My Crime Fiction: 'Black Horse Pike'

The below short story originally appeared in American Crime Magazine.

Black Horse Pike  

By Paul Davis

The bartender in a small dark roadside bar on the Black Horse Pike introduced himself to us as Bob as he served my friend Tony Rocco a beer and a vodka on the rocks for me. 

Tony told the bartender that I was a writer and he was a photographer as we were offered menus. We ordered meatball sandwiches along with our drinks, and Bob said he was glad we were drinking, as he had been a bartender for forty years and he didn't trust a man who didn't drink.

“No problem here,” Tony told him. 

Coming from South Philadelphia, we were taking the Black Horse Pike to Atlantic City, which was the old way before they built the New Jersey Expressway. The Black Horse Pike was the road to "downashore," as we called it when we were teenagers in the 1960s. We took the Black Horse Pike as Tony wanted to make a stop at the home of one of his relatives.

We were on our way to Atlantic City to cover the trial of a South Philly mob guy later that week. The notorious mobster had been arrested by the Atlantic City Police at a diner as he was pounding away on a gambler who was behind on his payments. 

As the local newspaper's crime columnist, I was going to Atlantic City to cover the trial and Tony, one the local paper’s photographers, accompanied me.  

We ordered a second round of drinks and Bob again told us of his mistrust of non-drinkers.

“You’re a writer," Bob said. "You want to hear a story while you're waiting for your food to come out?”

“Sure,” I replied.

“Well, about fifty years ago a thin man with glasses, a meek-looking guy, kinda shy, came in and sat at one of those tables. Ole Joe, the old bartender then, left the bar and went over to the table to take the man's order. The shy man hardly looked up as he ordered a cheeseburger in a low, hesitant voice.

“The bar was nearly empty except for the shy man and a group of six local boys. Young tough guys and bad boys, you might call ‘em.”

“Want a beer or something to drink with your cheeseburger?” Ole Joe asked the shy man.  
“No,” the shy man said softly. “Just a glass of water.”

“Mister,” Ole Joe said, “This is a bar, you know.” 

“Your sign outside reads Bar and Grill. I’ll just use the grill part if you don't mind.”

“OK,” Ole Joe said. 

The group of young men heard the exchange between the shy man and Ole Joe and they laughed loudly.  

One of them yelled out. “Get him a soda pop,” Another yelled out, “Get him a glass of milk.”

The shy man ignored the insults and taunts.

After the shy man had finished his cheeseburger in silence, he got up from the table and went to the bar. He asked the bartender how much he owed him for the cheeseburger.

“Well, Ole Joe told him $30 dollars.” 

“Why so much?” the shy man asked Ole Joe.

“The boys over there said you was picking up their tab too,” Ole Joe said. 

The shy man turned slowly towards the group of small-town toughs and then turned back to the bartender. “I never agreed to that,” he said softly. 

“Listen,” Ole Joe said quietly, leaning in, “Mister, it might be better to just pay.” 

The shy man told Ole Joe to call the police.

“They won’t get here in time, and I don't want to see you get hurt or my place smashed up, so just pay up, OK.” 

“Do what I said,” the shy man in a soft, calm voice.

“The local boys were all drunk and having fun and they sure was brave in a group of six,” Bob said. “Dummy Number One and Dummy Number Two got up from the table and approached the shy man at the bar. 

"Hey,” Dummy Number One said to the shy man. “Why ain’t you paying for our beers and food?” 

“Pay your own bill,” the shy man said softly without turning to face the two young men.

“Now Ole Joe was in the army in World War II, and he thought he saw everything,” Bob explained. “But when Dummy Number One grabbed the shy man's jacket, Ole Joe saw a blur of arms and as swift as you can imagine, Dummy Number One was on the floor screaming about his broken arm.” 

Bob said the shy man also dropped Dummy Number Two to the floor as the rest of the pack charged him. 

“It was all so quick that most of the bad boys didn't know what hit them,” Bob said. “But they was all on the floor with broken bones or just plain knocked out." 

The shy man then said to Ole Joe, “Didn't I tell you to call the police? 

“Yes, sir,” Ole Joe said as he picked up the phone. 

“Well, it turns out that the man was shy, but not meek. He was some kind of soldier who was in Vietnam, and he sure knew how to fight close up and all.” 

“It goes to show you,” Tony said. “Don't judge a book by its cover.” 

“Yeah,” Bob the bartender replied. “And don't trust a man who don't drink."

Tony and I laughed. 

"I ought to know,” Bob said. 

“How so?” I asked.

“I was Dummy Number Four.”

© 2020 Paul Davis

Dual U.S.-Mexican Citizen Known As 'La Negra" Arrested For Violations Of The Kingpin Act

The U.S. Justice Department released the below information:

A dual U.S.-Mexican citizen had her initial appearance in federal court in the District of Columbia Wednesday on charges related to her alleged involvement in five business entities designated by the Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) as providing material support to the international narcotics trafficking activities of the Mexican narcotics trafficking organization known as the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion (CJNG).

Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Special Agent in Charge William Bodner of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Los Angeles Field Division made the announcement.

