New Orleans Police Officer Charged with Conspiracy and Theft of Federal Funds

NEW ORLEANS—TIWANA ALEXANDER, age 37, a resident of New Orleans, Louisiana, and a detective employed by the New Orleans Police Department in the Fourth District, was charged by a federal grand jury today in a two-count indictment charging her with conspiracy and theft of federal funds, announced U.S. Attorney Jim Letten.

According to the indictment, from March 2007 through July 2008, ALEXANDER conspired with a former case manager who worked for the House of Ruth, a non-profit organization receiving federal funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), to steal approximately $3,600. One of the primary missions of the House of Ruth is to provide short-term rental and other basic assistance to homeless individuals and families. The indictment alleges that from May 2007 through July 2008, ALEXANDER, who was not homeless or jobless at the time and earned an income exceeding $40,000, knew she did not qualify for House of Ruth assistance. Nevertheless, ALEXANDER conspired with the former House of Ruth case manager to steal money from the House of Ruth. The indictment alleges that she used two checks to pay her rent: one in July of 2007 and one in August of 2007. On three occasions in November 2007, December 2007, and January 2008, she deposited House of Ruth checks each in the amount of $900 into her own personal checking account.

If convicted, ALEXANDER faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years, a $250,0000 fine, restitution to the House of Ruth, and three years of supervised release following imprisonment.

U.S. Attorney Letten reiterated that the indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sharan E. Lieberman.

Two Luzerne County Bank Tellers Plead Guilty to Conspiring to Commit Theft

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that two former Luzerne County bank tellers pleaded guilty yesterday before Senior United States District Judge A. Richard Caputo to the charge of conspiring to commit theft from the Kingston, Luzerne County, Branch Office of First Keystone National Bank.

According to United States Attorney Peter J. Smith, Mary Ann Wright, age 42, of Kingston, and Jennifer Sgroi, age 30, of Wyoming, who were employed as bank tellers, entered guilty pleas to an information which charged them with embezzling more than $7,000 in currency from their teller “cash drawers” at the Kingston Branch Office of First Keystone National Bank between 2009 and 2010. The information further charged that, in anticipation of bank audits, Wright and Sgroi would remove money from each other’s “cash drawers” in order to hide the cash discrepancies.

Each defendant faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison, followed by a three-year term of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.

U.S. Attorney Smith noted that the investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and that the case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert J. O’Hara.

Waterbury Man Admits Involvement in ATM Theft from Waterbury Bank

David B. Fein, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that FELIX CRUZ, also known as "Flex," 33, of Waterbury, pleaded guilty today before United States District Judge Janet C. Hall in Bridgeport to one count of bank theft.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in the early morning hours of September 14, 2009, CRUZ and others broke into the TD Bank at 1254 West Main Street in Waterbury and stole an ATM. On September 15, 2009, the Connecticut State Police located the ATM in an industrial park in Waterbury. The ATM had been forced open and its safe removed, and the bank has reported that approximately $49,000 was stolen.

Subsequent investigation has revealed that, prior to the burglary, the telephone lines to the bank were cut.

Judge Hall has scheduled sentencing for June 21, 2011, at which time CRUZ faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years and a fine of up to $250,000.

CRUZ is detained in federal custody.

This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Waterbury Police Department, and the Connecticut State Police. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Sarah P. Karwan.

Former Seattle Art Dealer Sentenced to Prison for Art Theft Conspiracy

Former Gallery Owner Worked with Burglar to Target and Steal Expensive Art

KURT LIDTKE, the former owner of Kurt Lidtke Galleries in Seattle, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to four years in prison and three years of supervised release for conspiracy to transport stolen property in interstate commerce and interstate transportation of stolen property. LIDTKE, was arrested May 11, 2010, in Bozeman, Montana following a lengthy undercover investigation by the FBI. Chief U.S. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik sentenced Lidtke above the applicable range under the sentencing guidelines, and told Lidtke, “You have tricked so many people into thinking you could be trusted to go into their homes, or entrusted to sell their art on consignment... but the evidence shows you are a thief who thinks he is entitled to other people’s property and money.”

LIDTKE pleaded guilty November 18, 2010. According to the plea agreement, in 2008, LIDTKE and a second defendant, Jerry H. Christy, met while both were inmates at the Washington State Corrections Center in Monroe, Washington. LIDTKE was incarcerated for theft for selling paintings on consignment to his gallery without informing or paying the owners of the artwork. While in prison, LIDTKE and Christy hatched a plan to steal valuable artwork from homes in Seattle and resell it. When they were out of prison and executed the plan, they contacted a buyer who turned out to be an undercover agent with the FBI. During the course of the investigation, the FBI conducted surveillance of the defendants and of possible targets. In April 2010, the FBI had Seattle police officers contact Christy while he was parked in a van outside a targeted home, and thereby prevented a burglary of that home. The home was targeted because LIDTKE was aware of the art collection because of his prior career as an art dealer. In the course of the investigation, the FBI recovered numerous paintings and a sculpture that had been stolen in a Seattle burglary in November 2009. Paintings recovered in the course of the investigation include two by northwest artist Morris Graves, one by Mark Tobey, and a Rembrandt etching.

In his sentencing memo, Assistant United States Attorney Andrew Friedman asked Chief Judge Lasnik to go above the guidelines sentencing range. Mr. Friedman noted that LIDTKE started plotting his new crimes even while he was imprisoned for stealing art consigned to his gallery. “Lidtke put his knowledge of the art world to ill use by orchestrating burglaries of people’s homes. Burglaries are, of course, always dangerous crimes, and easily can result in confrontations between burglar and victim, which can end in violence, and perhaps deadly violence. Moreover, burglaries violate victims’ sense of security and trust in their own homes,” Mr. Friedman wrote in his sentencing memo. Prosecutors added that LIDTKE abused the trust of clients who had invited him into their homes to appraise their art.

Jerry H. Christy a/k/a Nick Natti, of Granite Falls, Washington, and his wife, Georgia Christy a/k/a Monica Natti, both pleaded guilty and will be sentenced later this year.

This investigation was provided assistance by the FBI’s Art Crime Team, which was formed in response to the looting of Iraqi antiquities following the Gulf War and is comprised of a cadre of special agents and Assistant United States Attorneys with specialized knowledge and experience in art and cultural property investigations.

The case is being investigated by the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Andrew Friedman.

For additional information please contact Emily Langlie, Public Affairs Officer for the United States Attorney’s Office, at (206) 553-4110 or Emily.Langlie@USDOJ.Gov.

This article was sponsored by Police Books.