|
Bronx Politics and Community events
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that GREG MCKENZIE, a former Bureau of Prisons correctional officer, was sentenced to 36 months in prison for obstructing a federal investigation into the smuggling of a firearm into the Metropolitan Correctional Center (“MCC”) by lying to federal investigators about using a prepaid cellphone to communicate secretly with Deejay White, the inmate who possessed the firearm in the MCC, and his wife Dawntiana White, who helped smuggle in the firearm. The loaded firearm was recovered from inside the MCC on March 5, 2020. MCKENZIE pled guilty before United States District Judge P. Kevin Castel on September 14, 2022. Judge Castel sentenced MCKENZIE earlier today.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Greg McKenzie, a former correctional officer, obstructed an investigation into the smuggling of a firearm into the MCC that endangered the safety of inmates, prison staff, and the greater community. By lying about his secret communications with the very inmate who possessed a firearm in the MCC and that inmate’s wife, who helped smuggle the firearm into the MCC, McKenzie thwarted a serious criminal investigation and sacrificed the integrity of the institution he swore to protect. McKenzie’s sentence underscores this Office’s commitment to holding public servants accountable and ensuring that no one is above the law.”
According to the Indictment, public court filings, and statements made in court proceedings:
On or about March 5, 2020, a loaded .22 caliber firearm (the “Firearm”) was recovered from inside an MCC prison cell that had last been occupied by two inmates, including Deejay White. Approximately five weeks earlier, on January 30, 2020, MCKENZIE purchased a prepaid cellphone (the “McKenzie Prepaid Cellphone”) and used it to communicate with Deejay White and his wife Dawntiana on multiple occasions on January 31, 2020, and February 1, 2020. In addition, cellphone location information indicated that on the evening of January 31, 2020, MCKENZIE and Dawntiana each traveled to the same vicinity in the Bronx at about the same time, after which MCKENZIE drove to lower Manhattan and started a shift at the MCC at midnight. MCKENZIE’s assignment for that shift was to work on the unit where Deejay was housed.
Surveillance video and call detail records further established that, upon entering the MCC for his shift, MCKENZIE circumvented a metal detector. Shortly after MCKENZIE’s shift began, Deejay White used a contraband cellphone to call and then text the McKenzie Prepaid Cellphone. Within minutes, MCKENZIE returned to Deejay White’s cellblock – alone – while appearing to carry an object under his left arm.
On July 23, 2021, Deejay White pled guilty to possessing the Firearm inside the MCC before Judge Castel, and on July 13, 2021, Dawntiana White pled guilty to conspiring to smuggle the Firearm into the MCC before U.S. District Judge Katherine Polk Failla.
On November 4, 2021, two federal agents conducted a voluntary interview with MCKENZIE. During the interview, MCKENZIE falsely denied ownership, possession, and use of the McKenzie Prepaid Cellphone, and falsely denied ever using any prepaid cellphone to communicate with an MCC inmate or inmate’s associate.
In addition to his prison sentence, MCKENZIE, 35, of Danbury, Connecticut, was sentenced to three years of supervised release.
Mr. Williams praised the outstanding work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Justice – Office of the Inspector General, Special Agents from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection in New York.
Investment Funds Repaving Work at 64 Project Locations Across New York State
Complements Record Level of Investment in the State-Owned Highway System
Governor Kathy Hochul today announced $100 million in State funding has been released to support the renewal of State roadways impacted by extreme weather. The funding supports repaving projects at 64 locations, totaling almost 520 lane miles of pavement, and complements the record level of investment in infrastructure across New York State.
"We are making historic investments in transportation infrastructure to create safer roads and smooth, hassle-free commutes for all travelers," Governor Hochul said. "New York is home to extreme weather year-round, and this $100 million in funding will be vital to helping ensure that our road conditions are safe for our hardest-hit communities."
Through sustained investment in transportation infrastructure, New York State is enhancing quality of life for all New Yorkers, making State highways safer and more efficient while encouraging local commerce and tourism. The current Department of Transportation five-year capital plan provides historic funding for road and bridge repair and modernization, and this critical infrastructure funding will help restore hundreds of lane miles of highway impacted by extreme weather.
New York State Department of Transportation Commissioner Marie Therese Dominguez said, "Weather in New York is getting more intense more often, necessitating the need for vital and timely maintenance of our infrastructure. Governor Hochul understands the critical need to keep our infrastructure in a state of good repair, and this funding will renew vital travel corridors across the state while restoring hundreds of miles of roads to help them better withstand Mother Nature's challenges."
A complete list of paving locations, which will begin this year, is available below.
Capital Region
North Country Region
Mohawk Valley Region
Central New York Region
Finger Lakes Region
Western New York Region
Southern Tier Region
Mid-Hudson Region
Long Island Region
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that PATRICK KHAZIRAN, a/k/a “Dr. Pat,” was sentenced to 30 months in prison for his role in a scheme to defraud the National Basketball Association (“NBA”) Players’ Health and Welfare Benefit Plan (the “Plan”). U.S. District Judge Valerie E. Caproni imposed the sentence.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “As a medical provider, Patrick Khaziran had a responsibility not to abuse his position of trust. Instead, Khaziran used his role as a licensed chiropractor to generate dozens of fraudulent invoices for at least 22 former NBA players. He did this to enrich himself and his co-conspirators at the expense of the NBA Players’ Health and Welfare Benefit Plan. This sentence sends a clear message that those who engage in health care fraud schemes, particularly medical providers, will face stringent penalties.”
According to the Information, public court filings, and statements made in court:
The Plan is a health care plan providing benefits to eligible active and former players of the NBA. KHAZIRAN is a chiropractor licensed in the State of California who owns and operates a chiropractic and rehabilitation office in Los Angeles, California (“Chiropractic Office-1”). Chiropractic Office-1 serves the general public and also provides rehabilitation services to professional athletes.
From at least in or about 2016, up to and including at least in or about 2019, KHAZIRAN participated in a scheme with several other former NBA players, including Terrence Williams and Keyon Dooling, to defraud the Plan.[1] KHAZIRAN’s role in the scheme was to provide false documentation showing that former NBA players received certain medical services when, in truth and in fact, the medical services were never provided.
KHAZIRAN accomplished his role in the scheme in two ways. First, beginning in 2016, KHAZIRAN created, and caused others to create, fraudulent invoices for former NBA players. The former NBA players that received fraudulent invoices, in turn, submitted the fraudulent invoices to the Plan to request reimbursements to which they were not entitled. Second, KHAZIRAN charged, and caused others to charge, the Plan-issued debit cards of former NBA players. The Plan-issued debit cards were intended to be used by Plan participants to pay for eligible medical services at the point of service. However, KHAZIRAN charged the Plan-issued debit cards of former NBA players for medical services that were never actually provided. In total, KHAZIRAN’s fraudulent invoices and fraudulent debit card charges resulted in approximately $1.3 million in losses to the Plan. In return for his participation in the scheme, KHAZIRAN received approximately 33% of that amount, i.e., approximately $439,000. The remaining fraud proceeds were kept by the former NBA players with whom KHAZIRAN conspired.
In addition to his prison term, KHAZIRAN, 40, of Los Angeles, California, was ordered to forfeit $439,000 and pay restitution of $1,300,000.
Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
[1] Williams and Dooling have plead guilty and await sentencing.
|
|
|
|