Jessica Johanna Oseguera Gonzalez, known as “La Negra,” 33, who was residing in Guadalajara, Mexico, was arrested in Washington, D.C. Wednesday pursuant to a warrant stemming from a Feb. 13, 2020, indictment.  The charges were unsealed earlier today and she remains in U.S. custody.  Her detention hearing is on Monday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robin M. Meriweather in the District of Columbia. 

The five-count indictment alleges that Oseguera Gonzalez, engaged in transactions or dealings in property or interests in property with five business entities, which have been designated by OFAC as Specially Designated Narcotics Traffickers pursuant to the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act.  The businesses are alleged to provide financial support to, and are subject to the control of, the CJNG.  As a result, U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them. 

The indictment alleges that Oseguera Gonzalez continued her involvement with J&P Advertising S.A. de C.V., JJGON S.P.R. de R.L. de C.V., Las Flores Cabanas, Mizu Sushi Lounge and Operadora Los Famosas S.A. de C.V., and Onze Black, after their designations by OFAC on Sept. 17, 2015.  

The charges contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The DEA’s Los Angeles Field Division led the investigation in conjunction with the Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control.  Assistant Deputy Chief Anthony Nardozzi, and Trial Attorneys Brett Reynolds, Kaitlin Sahni, and Cole Radovich of the Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section are prosecuting the case.

A Little Humor: Bernie Sanders Praises Slave Owners For Free Housing Program

The Babylon Bee took a satiric shot at Bernie Sanders, who praised the late Communist dictator Fidel Castro for Cuba’s literacy program.

U.S.—In a televised interview, Bernie Sanders has praised slave owners for their free housing program offered to all slaves working the plantations.

"Of course, the slavery was bad, but the slaves were housed, for free I might add, for their entire employment," Sanders said in an interview with 60 Minutes. "So it's unfair to criticize the whole thing. Also, the slaveowners were pretty impressive guys. The plantations were very clean, very nice buildings.

 You can read the rest of the piece via the below link:

https://babylonbee.com/news/bernie-sanders-praises-slave-owners-for-providing-free-housing-for-slaves 

Constitution Health Plaza Cancels Plans For Safe Injection Site In South Philadelphia

WPVI, a TV station in Philadelphia, reports that the drug injection site scheduled to open in South Philadelphia, the first in the nation, will not open as planned due to outraged residents and local political representatives.

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- In an abrupt turn of events, the plan for the country's first supervised injection site to open in South Philadelphia stopped in its tracks Thursday

The controversial injection site to be operated by non-profit Safehouse was scheduled to open next week at Constitution Health Plaza at Broad and McKean streets.

However, a spokesperson with the Constitution Health Plaza says they are canceling the lease.

"We have made the decision to cancel plans to locate a supervised injection site at Constitution Health Plaza," said Anthony Campisi, a spokesman for Constitution Health Plaza.

You can read the rest of the piece and watch the video clip via the below link:

 https://6abc.com/society/lease-for-south-philly-safe-injection-site-canceled/5972240/ 

Chinese National Sentenced For Stealing Trade Secrets Worth $1 Billion

The U.S. Justice Department released the below information:

A former associate scientist was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison in federal court today for stealing proprietary information worth more than $1 billion from his employer, a U.S. petroleum company.

In November 2019, Tan pleaded guilty to theft of a trade secret, unauthorized transmission of a trade secret, and unauthorized possession of a trade secret. From June 2017 until December 2018, Tan was employed as an associate scientist at the petroleum company and was assigned to work in a group with the goal of developing next generation battery technologies for stationary energy storage, specifically flow batteries. In his plea agreement, Tan admitted to intentionally copying and downloading the technologies’ research and development materials without authorization from his employer.

“This investigation and prosecution uncovered another instance of China’s persistent attempts to steal American intellectual property,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers. “The department of justice will continue to confront this type of illicit behavior to safeguard American industry and protect American jobs.”

“American ingenuity inspires advances in science and technology and drives world markets. Nowhere is that more true than in Oklahoma’s energy industry. Unscrupulous individuals like Hongjin Tan seek to steal American trade secrets to take home to China so they can replicate our technology,” said U.S. Attorney Trent Shores for the Northern District of Oklahoma. “United States Attorneys from coast stand ready to combat China’s economic aggression that criminally threatens American industry.”

"American companies invest heavily in advanced research and cutting-edge technology. Trade secret theft is detrimental to our national security and free-market economy.  It takes profits away from companies and jobs away from hard working Americans," said Melissa Godbold, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Oklahoma City Field Office. “The sentencing of Hongjin Tan underscores the FBI’s commitment to protecting our country's industries from adversaries who attempt to steal valuable proprietary information.”

According to the plea agreement, Tan used a thumb drive to copy hundreds of files containing the proprietary information on Dec. 11, 2018. He subsequently turned in his resignation and was escorted from the premises on Dec. 12, 2018. Later that day, he returned the thumb drive, claiming that he had forgotten to do so before leaving his employer’s property. Upon examination, it was discovered that there was unallocated space on the thumb drive, indicating five documents had previously been deleted. Investigators with the FBI searched Tan’s premises and found an external hard drive. They discovered that the same five missing files from the thumb drive had been downloaded to the hard drive. Tan maintained the files on a hard drive so he could access the data at a later date. Further accessing the material would have been financially advantageous for Tan but caused significant financial damage to his Oklahoma employer.

