District Man Sentenced to More Than Nine Years in Prison for Taking Part in Armed Robbery of Armored Truck

He and Two Others Carried Out Brazen Mid-Afternoon Crime

WASHINGTON—Richard Lee, 32, was sentenced today to nine years and two months in prison for the armed robbery of a Brink’s armored truck, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr.; James W. McJunkin, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office; and Cathy L. Lanier, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

During the brazen, mid-afternoon robbery, Lee and two others held the truck’s guard at gunpoint and escaped with a significant amount of money.

Lee, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty earlier this year to armored car robbery. Two others—David Reddix, 23, of Temple Hills, Maryland, and Tyronda Ferrell, 23, of Hyattsville, Maryland, also pled guilty to the charge in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

Reddix was sentenced in June 2011 to 80 months in prison. Ferrell was sentenced in May 2011, also to 80 months of incarceration. All three defendants were sentenced by the Honorable Ellen S. Huvelle.

According to the government’s evidence, Ferrell, then a guard for Brink’s, had several conversations prior to the crime with Reddix about robbing a Brink’s armored truck. Reddix, a longtime friend to Ferrell, recruited another friend, Lee, to assist with the robbery.

Reddix and Ferrell developed a plan that they carried out on September 2, 2010, when Brink’s dispatched an armored truck to deliver and pick up money and other valuables from banks and businesses in Northern Virginia. Ferrell was one of two armed guards and the driver of the truck. Once Ferrell completed her normal pick-ups in Northern Virginia, she then drove the truck to a Wendy’s restaurant in the 4000 block of Nannie Helen Burroughs Avenue NE.

At the Wendy’s, at about 2:40 p.m., Ferrell parked the armored truck and, shortly afterward, the second guard was approached by Reddix and Lee. Reddix, wearing a mask and carrying a pellet gun that closely resembled a handgun, ordered the second guard to open the door to the truck.

Reddix and Lee entered the truck, ordered the second guard to fill a bag with money, and instructed Ferrell to drive away. The second guard was forced into the rear of the truck, where Lee took his gun. Lee and Reddix remained in the back of the armored truck, holding the second guard at gunpoint, while Ferrell drove the armored truck to an alley on 45th Street NE.

Reddix and Lee then left with the money that they took from the vehicle. They planned to meet Ferrell later that night to split the stolen money. However, Ferrell was arrested that night, and Reddix and Lee were arrested within days.

In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen, Assistant Director McJunkin, and Chief Lanier commended the exceptional investigative work of the FBI/MPD Violent Crimes Task Force and MPD Detective Buddy Baylor. They also thanked Legal Assistant LaToya Wade, who provided administrative support, and the Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section, which assisted with the investigation. Lastly, they praised Assistant U.S. Attorney Catherine K. Connelly, who prosecuted the cases.

Baltimore Man Sentenced to 46-Month Prison Term for Traveling from Maryland to D.C. to Have Sex with 13-Year-Old Child

WASHINGTON—Calvin Allen, 25, was sentenced today to 46 months in prison on a charge of traveling interstate to engage in illicit sexual conduct, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., James W. McJunkin, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Cathy L. Lanier, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

Allen, of Baltimore, Md., pled guilty to the charge in March 2011 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable Reggie B. Walton. Upon completion of his prison term, Allen will be placed on 15 years of supervised release.

According to a factual proffer of evidence presented during the plea hearing, on November 10, 2010, an MPD member of the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force, who was operating undercover, communicated with the defendant by e-mail and instant messenger.

During the course of the communication, Allen expressed interest in meeting an under-aged boy and engaging in sexual contact with the child. Later that same day, Allen traveled from Baltimore to a pre-arranged meeting place in Washington, D.C. He was then arrested.

This case was brought as part of the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood initiative and investigated by the FBI/MPD Child Exploitation Task Force, which includes members of the FBI’s Washington Field Office and MPD.

Project Safe Childhood is a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit projectsafechildhood.gov.

In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen, Assistant Director McJunkin, and Chief Lanier commended those who worked on the case from the FBI/MPD Child Exploitation Task Force. They also commended Assistant U.S. Attorney David B. Kent, who is prosecuting this case.

District Man Sentenced to Five-Year Prison Term for Perjury in Racketeering Case

WASHINGTON—Kenneth A. Cole, 40, was sentenced today to five years in prison on a perjury charge stemming from contradictory statements that he made while under oath about a drug trafficking conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., James W. McJunkin, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Cathy L. Lanier, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department.

