Washington, D.C.
December 16, 2011 FBI National Press Office
1. Washington Field: FBI and Law Enforcement Partners Hope to ID Offender Known as the Potomac River Rapist
The FBI launched a media campaign that includes a reward of up to $25,000 to assist investigators in catching a cold-case serial rapist and murderer who attacked women in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area.
2. Las Vegas: Sixteen Charged in International Internet Fraud Scheme
Federal charges were unsealed against 16 individuals for their involvement in an international Internet scheme that defrauded online purchasers of purported merchandise.
3. Norfolk/New York: Two Somalis Sentenced to Life in Connection with Piracy of S/V Quest
Mohamud Hirs Issa Ali and Jilani Abdiali, both of Somalia, were sentenced to life in prison for their acts of piracy against the S/V Quest, which resulted in the murder of four U.S. citizens. (X)
4. San Francisco/Houston: Three Hitachi-LG Data Storage Executives Guilty in Bid-Rigging and Price-Fixing Conspiracies
Three Korean Hitachi-LG Data Storage Inc. executives agreed to plead guilty and to serve prison time in the U.S. for their participation in a series of conspiracies to rig bids and fix prices for the sale of optical disk drives.
5. Los Angeles: Connecticut Man Allegedly Affiliated with Anonymous Arrested on Charges of Attacking and Shutting Down Celebrity Website
FBI special agents arrested a Connecticut man who is charged with waging a denial of service attack against GeneSimmons.com, a website operated by the front man for the rock band KISS.
6. New York: Thirteen Charged with Narcotics Trafficking Offenses
Thirteen individuals were charged for narcotics trafficking offenses related to the distribution of crack cocaine and powder cocaine in and around Monticello, New York.
7. Sacramento: Minnesota-Based Medtronic Inc. Pays $23.5 Million to Settle Claims That Company Paid Kickbacks to Physicians
Medtronic Inc., of Fridley, Minnesota, agreed to pay the U.S. $23.5 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claim Act by using physician payments related to post-market studies and device registries as kickbacks to induce doctors to implant the company’s pacemakers and defibrillators.
8. Baltimore: Cocaine Dealer Exiled to 11 Years in Prison in Connection with a Baltimore and Eastern Shore Drug Conspiracy
Clevon Johnson was sentenced to 11 years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, after he pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine and to violating his supervised release in connection with a previous federal drug conviction.
9. New Haven: Man Involved in 2005 Triple Murder Sentenced to Life in Prison
Azikiwe Aquart was sentenced to life in prison for his role in the murder of three Bridgeport residents in August 2005. Full Story
10. Indianapolis: High-Profile Financier Charged with Securities Fraud
Keenan R. Hauke was charged with securities fraud in connection with allegedly defrauding more than five dozen victims of over $7 million from 2004-2011.
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Somalis Sentenced to Life in Prison on Charges Relating to Piracy of the S/V Quest Pirate Attack Resulted in Murder of Four U.S. Citizens
U.S. Attorney’s Office
December 15, 2011 Eastern District of Virginia
NORFOLK, VA—Mohamud Hirs Issa Ali, a/k/a Sanadaaq, 32, and Jilani Abdiali, a/k/a Ilkasse, 20, both of Somalia, were sentenced today in Norfolk federal court to life in prison for their acts of piracy against the S/V Quest, which resulted in the murder of United States citizens Scott Underwood Adam, Jean Savage Adam, Phyllis Patricia Macay, and Robert Campbell Riggle.
Neil H. MacBride, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Janice K. Fedarcyk, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s New York Field Office; Alex J. Turner, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Norfolk Field Office; and Mark Russ, Special Agent in Charge of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) in Norfolk, made the announcement after the men were sentenced by United States District Judge Mark S. Davis.
Ali pled guilty to piracy under the law of nations and hostage taking resulting in death on May 23, 2011. Abdiali pled guilty to piracy under the law of nations on May 20, 2011.
“As Somali pirates expand their territory, they place more individuals’ lives at risk,” said U.S. Attorney MacBride. “These men willingly joined this group of pirates out of greed, knowing full well that their actions could—and did—lead to the death of their hostages. They will spend their lives in prison for what they willingly chose to do and the lifetime of suffering and pain they thrust on the victims’ loved ones.”
FBI Assistant Director in Charge Fedarcyk stated: “Piracy in its modern form is carjacking at sea. It is not glamorous; it is violent and often murderous. The crew of the Quest did nothing to antagonize their captors. They were a target of opportunity. The FBI is committed to stopping crime on the high seas.”
Ali admitted in court that he was the commander of the pirate ship when it left Somalia. They seized the Quest about 840 miles out of Somalia, and he transferred the pirates and a number of weapons over to the Quest via a skiff. He carried an AK-47, which he used for guard duty over the hostages, and he ordered a co-defendant to fire an RPG toward the Navy vessel while the Navy was attempting to secure the hostages’ release through negotiations with the conspirators. In his plea, he warranted that he did not personally shoot or order the shooting of the four Americans. He received two concurrent terms of life in prison today.
Abdiali admitted that he willingly engaged in piracy for financial gain and participated in the pirating of the Quest and the taking of the four Americans on board as hostages. He warranted in his plea agreement that he did not personally shoot any of the Americans, nor did he instruct any other person to shoot the hostages.
The investigation of the case is being conducted by the FBI and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.
The prosecution in the Eastern District of Virginia is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Benjamin L. Hatch, Joseph DePadilla and Brian J. Samuels, from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and Trial Attorney Paul Casey from the Department of Justice’s National Security Divisio