U.S. District Judge Gregory K. Frizzell sentenced Hongjin Tan, 36, a Chinese National and U.S. legal permanent resident, to 24 months in federal prison and ordered the defendant to pay $150,000 in restitution to his former employer. Following his release from prison, Tan will spend three years on supervised release.

Tan was remanded into the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service until transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons Facility.

The FBI and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations conducted this investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joel-lyn A. McCormick of the Northern District of Oklahoma and Trial Attorney Matthew J. McKenzie of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section (CES) are prosecuting the case, with assistance from Trial Attorney Matthew R. Walczewski and Assistant Deputy Chief Brian J. Resler of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crimes and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS).

Statement of U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain Regarding Proposed Drug Injection Site In South Philadelphia

The U.S. Attorney Office Eastern District of Pennsylvania released the below statement:

 PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney William M. McSwain released the following statement regarding the proposed drug injection site in South Philadelphia today:

Yesterday morning, Safehouse announced during a press conference that it intends to open a heroin injection site in South Philadelphia next week – although it did not specify the precise location or the precise date, in keeping with Safehouse’s consistent lack of transparency in dealing with the community.  By contrast, I wanted to update the community on the efforts of the U.S. Attorney’s Office to prevent this proposed site from opening.  First, yesterday afternoon, my Office filed its official Notice of Appeal with the U.S. District Court, which begins the process of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit’s review of the District Court’s decision.  Second, my Office will be filing a motion today for the District Court to stay its final order during the pendency of the appeal.

This request for a stay is critically important.  My Office filed suit against Safehouse in the first place to bring order, reason and fairness to a potentially explosive situation.  The current dispute over injection sites should be settled in the courts, not in the streets.  But, that court process is not over, and I believe that a stay is appropriate so that the dispute will continue to be resolved via careful, reasoned analysis and not deteriorate into a literal street fight.  Here, a stay would preserve the status quo while the Third Circuit examines the legality of the proposed site, and would prevent the chaos that would occur should Safehouse lurch forward with an opening while the case is still ongoing.

This unnecessary chaos was on full display at Safehouse’s press conference yesterday morning.  That press conference was a dumpster fire. 

The press conference featured, among other things, understandably angry South Philadelphia residents yelling at former Governor Rendell, calling him unworthy of the title of Governor and berating him as a “sneak” for hiding his intention to locate the first injection site in South Philadelphia, as well as a sitting City Councilman (Mark Squilla) screaming at Safehouse’s founders that their proposal was “horrible and a disgrace” and “not a part of democracy” because he and his constituents had never been informed about Safehouse’s plans. 

It also featured plenty of logical inconsistency: Governor Rendell, for example, claimed that an injection site in Philadelphia would have saved the life of his friend’s son (who tragically overdosed in his parents’ home) on the assumption that this young man would have traveled from the suburbs to the site to inject.  Immediately contradicting this, Safehouse co-founder Ronda Goldfein, in response to angry questions from South Philadelphia residents who fear that the site would draw addicts to their neighborhood, adamantly insisted that “nobody” from outside the South Philadelphia neighborhood would use the site.  Goldfein quickly became irritated with the residents’ legitimate questions; things got so bad that she threw in the towel and deferred any questions to an imaginary, future community meeting to be held at an unnamed time and place.

The sad fact is that Safehouse’s secretive, haphazard “plan” has not been vetted with any of the affected neighborhood residents, community groups, City Council members, State Representatives or State Senators.  It is being unfairly foisted on them on the assumption that they don’t matter.  It is treating them like fools.

The residents of Philadelphia deserve better than this.  And my Office will continue to fight for it – and for them.

FBI: Romanian Hackers Sentenced - Members Of Bayrob Criminal Enterprise Infected Thousands Of Computers With Malware, Stole Millions Of Dollars

The FBI released the below information:

The hackers were like modern-day John Dillingers, brazenly committing their crimes and repeatedly escaping law enforcement’s grasp.

But like Dillinger and most other criminals, they eventually slipped up, and the FBI and its international partners were waiting for them after years of tracking their activities. 

In 2007, an Ohio woman wired thousands of dollars to an eBay seller thinking she was buying a used car. The car never arrived. When she went to her local police department, the listing did not appear on the officers’ computers.

That’s because the woman was on a fraudulent version of the online auction site that mimicked the real one—a result of having unknowingly downloaded malicious software, known as malware, to her computer.

And to thousands of other victims just like her, the website and transactions looked legitimate. But buyers who thought they were wiring money across town were, in fact, sending money to hackers halfway across the world.

The hackers, known as the Bayrob Group, laundered the money via money mules, making it difficult to track. (Money mules are criminal accomplices who, often unwittingly, move criminal money through their own bank accounts.) Additionally, if a user on an infected machine went to the “Help” section of the site, they were met with the hackers’—not eBay’s—customer service.

The Bayrob hackers also blocked websites like ic3.gov—the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center—where a user might have gone for help. And before smartphones were so common, the infected computer may have been a victim’s only access to the Internet.

The would-be car buyer, along with many other victims, lost her money because wiring funds lacks the consumer protection of a credit card. Agents estimate each victim lost between $8,000 and $11,000.

“At the time, this was really cutting edge,” said Special Agent Ryan Macfarlane, who worked this case out of the FBI’s Cleveland Field Office. “These guys did a very good job of staying current with the technologies in the cyber criminal underground.”

The Bayrob hackers were frustratingly nimble and good at covering their tracks. They used multiple layers of proxy servers to hide their location. Those proxy servers communicated with the “command and control” servers that talked to the thousands of computers the malware had infected.

But as the hackers gained more victims, more partners joined the investigation. The FBI worked with numerous law enforcement agencies around the world on this case, as well as with companies such as AOL, eBay, and Symantec.

Beginning in 2012, the Bayrob Group began to diversify its criminal business as technology advanced. They continued to spread their malware via spam and social media, but they also got into cryptocurrency mining and selling credit card numbers on the Darknet.

“They had all of these infected systems, and they tried to use as many ways as possible to make money from them,” Macfarlane said.

A break finally came when a Bayrob participant accidentally logged into his personal email instead of his criminal one. AOL, who was investigating his abuse of their network, connected the two accounts. That personal account led to online profiles in Romania and on social media—essentially the first action tying one of the suspects to the crimes.

That small mistake helped set investigators, in partnership with the Romanian National Police, on a path toward discovering the identities of all three hackers. And after much further investigation, including undercover buys from the group on Darknet marketplace Alphabay, the FBI had enough evidence to work with Romanian authorities on the arrests.

By the time the hackers were arrested in 2016, the Bayrob Group had become one of the top senders of malicious email.

“We were essentially taking down this entire infrastructure and arresting the three individuals at one time,” Macfarlane said. “And the Romanian National Police were key partners in this effort. They stuck with us year after year. We couldn’t have done this without them.”

Bayrob Group members Bogdan Nicolescu and Radu Miclaus were both convicted on wire fraud, money laundering, and identity theft charges. In December 2019, Nicolescu was sentenced to 20 years and Miclaus to 18 years in prison.

A third member of the group, Tiberiu Danet, pleaded guilty to similar charges. He was sentenced in January to 10 years in prison.

While it was years in the making, putting a stop to these prolific thieves was worth the time and effort for the investigators—even when the hackers were as elusive as a gangster on the run.

“We stuck with it because these guys weren’t stopping,” Macfarlane said. “They continued to evolve, and they were becoming a bigger and bigger threat.”

Protecting Yourself Online

Although many of the victims had no way of knowing their computers were compromised, there are steps you can take to protect yourself and your devices, such as making sure your antivirus and operating systems are always up to date. Also be careful of what you click on, even if it’s coming from someone you know.

“A lot of people don’t think that someone they know will be compromised,” said FBI Special Agent Stacy Diaz, who also worked on the case. “These hackers know how social networks work, and they use those relationships to grow their network.”

Bayrob by the Numbers 

• Infected computers: 400,000+
• Money lost: $4 million+
• Average loss per victim: $8,000-$11,000
• Years in operation: 2007-2016
• Malware variations: 160+
• Malicious emails sent: 70+ million 

U.S. Department Of Justice To Appeal District Court Ruling Regarding Drug Injection Sites

The U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania released the below information.

PHILADELPHIA – A federal judge ruled today that a nonprofit seeking to open a facility in Philadelphia for the injection of illegal drugs would not violate a federal drug law known commonly as the federal “crack house statute.”  The decision by United States District Court Judge Gerald A. McHugh in favor of nonprofit Safehouse makes final a prior ruling and paves the way for a showdown on appeal.

“We respectfully disagree with the District Court’s ruling and plan to appeal immediately,” said United States Attorney William M. McSwain. “What Safehouse proposes is a radical experiment that would invite thousands of people onto its property for the purpose of injecting illegal drugs. In our view, this would plainly violate the law and we look forward to presenting our case to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.”

The application of the law in question, which prohibits any person from maintaining a place for the purpose of illegal drug use, is hotly contested. Safehouse contends that allowing illegal drug use on its property is necessary to prevent overdoses. The so-called “supervised injection site” proposed by Safehouse would be the first of its kind in the United States.

This effort is staunchly opposed by a growing number of federal authorities, including the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Surgeon General. In anticipation of this ruling, U.S. Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey A. Rosen published an editorial in the Philadelphia Inquirer earlier this month, condemning Safehouse’s plan and committing to an appeal. Last month, U.S. Surgeon General Jerome M. Adams cautioned, “I have looked at the data,” and “we want to optimize the things that we know work before we start having conversations about more controversial interventions.”