Cole, formerly of Washington, D.C., pled guilty to the charge in October 2010. He was sentenced this afternoon in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia by the Honorable Rosemary M. Collyer, who imposed the statutory maximum term.

Cole already is serving a 10 ½ year sentence for his role in a federal narcotics conspiracy. Cole was previously convicted of participating in a drug trafficking conspiracy involving the M Street Crew, a racketeering and drug enterprise that had taken over the 18th and M Street neighborhood of Northeast Washington and turned it into their own private marketplace for drug trafficking during 2000 to 2004.

Judge Collyer had presided over the federal trial and guilty pleas of various participants and drug suppliers to the M Street Crew, which led to the convictions of 41 persons.

Cole, also known as “Cricket,” was one such crew member who in December, 2005, pled guilty and admitted to his participation in a drug trafficking organization known as the M Street Crew. After receiving the sentence of 10 ½ years for his role, and while serving his sentence, Cole agreed to testify as a defense witness for fellow M Street Crew member Larry Gooch. Gooch was facing a jury trial for his role in the same drug trafficking and racketeering enterprise.

At trial, in an effort to aid Gooch, Cole testified that the drug conspiracy did not exist, that the racketeering enterprise M Street Crew did not exist, and that Gooch was not a participant. Those assertions under oath were directly contradictory to facts to which Cole had agreed during his own guilty plea. The two contradictory statements under oath formed the basis for his perjury conviction.

Gooch was eventually convicted by a jury in 2007 and sentenced to multiple sentences of life in prison without possibility of parole. Ironically, evidence presented in the trial of Gooch proved instances in which fellow M Street Crew members would come forward and commit perjury as defense witnesses in hopes of getting a jury to acquit.

“Out of some misguided sense of loyalty, Kenneth Cole lied under oath to protect a fellow gang member during trial testimony,” said U.S. Attorney Machen. “We have zero tolerance for lies intended to corrupt our justice system. Mr. Cole’s five-year sentence shows that those who intentionally lie under oath in our courtrooms will be held accountable.”

“This defendant swore under oath to one set of facts in federal court and later testified to another set of facts in an effort to protect a fellow gang member,” said Assistant Director in Charge McJunkin. “His sentence today on perjury charges is a consequence of that action. I commend the work of the FBI special agents and Metropolitan Police Department officers on the Safe Streets Task Force who, despite the perjured testimony, defeated a dangerous racketeering enterprise that had operated in Northeast D.C. ”

“Today’s sentencing is a victory for the justice system and sends a strong message to individuals who willingly perjure themselves to protect their criminal associates,” said Police Chief Lanier. “I especially want to thank the Honorable Judge Rosemary M. Collyer for ensuring that the defendant was brought to justice and held accountable for his actions.”

The prosecution grew out of the investigative activities of a long-term FBI/MPD alliance called the Safe Streets Task Force. The Safe Streets Initiative involves more than 150 Safe Streets Task Forces around the country that combat street gangs by combining federal, state, and local police resources. The task forces, which began in 1992 in Los Angeles and the District of Columbia, address gang activity including drug-related crimes. Sharing resources, manpower and intelligence allows federal prosecutors to focus on securing the maximum sentences and penalties for gang members found guilty. By working through a Task Force, investigators can focus on the entire criminal enterprise, instead of the prosecution of individual gang members.

The Safe Streets Initiative was funded in part by the Baltimore Washington High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area as well as the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force.

U.S. Attorney Machen, Assistant Director McJunkin, and MPD Chief Lanier commended the actions of the FBI special agent who led the investigative team, along with MPD Detective Joseph Sopata. In addition, they commended Assistant U.S. Attorney John P. Dominguez, who sought the indictment of Cole for perjury and prosecuted the case against him.

Partnership to Help Army Reserve, D.C. Police Share Same Talent Pool

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

July 14, 2008 - The adage, "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em," got a new twist today as the Army Reserve and the Metropolitan Police of the District of Columbia signed a partnership deal so they can recruit, hire and train people for both organizations. MPDC became the first law enforcement agency to partner with the Army Reserve in a unique arrangement that Army Lt. Gen. Jack Stultz, chief of the Army Reserve, called a win-win for the military as well as the police. Instead of competing for the same talent pool, they can now join forces to fill their ranks and train their members.

