Local News

Fresno Man Charged with Distribution of Child Pornography

FRESNO - A federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment today against Gary Lee Briggs, 63, of Fresno, charging him with receipt and distribution of child pornography, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. According to court documents, on Jan. 3, a concerned citizen reported to the police that Briggs appeared to be trying to lure an 8-year-old boy into Briggs’s apartment in Fresno.

When officers confronted Briggs, he reported that he planned to test his ability to withstand urges that attracted him to the boy. Briggs also admitted that Facebook recently had terminated his account for having transmitted sexually explicit material. Facebook separately had notified the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children that Briggs’s Facebook account had been used to transmit sexually explicit images of minors from August through December 2019.

Bakersfield Man Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Structure Funds

FRESNO - Majed Bashir Akroush, aka Mike Akroush, aka Magic Mike, 52, of Bakersfield, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to structure at least half a million dollars in cash withdrawals from his bank accounts, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, Akroush structured funds in amounts just under $10,000 in order to evade the currency transaction report filing requirements. As part of the plea agreement, he agreed to the forfeiture of the following assets derived from his structuring activity: real property in Bakersfield, approximately $109,555 seized from five different bank accounts, approximately $199,181 in cash seized from his residence, approximately $233,460 in cash seized from two safe deposit boxes, and a 1962 Chevrolet Impala.

Turlock Drug Dealers Sentenced to Prison for Methamphetamine Distribution

FRESNO - Turlock residents Joseph Wayne Attaway, 33, and Edmond Hormozi, 51, were sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd for methamphetamine trafficking, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

Attaway was sentenced to 17 years in prison and Hormozi was sentenced to 10 and a half years in prison. On Oct. 31, 2019, a federal jury found Attaway and Hormozi guilty of one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and two counts of distribution of methamphetamine.

Bakersfield and Florida Residents Charged with Conspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine

SACRAMENTO - A federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment today against Fayth Shamariah Jones, 22, of Bakersfield; Jonte Deon Scott Jr., 23, of Port Richey, Florida; and Donald Conferlete Carney Jr., 22, of Tarpon Springs, Florida, charging all three defendants with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, the defendants were traveling north on State Route 99 in Merced County when law enforcement officers attempted to stop the vehicle. The driver began driving at speeds reaching up to 120 miles per hour. After approximately 10 minutes, the officers cornered the vehicle in a cul-de-sac. A search of the vehicle revealed more than 24 kilograms of methamphetamine.

Five Indicted for Firearms Offenses in Sacramento, Fairfield, Stockton, and Fresno

SACRAMENTO - As part of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California’s strategy to reduce violent crime by focusing on firearms prosecutions, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced that a federal grand jury has returned indictments in the following cases involving illegal firearms offenses.

Andre Parker, 54, of Sacramento, was charged today with being a felon in possession of a firearm. According to court documents, on Dec. 29, 2019, law enforcement officers stopped a vehicle in which Parker was riding and found a Springfield XD .45-caliber handgun underneath Parker’s seat. Parker has several prior felony convictions—including prior felon-in-possession-of-a-firearm convictions—which prohibit him from possessing a firearm. This case is the product of an investigation by the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office, the Sacramento Police Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron D. Pennekamp is prosecuting the case.