Community groups in neighborhoods where Safehouse is rumored to be considering opening an injection site have also objected. “We believe that Safehouse’s proposed activity threatens to institutionalize the scourge of illegal drug use – and all the problems that come with it – in Philadelphia neighborhoods,” said U.S. Attorney McSwain. “In light of these concerns, Safehouse should act prudently and not rush to open while the appeal is pending. But if it does rush forward, my Office will evaluate all options available under the law.”

While no timeline has yet been set for the appeal, the United States will seek an expedited ruling from the Third Circuit.

Doctor Described As ‘Candy Man’ And ‘El Chapo Of Opioids’ Admits Distributing Opioids To Patients

The U.S. Attorney’s Office District of New Jersey released the below information:

NEWARK, N.J. – A Bergen County doctor today admitted distributing opioids without a legitimate medical reason and falsifying medical records to cover it up, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.

Robert Delagente, 45, of Oakland, New Jersey, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi in Newark federal court to an indictment charging him with one count of conspiracy to distribute controlled dangerous substances, three counts of distribution of controlled dangerous substances, and one count of falsifying medical records.

“This defendant knowingly prescribed for his patients some of the most dangerous and addictive drugs available, sometimes with no more contact than a text message from the patient,” U.S. Attorney Carpenito said. “Many of these patients were dealing with pain and addiction, and instead of getting help from their doctor, they were drawn deeper into the cycle of drug abuse. His admission of guilt today ensures that he will be appropriately punished for this behavior.”

“Dr. Delagente sold his ethics, his medical license, and his moral compass,” FBI-Newark Special Agent in Charge Gregory W. Ehrie said. “There is no magic elixir for the pain caused by pill mill doctors. The cure is public awareness, victims who come forward and a determined fleet of FBI investigators who will arrest these unscrupulous practitioners when they run afoul of the law.”

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

Beginning in May 2014, Delagente was a doctor at a medical practice called North Jersey Family Medicine (NJFM) in Oakland, New Jersey. He allegedly described himself in conversations pertaining to his prescribing of painkillers as the “Candy Man” and the “El Chapo of Opioids.” Delagente knowingly prescribed controlled substances, such as oxycodone, Percocet, Tylenol with codeine, and various benzodiazepines (alprazolam, diazepam, clonazepam, and temazepam), outside the ordinary course of professional practice and without a legitimate medical purpose. He ignored the inherent danger and medical risk of overdose, drug abuse, and death that can accompany prescriptions of highly addictive opioids, benzodiazepines, and muscle relaxers, both on their own and in combination with one another.

Delagente prescribed controlled substances without ever seeing the purported patient for a medical visit or even discussing with the patient the medical need for the prescription. He allowed patients to ask him for controlled substances via text message and would write a prescription for patients that he would leave at the front desk, without requiring an office visit or consultation of any kind. He allowed patients to dictate the strength and dosage of the controlled substances he prescribed for them. Delagente also prescribed the dangerous drug combination known as the “Holy Trinity,” comprised of opioids (usually oxycodone), benzodiazepines (usually alprazolam) and muscle relaxers (usually carisoprodol).

Delagente failed to monitor patients for addiction and ignored drug screening tests to determine whether certain patients were taking illicit drugs. In fact, Delagente prescribed controlled substances to patients he knew were addicted to opioids or other controlled substances. In one instance, an NJFM employee texted Delagente that a patient had gotten a babysitter and driven a long distance to get to the practice, but had been unable to see a doctor. Delagente responded: “Oh well … C’est la vie! Lol … He can wait for his oral heroin another day. Lol.”

One patient texted Delagente that the patient “probably can’t stop the pk’s,” referring to painkillers. The patient told Delagente that the patient “would need a plan to stop…not cold turkey.” A few days later, when the patient was having trouble obtaining pain medication, the patient wrote to Delagente that “If I go 4 days without [painkillers] I am in huge trouble.” In response, Delagente wrote “I will leave you a short supply RX [prescription] at the front to pick up.” Delagente then wrote the patient a prescription for 120 tablets of 30-milligram oxycodone for 30 days. Delagente at one point told this patient: “I’m literally sticking my neck out and can lose my medical license or [be] arrested for what I just did.”

Delagente also was charged with altering medical records of patients who received controlled substance prescriptions from him after law enforcement officials had subpoenaed the records in late April 2019.

Delagente faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine on each of the distribution of controlled dangerous substances charges. Delagente faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the charge of falsifying medical records. Sentencing for Delagente is scheduled for June 10, 2020.

U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Ehrie in Newark, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jason S. Gould of the Health Care Fraud Unit and Sean M. Sherman of the Opioids Unit in Newark.

South Philadelphia Drug Delivery Service Operators, Known As The “Friends,” Convicted At Trial On All Counts

The U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Pennsylvania released the below information:

PHILADELPHIA – First Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams announced that Antoine Clark, 30, Gerald Spruell, 32, and Daniel Robinson, 36, all of Philadelphia, PA, were convicted after more than two weeks at trial of charges including conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, and distribution or possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine and heroin arising from their operation of an almost around-the-clock drug delivery service for several years in South Philadelphia.

