The Department of Justice has secured a reindictment adding a new defendant, and several charges against existing defendants, in the case against the Wilmington-area gang NorthPak.

“This reindictment is yet another product of the amazing work that prosecutors and police are doing to take down NorthPak,” said Attorney General Jennings. “These are not simple cases. They are grueling, complicated investigations that involve multiple defendants, all too many victims, and layer upon layer of evidence and analysis. We are bringing more defendants – and more victims – closer to justice and we owe that to the dedication, teamwork, and ceaseless efforts of prosecutors and law enforcement.”  

“The continued progress stemming from this indictment demonstrates the power of our multi-jurisdictional partnerships, and the tireless work of our investigators,” said Chief Robert J. Tracy. “As our community and state continue to see gun violence and firearm crime persist, we remain steadfast in our efforts to make our communities safer and hold these offenders responsible.”

The reindictment charges Isaiah Lecompte with three counts of Attempted Murder First Degree, four counts of Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony, Illegal Gang Participation, Conspiracy First Degree, and Possession of a Firearm by a Person Prohibited. If convicted on all charges, Isaiah Lecompte faces a minimum prison sentence of 57 years and a maximum life sentence. Lecompte was apprehended by authorities in Texas and has been extradited to Delaware to face charges.

The reindictment further adds charges against existing defendants Deshonne Moore and Khalil Rodriguez-Fitzgerald. Moore faces additional charges of Attempted Murder First Degree, Possession of a Firearm by a Person Prohibited, Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony.  Rodriguez-Fitzgerald faces additional charges of Carrying a Concealed Deadly Weapon and Possession of a Firearm by a Person Prohibited. 

The indictments were secured by Deputy Attorneys General Erika Flaschner, Joe Grubb, and AJ Hill, with an ongoing investigation led by Det. Justin Kane and Det. Tom Curley of Wilmington Police Department, and critical support from DOJ Criminal Intelligence Analyst/Investigator Dan Masi, Julia Bacon, Sarah Molaski, and DAG Paige Todaro.

The Department of Justice has secured a reindictment adding a new defendant, and several charges against existing defendants, in the case against the Wilmington-area gang NorthPak.

“This reindictment is yet another product of the amazing work that prosecutors and police are doing to take down NorthPak,” said Attorney General Jennings. “These are not simple cases. They are grueling, complicated investigations that involve multiple defendants, all too many victims, and layer upon layer of evidence and analysis. We are bringing more defendants – and more victims – closer to justice and we owe that to the dedication, teamwork, and ceaseless efforts of prosecutors and law enforcement.”  

“The continued progress stemming from this indictment demonstrates the power of our multi-jurisdictional partnerships, and the tireless work of our investigators,” said Chief Robert J. Tracy. “As our community and state continue to see gun violence and firearm crime persist, we remain steadfast in our efforts to make our communities safer and hold these offenders responsible.”

The reindictment charges Isaiah Lecompte with three counts of Attempted Murder First Degree, four counts of Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony, Illegal Gang Participation, Conspiracy First Degree, and Possession of a Firearm by a Person Prohibited. If convicted on all charges, Isaiah Lecompte faces a minimum prison sentence of 57 years and a maximum life sentence. Lecompte was apprehended by authorities in Texas and has been extradited to Delaware to face charges.

The reindictment further adds charges against existing defendants Deshonne Moore and Khalil Rodriguez-Fitzgerald. Moore faces additional charges of Attempted Murder First Degree, Possession of a Firearm by a Person Prohibited, Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony.  Rodriguez-Fitzgerald faces additional charges of Carrying a Concealed Deadly Weapon and Possession of a Firearm by a Person Prohibited. 

The indictments were secured by Deputy Attorneys General Erika Flaschner, Joe Grubb, and AJ Hill, with an ongoing investigation led by Det. Justin Kane and Det. Tom Curley of Wilmington Police Department, and critical support from DOJ Criminal Intelligence Analyst/Investigator Dan Masi.

The Department of Justice has secured an indictment adding a new defendant in the case against the Wilmington-area gang NorthPak.

“Gun violence continues to devastate families in our state, and while the causes of that violence are legion we cannot address it without taking on gangs,” said Attorney General Jennings. “We believe that this group is responsible for a trail of destruction that has taken lives, terrorized our communities, and permanently traumatized families. They must be held to account, and we will continue to pursue justice against NorthPak on behalf of its victims and on behalf of the people of this state. I’m grateful to our team and to the detectives whose good work have made progress possible in this case.”

“The additional indictment and charges that we are announcing demonstrate the continuing nature of investigations like these – as well as the strength of our multi-jurisdictional partnerships and collaborations that we have with our partner law enforcement and prosecutorial agencies centered around addressing gun violence,” said Wilmington Police Chief Robert J. Tracy. “This also reflects the impact of our Group Violence Intervention initiative and the intensive, unyielding investigative efforts that have driven these indictments from the start. I hope the continued charges stemming from this investigation – and others – sends a clear and powerful message that gun violence will not be tolerated in our community.”

