The U.S. Secret Service has released several news updates regarding various enforcement actions and legal outcomes. These include operations against skimming devices, convictions for fraud, and sentences for threats against officials.
In an operation known as Operation Heat Check, the U.S. Secret Service Miami Field Office, working with the Hialeah and Homestead police departments, prevented an estimated $13.5 million in potential fraud losses. The operation resulted in the discovery of 13 illegal skimming devices.
In Arkansas, a U.S. Secret Service and law enforcement outreach operation in the greater Little Rock area and Northwest Arkansas resulted in the seizure of seven illegal skimming devices.
In New York, the U.S. Secret Service New York Field Office and law enforcement partners conducted a three-day outreach effort regarding Electronic Benefit Transfer Fraud and payment card skimming. This effort resulted in the removal of 35 illegal devices and saved $36.5 million.
Federal convictions and sentences have been issued for various crimes. In Atlanta, Babajide Adesayo was convicted following an eight-day trial for laundering over $2.7 million obtained through romance fraud and other online scams. In the Bronx, eight alleged members or associates of the Shiesty 66 gang were sentenced for their roles in a bank fraud scheme involving over $10 million.
In Alexandria, a Belarusian national was sentenced to 16 years in prison for conspiracy to commit offenses against the United States, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft. In New York, John B. Mensch, the owner and CEO of a bus conglomerate, was sentenced to prison for stealing over $9 million from two banks.
The Secret Service also reported several cases involving threats. Diego M. Villavicencio of Tallahassee, Florida, was sentenced to two years in federal prison for sending interstate threats and impeding or retaliating against a federal official. William L. Upham of Jacksonville, Florida, was arrested on a criminal complaint for threatening the President of the United States. James Gerald Eckert, Jr. of Rochester, NY, was arrested for allegedly threatening to kill, kidnap, or inflict bodily harm upon a member of the President's family.
Additionally, a suburban Chicago man was sentenced to more than three years in federal prison for making a true threat to kill multiple public officials, including President Donald J. Trump.
Other enforcement actions include the seizure of over $25 million in cryptocurrency by the U.S. Secret Service Washington Field Office following investigations into criminal groups. In Suffolk County, New York, three residents were arrested for Grand Larceny in a mail theft scheme targeting U.S. Postal Service collection boxes.
