SOUTH BEND –Douglas Donley, 42 years old, of South Bend, Indiana, was sentenced by United States District Court Senior Judge Jon E. DeGuilio, after being found guilty of one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud and one count of bank fraud on November 1, 2023, following an eight-day jury trial, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.Donley was sentenced to 27 months in prison, 2 years of supervised release, and…

SOUTH BEND –Douglas Donley, 42 years old, of South Bend, Indiana, was sentenced by United States District Court Senior Judge Jon E. DeGuilio, after being found guilty of one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud and one count of bank fraud on November 1, 2023, following an eight-day jury trial, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.Donley was sentenced to 27 months in prison, 2 years of supervised release, and…

CINCINNATI – A Cincinnati tenant pleaded guilty in federal court today to making false statements accusing her landlord of violating the Fair Housing Act.Dermisha Pickett, 33, fabricated messages from her landlord stating the landlord did not want Black tenants.According to court documents, in February 2023, the U.S. Attorney’s Office was forwarded several text messages purportedly sent by the Cincinnati-area landlord as part of a civil rights…

SOUTH BEND – Tonya Robinson, 60 years old, Albert Smith, 47 years old, and Douglas Donley, 42 years old, were each found guilty of various federal felony charges following an eight-day jury trial presided over by United States District Court Senior Judge Jon E. DeGuilio, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.The jury found Robinson, Smith, and Donley guilty of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud.  Donley was also…

CLEVELAND –United States Attorney Rebecca C. Lutzko announced today that Arthur Fayne, 61, who managed the development of the New East Side Market, was found guilty of all 9 counts of wire fraud for embezzling more than $880,000 in funds intended to help the residents of Cleveland’s Glenville neighborhood, but which Fayne used for an extravagant lifestyle with extensive casino gambling. The trial lasted five days and was presided over by U.…

The Justice Department today filed a lawsuit against Joseph Earl Lucas of Amesville, Ohio, for sexually harassing female tenants and housing applicants in violation of the Fair Housing Act. Lucas has owned and managed more than 70 residential rental properties in and around Athens County, Ohio. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, alleges that since at least 2004, Lucas requested sex acts from female…

CINCINNATI – A Cincinnati tenant is charged with federal crimes related to making false statements accusing her landlord of violating the Fair Housing Act. Dermisha Pickett, 33, allegedly fabricated messages from her landlord stating the landlord did not want Black tenants. Pickett appeared in federal court in Cincinnati yesterday after self-surrendering. Her case was unsealed today. “False reports to law enforcement, as alleged in this case,…

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The former director of a local Islamic center was sentenced in U.S. District Court today to four months in prison then four months in a halfway house followed by 12 months of home confinement for embezzling funds from the mosque, defrauding public housing, and filing for fraudulent COVID assistance funds. Ahmed A. Sh. Ahmed, 44, of Gahanna, pleaded guilty in October 2022 to committing wire fraud, submitting a false statement…

DAYTON, Ohio – A Tipp City man was sentenced in U.S. District Court today to 18 months in prison for defrauding a local non-profit organization. He was also ordered to pay $94,942 in restitution. Antoine Draines, 43, defrauded Miami Valley Community Action Partnership (MVCAP) of rental assistance funds. MVCAP received federal funding as part of the CARES Act. According to court documents, Draines controlled and operated Freedom for Living…

CLEVELAND  – Diane A. Mason, 52, of Cleveland, Ohio, was sentenced on Jan. 4, 2023, to two years in prison by U.S. District Judge Patricia A. Gaughan after she pleaded guilty to aggravated identity theft.  According to court documents, between January 2017 and October 2020, Mason stole $72,476 in Social Security Retirement Insurance benefits and $40,143.60 in monthly pension benefits from the Xerox Corporation, which were…

INDIANAPOLIS- Jeffrey Delucio, 54, of Richmond, Indiana, was sentenced to 16 months in federal prison for violating the Toxic Substance Control Act, specifically the provisions of the Act concerning lead paint renovations, and for obstructing justice by fabricating records to obstruct a federal grand jury. According to court documents, Delucio operated Aluminum Brothers Home Improvements in Richmond, Indiana, which received federal grant money…

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The former director of a local Islamic center pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court today to embezzling funds from the mosque, defrauding public housing, and filing for fraudulent COVID assistance funds. Ahmed A. Sh. Ahmed, 43, of Gahanna, admitted in federal court today to committing wire fraud, submitting a false statement and making a false statement. According to court documents, from at least 2009 until March 2019, Ahmed…

Evansville – Acting United States Attorney John Childress announced today that Stephanie TenBarge, 73, of Evansville, Indiana, was sentenced to two years’ probation by U.S. District Judge Richard Young. TenBarge previously worked as the Executive Director at Echo Housing Corporation, where she embezzled more than $102,000 of funds over a three-year period from the organization which received federal, state, and local tax dollars. Echo Housing…

Acting United States Attorney Bridget M. Brennan announced today that sitting Cleveland City Council member Kenneth JOHNSON, age 74, of Cleveland, was arrested this morning by law enforcement agents with the Cleveland Division of the FBI after a federal grand jury handed down a fifteen-count indictment charging JOHNSON with violations related to federal program theft. Two additional defendants were also charged in the indictment. “The…

U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman announced today that Tamiko Parker, 47, of Cleveland was sentenced by Judge Dan Aaron Polster to 33 months in prison and ordered to pay $164,120.30 in restitution after Parker pleaded guilty to theft concerning programs receiving federal funds. “This defendant was put in a position of public trust, charged with helping to lead a neighborhood to further prosperity,” said U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman. “Instead of…

U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman announced today that Eric Witherspoon, 56, of Warrensville Heights, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Christopher A. Boyko to 15 months in prison and ordered to pay a $5,000 fine after Witherspoon pleaded guilty to bribery in federally funded programs. “Public contracts should go to the most qualified, not the best connected,” said U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman. “Public officials, contractors, or anyone else…

This week, a Toledo federal jury convicted Arvel Ray Henderson, II, age 50, on one count of theft of public money, one count of concealment of bankruptcy assets, and one count of bankruptcy fraud.  Henderson is scheduled to be sentenced on December 20, 2019. Henderson, who was enrolled as a Section 8 landlord with the Lucas County Metropolitan Housing Authority (LMHA), leased several Section 8-eligible properties in the Toledo area, one of…