Between 2013 and 2016, the defendants and their co-conspirators, known as the “Friends” and “7th Street” drug trafficking group, delivered crack cocaine and heroin to customers along the 7^th Street corridor in South Philadelphia using a shared drug phone. The defendants used the phone to take orders and communicate with customers; they would pass the phone off in shifts to keep their operation going almost 24 hours per day. FBI agents conducted surveillance and controlled purchases of narcotics from the defendants using audio and video recording devices. Agents recovered narcotics sold by the defendants after stopping their drug customers. During the course of the investigation, agents also intercepted phone calls and text messages from the shared drug phone, which documented the defendants’ illicit activities. Upon defendant Spruell’s arrest in June 2016, Philadelphia Police officers recovered a number of items related to drug trafficking, including two firearms and live rounds of ammunition.

“The defendants in this case ran a drug delivery operation akin to a ‘GrubHub’ or ‘UberEats’ for narcotics,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Williams. “But despite their ‘friendly’ moniker, they were no friends to this community.  To the contrary, they jeopardized the safety of an entire neighborhood in South Philadelphia.  This conviction marks the definitive end to their enterprise, and a new beginning for the 7^th Street corridor.”

Each defendant faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years’ imprisonment, and a maximum of lifetime imprisonment.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Matthew Newcomer and Jason Grenell.

My Washington Times Review Of Bernard Cornwell's 'Sword Of Kings'

The Washington Times published my review of Bernard Cornwell’s Sword of Kings.

I first became acquainted with Bernard Cornwell by watching the “Sharpe” TV series, which was based on his historical novels that featured Richard Sharpe, portrayed by actor Sean Bean, a Napoleonic-era British soldier up from the ranks. Bernard Cornwell described Richard Sharpe as a rogue, but a rogue on our side.

I read the entire Sharpe series and I went on to read his other historical fiction, including his Saxon stories. The Saxon stories cover the bloody path that led to the creation of England in the 9th and 10th centuries.

The hero of the Saxon stories is Uhtred of Bebbanburg, a Saxon lord from Northumbria who was captured by the Danes as a young man and adopted into their tribe. He later fights for Alfred the Great, the King of Wessex.

Alfred the Great’s dream was to unite the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms into one kingdom called England. Mr. Cornwell’s Saxon stories were adapted for television and called “The Last Kingdom,” with actor Alexander Dreymon as Uhtred. The series appears on Netflix.

In Mr. Cornwell’s “King of Swords,” the 12th installment in the Saxon stories, Uhtred, who narrates the stories, becomes involved in the succession of Alfred the Great’s son, King Edward. Edward rules over Wessex, Mercia and East Anglia, and as he lay dying, Uhtred swears an oath to Edward’s likely successor, Aethelstan, to kill his rivals to the throne, Aethelhelm and his evil and rotten nephew, Aelfweard.

Uthred, a pagan and a feared warrior, would like to sit out the medieval game of thrones, but the oath is important to him, although he calls it a “fool’s errand.” With a small army he boards “Spearharfoc,” a warship equipped with sail and 40 rowers, and sails into the fray.

Uthred is soon engaged in numerous sea and land battles, which Mr. Cornwell describes in vivid and accurate historical detail. 

You can read the rest of the review via the below link:

https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2020/feb/24/book-review-sword-of-kings/  

Sonny' Franzese, Legendary New York Mobster, Dead at 103

Robert Gearty at Foxnews.com reports that Sonny Franzese, the former Cosa Nostra Colombo organized crime family underboss, has died.

Legendary New York mobster John “Sonny” Franzese, the former underboss of the Colombo Crime Family, has died at 103, TMZ reported.

As a younger man, according to Mafia lore, Franzese was a big spender and a regular at New York's Copacabana nightclub, where he hobnobbed with Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr.

He also provided financing for the classic 1972 porn film "Deep Throat.”

Franzese died of natural causes at a nursing home in New York, Fox News confirmed. 

You can read the rest of the piece via the below link:

https://www.foxnews.com/us/sonny-franzese-legendary-new-york-mobster-dead-at-103 

Narcotics Trafficker Who Distributed Heroin Mixed With Fentanyl Sentenced To 20 Years In Prison For Multiple Gun And Drug Offenses

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania released the below information:

PHILADELPHIA – Deputy United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen announced that Matt “Mack” Jones, 37, of Bensalem, PA, was sentenced to 240 months’ imprisonment and eight years’ supervised release by Senior United States District Court Judge R. Barclay Surrick. Jones was convicted at trial in October 2019 on charges of distribution of heroin and possession of firearms by a convicted felon.

In January 2018, the Philadelphia Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New Jersey State Police, and the Philadelphia Police Department began a joint investigation of the defendant and other co-conspirators. Officers learned that the defendant was a heroin supplier, and that he supplied two female associates with bags of heroin and directed them to deliver the bags to customers in New Jersey and the Philadelphia area.

Investigators conducted several controlled buys of heroin from the defendant and his co-conspirators with the assistance of a cooperating witness at the Cherry Hill Mall in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, and the Philadelphia Mills Mall (formerly Franklin Mills Mall) in Philadelphia. Laboratory analysis of the seized material confirmed the presence of heroin mixed with fentanyl. In July 2018, officers searched the defendant’s home and found firearms, including a Colt .38 handgun and a 12 gauge shotgun, ammunition, half a kilogram of heroin, cocaine, marijuana, drug packaging paraphernalia and more than $100,000 cash.

