PEORIA, IL—A man charged by a federal
grand jury with stealing more than $8 million in cigarettes from an East
Peoria, Illinois warehouse in January 2010 was arrested this morning in Miami,
Florida. The grand jury in Peoria charged Amed Villa, 46, a citizen of Cuba
residing in Miami, in October 2010; however, the indictment had remained sealed
pending the defendant’s arrest.
The indictment alleges that on January
24, 2010, Amed Villa took more than 3,500 cases of cigarettes, valued at more
than $8 million, from a warehouse operated by Federal Warehouse in Tazewell
County, Illinois.
In a separate case, Amed Villa is also
charged with his brother, Amaury Villa, 37, in an indictment unsealed today in
the District of Connecticut, with conspiracy and theft charges related to their
alleged participation in the theft of approximately $80 million in
pharmaceuticals from an Eli Lilly Company warehouse and storage facility in
Enfield, Connecticut in March 2010. Amaury Villa has been indicted in the
Southern District of Florida with 10 others related to the sale and
distribution of goods stolen from warehouses and tractor-trailers across the
United States.
Amed Villa is scheduled to appear in
federal court in Miami next week. A removal hearing is scheduled on May 17 to
determine whether the defendant may be removed to the Central District of
Illinois.
If convicted, theft from an interstate
shipment carries a statutory penalty of up to 10 years in prison and a fine of
up to $250,000.
Members of the public are reminded that
an indictment is merely an accusation; the defendants are presumed innocent
unless proven guilty.
The charges in the Central District of
Illinois were investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and
Explosives, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the East Peoria Police
Department, Morton Police Department, and the Illinois State Police. In the
Central District of Illinois, the government is represented by Assistant U.S.
Attorney Tate Chambers.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment