a conspiracy to distribute more than $1.7 million of marijuana that was mailed from Colorado to Missouri. Natalie J. McNeil, 34, and Tanner L. McNeil, 30, were sentenced in separate appearances before U.S. Chief […]
A Mexican national pleaded guilty in federal court on Tuesday to illegally entering the United States for the eighth time. Jesus Vargas-Melendez, 40, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge John T. Maughmer to unlawfully reentering the United States after having been previously deported. By pleading guilty, Vargas-Melendez admitted that he illegally entered the United States […]