The agreement, signed at the Metropolitan Police Academy here, enables Army Reserve recruiters to refer recruits signing on as military police or active-duty military police joining the Army Reserve for civilian jobs with the MPDC. Similarly, the police department can refer its members for Army Reserve jobs.

The arrangement will enable the two organizations to help each other fill critical shortages while also taking advantage of the training and experience base both provide their members, Stultz said.

Thomas F. Hall, assistant secretary of defense for reserve affairs, noted today that the Army Reserve and MPDC are looking for recruits with many of the same attributes. Both want honest, drug-free members who know how to lead as well as follow and love their country and communities, he said.

Army 1st Sgt. Ryan Ervin of the 200th Military Police Command at Fort Meade, Md., also an MPDC officer, said the Metropolitan Police Department and Army Reserve both stand to benefit from sharing the professional, career-minded and goal-oriented recruits each attracts. Army experience gives police recruits an ability to think on their feet, work within a command structure and show flexibility when it's needed, he said.

Meanwhile, Stultz said, civilian police experience brings strong negotiating, interrogation and crime scene investigation skills to the Army Reserve.

The MPDC partnership is the Army Reserve's fifth so far, but about 50 others are in the works and nearly 150 additional employers have expressed interest in forming one.

What makes the concept so popular, even in the face of reserve deployments, is that it helps employers realize the upside of hiring Army Reservists, Stultz said. "Don't look at the Reserve as a drain on your force. Look at it as a value added," he said he tells employers.

As the long list of employers considering new partnerships grows, it's evident that employers already recognize the attributes Army Reservists bring to their work force, said Army Col. Dianna Cleven, an Office of the Army Reserve director. The advantage of partnerships, she said, is that it provides a formal structure so employers can find and tap into the Army Reserve's talent base while also providing an avenue for Army Reservists to link up with potential employers.

"It's a mechanism to link reservists looking for jobs in specific skills," Cleven said. "We're providing that mechanism through these partnerships that helps them connect the dots."

The MPDC, which needs to recruit about 350 police officers a year, sees the Army Reserve as a prime recruiting ground, Assistant Chief Joshua Ederheimer said during today's partnership signing ceremony at the Metropolitan Police Academy. He noted that the two organizations share a cultural ethos of service and sacrifice, with their members understanding and accepting personal risk to protect their fellow citizens.

Meanwhile, because the Army Reserve provides 93 percent of the Army's total military police force, its members who report for duty with the MPDC arrive with extensive military police training already under their belts.

Some arrive after active-duty assignments in military police units. Others are new recruits who attend basic training, then advanced individual training in military police skills before reporting to their Army Reserve units and starting their civilian careers.

"By that time, he is not just a high school graduate. Now he is a soldier," Stultz said. "He's got discipline. He's got leadership. He's got a work ethic and he's had training. Then (MPDC) can take him and develop him further."

MPDC Chief Cathy Lanier called the new partnership "a very significant and important step for us" that will help her department recruit and retain the high-skilled work force it it needs. "It will help make our force stronger and our city safer," she said.

Lanier can look within her own force for a glimpse into what the new partnership will offer. One of her officers, Greg Naguerka, arrived at the Metropolitan Police Academy in 2005 with seven years of military police experience that he said gave him a big leg up over his fellow police cadets.

Now an Army Reserve staff sergeant with the 200th Military Police Command at Fort Meade, Md., Nagurerka said his Army experience made him mentally prepared and physically fit for his police training and provided a strong foundation for his police career.
Army Sgt. Scott Dignan served with the MPDC for six years before joining the Army Reserve 12 years ago, and said the military has trained and tested him in ways that have boosted his civilian career.

"It has opened my eyes to a whole different way of leading and has been a true asset to me," said Dignan, now a lieutenant with the Metropolitan Police Department. "Between the leadership training and the deployments, it has taught me a lot about myself and given me experience that's been invaluable."

Stultz called today's signing ceremony a big day not just for the Army Reserve, but for the Army as a whole, which counts on its citizen-soldiers to sustain the all-volunteer force. To do that, he said, the Army Reserve needs to work cooperatively with civilian employers.

"A number of employers out there are saying that this is a great idea," and a way to attract everything from truck drivers to medical technologists to engineers to law enforcement officers to their work forces. "You name it, we've got it," Stultz said. "Partnerships help provide the conduit."