“Jones and other members of this drug organization pumped huge quantities of deadly drugs into our community for years,” said Deputy U.S. Attorney Lappen.  “Drug trafficking is a serious federal offense which will earn those convicted of it serious time behind bars, as this sentence demonstrates.  Our Office is determined to investigate and convict these criminals to keep the streets of our communities safer.”

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Philadelphia Police Department, the New Jersey State Police, the Bensalem Township Police, and the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher E. Parisi.

A Little Humor: Applying For A Government Job

A veteran visited a Defense Department depot in Philadelphia to apply for a job, as he heard that they were hiring vets.

The interviewer asked him, “Are you allergic to anything?” 

The man replied, “Yes, caffeine. I can’t drink coffee.”

“OK, have you ever been in the military?”

“Yes,” the man said. “I was in Afghanistan for one tour.”

The interviewer said, “That will give you five extra points toward employment.”

Then he asked, “Are you disabled in any way?”

The man replied, “Yes. An IED exploded near me and I lost both my testicles.”

The interviewer grimaced and said, “Disabled in your country’s service! Well, that qualifies for extra bonus points. 

“Okay. Looking at the regulations you have got enough points for me to hire you right now. Our normal hours are from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., so you can start tomorrow at 10:00 am, and plan on starting at 10:00 am every day.”

The man was puzzled, and he asked, “If the work hours are from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm, why don’t you want me here until 10:00 am?”

“This is a government job,” the interviewer said. “For the first two hours, we just stand around drinking coffee and scratching our balls.

"No point in you coming in for that.”

Note: The above photo is of Moe, Larry and Curly, the Three Stooges. 

Former DIA Employee Pleads Guilty To Leaking Classified National Defense Information To Journalists

The U.S. Justice Department released the below information:

An employee of the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) pleaded guilty today to charges related to his disclosure of classified national defense information (NDI) to two journalists in 2018 and 2019.

“Frese violated the trust placed in him by the American people when he disclosed sensitive national security information for personal gain,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers. “He alerted our country’s adversaries to sensitive national defense information, putting the nation’s security at risk.  The government takes these breaches seriously and will use all the resources at our disposal to apprehend and prosecute those who jeopardize the safety of this country and its citizens.”

“Henry Kyle Frese was entrusted with Top Secret information related to the national defense of our country,” said G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. “Frese violated that trust, the oath he swore to uphold, and engaged in felonious conduct at the expense of our country. This case should serve as a clear reminder to all of those similarly entrusted with National Defense Information that unilaterally disclosing such information for personal gain, or that of others, is not selfless or heroic, it is criminal.”

“Mr. Frese violated his sworn oath to protect the American people and uphold the Constitution of the United States by using his access to the United States’ most sensitive information and steal state secrets for nothing more than personal gain,” said Robert Wells, Acting Assistant Director of the FBI's Counterintelligence Division. “The men and women of the FBI who investigated this case swore the same oath but unlike Mr. Frese, they chose to uphold it. I am proud of the work they did to hold Mr. Frese accountable for his actions.”

"By disseminating the same classified information he had pledged to protect, Henry Kyle Frese put the US and our national defense equities in danger," said Timothy R. Slater, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI's Washington Field Office.  "The US Government and the American public depend on trusted government employees to keep such information out of the hands of our adversaries, who could use it to cause us harm.  The FBI's counterintelligence mission is to protect our country's information and secrets in order to safeguard our future; and the men and women of the FBI will continue to work hard to preserve that information."

According to court documents, Henry Kyle Frese, 31, of Alexandria, was employed by DIA as a counterterrorism analyst from February 2018 to October 2019, and held a Top Secret//Sensitive Compartmented Information security clearance. United States government agencies have confirmed that in the spring and summer of 2018, News Outlet 1 published eight articles, all authored by the same journalist (Journalist 1) that contained classified NDI that related to the capabilities of certain foreign countries’ weapons systems. These articles contained classified intelligence from five intelligence reports (the Compromised Intelligence Reports) made available to appropriately cleared recipients in the first half of 2018. The topic of all of these initial five Compromised Intelligence Reports – foreign countries’ weapons systems – was outside the scope of Frese’s job duties as an analyst covering CT topics. The media articles, and the intelligence reporting from which they were derived, both contained information that is classified up to the TS//SCI level, indicating that its unauthorized disclosure could reasonably be expected to result in exceptionally grave damage to the national security. The intelligence reporting was marked as such.

According to court documents, Frese and Journalist 1 lived together at the same residential address from January 2018 to November 2018. Throughout 2018 and 2019, Frese and Journalist 1 “followed” each other on Twitter, and on at least two occasions Frese re-Tweeted Journalist 1’s Tweets announcing the publications of articles containing NDI classified at the Top Secret level.

In or about April of 2018, Journalist 1 introduced Frese to a second journalist (Journalist 2).  Subsequently, Frese began texting and speaking with Journalist 2 by telephone. Between mid-2018 and late September 2019, Frese orally transmitted NDI classified at the Top Secret level to Journalist 1 on 12 separate occasions, and orally transmitted NDI classified at the Secret level to Journalist 1 on at least four occasions. Frese knew the information was classified at the Secret and Top Secret levels because the intelligence products from which he had learned the classified information had visible classification markings as to the classification level of the information, and the intelligence products accessed by Frese were stored on secure, classified government information systems.

In relation to one of the 12 times Frese orally transmitted Top Secret NDI to Journalist 1, in or about mid-April to early May 2018, Frese accessed an intelligence report unrelated to his job duties on multiple occasions, which contained NDI classified at the Top Secret//SCI level (Intelligence Report l). A week after Frese accessed Intelligence Report 1 for the second time, Frese received an April 27, 2018 Twitter Direct Message (DM) from Journalist 1 asking whether Frese would be willing to speak with Journalist 2. Frese stated that he was “down” to help Journalist 2 if it helped Journalist 1 “progress.” During the same April 27, 2018, Twitter exchange, Journalist 1 indicated that a certain United States military official told Journalist 2 that the official was not aware of the subject matter discussed in Intelligence Report 1. Frese characterized the official’s denial as “weird” and commented on the source of information contained within Intelligence Report 1.

Several days after the April 27, 2018, Twitter exchange, Frese searched on a classified United States government computer system for terms related to the topics contained in Intelligence Report 1. A few hours after searching for terms related to the topic of Intelligence Report l, Frese spoke by telephone with Journalist 1, and several hours later he spoke by telephone with Journalist 2.  Immediately after the call with Journalist 2, Journalist 1 called Frese. During at least one of the calls with Journalist 1 and Journalist 2, Frese orally passed Top Secret NDI derived from Intelligence Report 1. Approximately 30 minutes after Frese spoke with the two journalists, Journalist 1 published an article (Article 1) which contained Top Secret NDI, orally communicated by Frese and derived from Intelligence Report 1 classified at the Top Secret//SCI level.

On at least 30 separate occasions in 2018, Frese conducted searches on classified government systems for information regarding the classified topics he discussed with Journalists 1 and 2. On multiple occasions in 2018 and 2019, Frese conducted searches on classified government systems because of specific requests for information from Journalists 1 and 2.

Additionally, between early 2018 and October 2019, Frese communicated with an employee of an overseas CT consulting group (Consultant 1) via social media. On at least two occasions, Frese transmitted classified NDI related to CT topics to Consultant 1, using a social media site’s direct messaging feature.

Frese pleaded guilty to the willful transmission of Top Secret national defense information, and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison when sentenced on June 18, 2020, at 9:30 am. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Neil Hammerstrom and Danya E. Atiyeh, and Trial Attorney Jennifer Kennedy Gellie of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section are prosecuting the case.

CIA Operations Officer Lucien Conein: A Study In Contrasts And Controversy

William Rust, author of Kennedy in Vietnam, offers an interesting piece of legendary CIA officer Lucien Conein in the CIA’s Studies in Intelligence.

February 10—CIA’s principal contact with the South Vietnamese generals who overthrew and assassinated President Ngo Dinh Diem in 1963 is the subject of an in-depth profile now available in Studies in Intelligence, the professional journal published by the Central Intelligence Agency’s Center for the Study of Intelligence. 

Written by William J. Rust, “No Boy Scout: CIA Operations Officer Lucien Conein” tells the story of a polarizing French-American paramilitary specialist who served in the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) during World War II and in its postwar successor agencies.

A decades-spanning narrative, “No Boy Scout” documents the admiration of several CIA station chiefs for Conein’s professionalism, dedication, and loyalty. Yet his heavy drinking, five marriages, and emotional volatility concerned Agency security officers and other US officials. During the tense weeks before the overthrow of Diem, Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara was appalled that an “unstable Frenchman” was the CIA liaison with the plotting generals.

Included in “No Boy Scout” are new details about Conein’s OSS service in France and Indochina; his six-year postwar assignment in Germany with the Strategic Services Unit, Central Intelligence Group, and CIA; his sabotage and espionage operations for Colonel Edward G. Lansdale’s Saigon Military Mission in the 1950s; and his involvement with the fabrications of the Nixon White House blaming President Kennedy for the assassination of Diem.

A celebrity spy after the 1971 leak of the top-secret Defense Department history of the Vietnam War, more commonly known as the Pentagon Papers, Conein was a self-admitted fabulist with journalists and historians. Sorting fact from fancy in his professional and personal life has become less difficult with the recent release of declassified records, including efficiency reports, personal history statements, and background investigations in his CIA personnel file.

William Rust is the author of five books about US relations with Southeast Asian nations during the mid-20th century. Learn more about his work at www.beforethequagmire.com

You can read the piece via the below link:

https://www.cia.gov/library/center-for-the-study-of-intelligence/csi-publications/csi-studies/studies/vol-63-no-4/pdfs/Conein-Contrasts-and-Controversy.pdf