The indictment secured on Monday, November 8 charges a new defendant, Israel Lecompte, with 38 felonies including multiple murders:

• Two counts of Murder 1^st Degree (Quinton Dorsey, Matima Miller)
• Three counts of Robbery 1^st Degree
• Ten counts of Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony
• Six counts of Possession of a Firearm by a Person Prohibited
• Two counts of Carrying a Concealed Deadly weapon
• Four counts of Reckless Endangering 1st Degree
• One count of Conspiracy 1^st Degree
• One count of Illegal Gang Participation
• Three counts of Conspiracy 2^nd Degree
• One Count of Theft of a Motor Vehicle
• Two counts of Conspiracy Second Degree
• Three counts of Receiving Stolen Property (>$1,500)

Lecompte, 18, faces a mandatory life sentence if convicted on all charges.

Defendants placed more than 1.3 billion deceptive fundraising calls claiming to support veterans, children, firefighters

The Delaware Department of Justice, along with the Federal Trade Commission and 46 agencies from 38 states and the District of Columbia, has stopped a massive telefunding operation that bombarded 67 million consumers with 1.3 billion deceptive charitable fundraising calls, mostly illegal robocalls. The defendants collected more than $110 million using their deceptive solicitations

“Delawareans are honest people who expect honesty in return,” said Attorney General Jennings. “I’m proud to live in a state of neighbors where we live by values of empathy and charity. ACS and other defendants shamelessly preyed on good people’s kindness and generosity and deceived millions of consumers into donating to sham causes. We’re holding them accountable with this settlement and will never tolerate this kind of conduct in our state.”

Associated Community Services (ACS) and related defendants have agreed to settle charges by the FTC and state agencies that they duped generous Americans into donating to charities that failed to provide the services they promised. The complaint names ACS and its sister companies Central Processing Services and Community Services Appeal; their owners, Dick Cole, Bill Burland, Barbara Cole, and Amy Burland; and ACS senior managers Nikole Gilstorf, Tony Lia, John Lucidi, and Scot Stepek. In addition, the complaint names two fundraising companies allegedly operated by Gilstorf and Lia as spin-offs of ACS, Directele, and The Dale Corporation.

“Deceptive charitable fundraising can be big business for scammers, especially when they use illegal robocalls,” said Daniel Kaufman, Acting Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection.  “The FTC and our state partners are prepared to hold fraudsters accountable when they target generous consumers with lies.”

According to the complaint, the defendants knew that the organizations for which they were fundraising spent little or no money on the charitable causes they claimed to support—in some cases as little as one-tenth of one percent. The defendants kept as much 90 cents of every dollar they solicited from generous donors on behalf of the charities.  During the course of the Defendants’ conduct, 181,055 calls were made to Delawareans by Directele and its affiliates from January 2019 through August 2020.  In violation of Delaware law, these entities were not registered to conduct telemarketing activities in Delaware.

The complaint alleges that the defendants made their deceptive pitches since at least 2008 on behalf of numerous organizations that claimed to support homeless veterans, victims of house fires, breast cancer patients, children with autism, and other causes that well-meaning Americans were enticed to support through the defendants’ high-pressure tactics. ACS was also the major fundraiser for the sham Cancer Fund charities that were shut down by the FTC and states in 2015.

In many instances, the complaint alleges, ACS and later Directele knowingly violated the Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR) by using soundboard technology in telemarketing calls. With that technology, an operator plays pre-recorded messages to consumers instead of speaking with them naturally. Use of such pre-recorded messages in calls to first time donors violates the TSR. Use of the technology in calls to prior donors also violates the TSR unless call recipients are affirmatively told about their ability to opt out of all future calls and provided a mechanism to do so; the defendants did not make that disclosure. Most of Directele’s soundboard calls originated from call centers in the Philippines and India.

The complaint also charges ACS with making harassing calls, noting that ACS called more than 1.3 million phone numbers more than ten times in a single week and 7.8 million numbers more than twice in an hour. More than 500 phone numbers were even called 5,000 times or more.

The ACS defendants were the subject of 20 prior law enforcement actions for their fundraising practices. The ACS defendants stopped operating in September 2019. Gilstorf purchased Directele and Dale Corp in October 2019 and, with Lia, the Directele defendants allegedly continued the deceptive fundraising and illegal telemarketing practices. The complaint alleges the defendants violated the Delaware Consumer Fraud Act, the Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act, the Delaware Charitable/Fraternal Solicitation Act, the FTC Act, the TSR, and numerous other state laws.

The terms of the settlements with the defendants, which are now pending court approval, are as follows:

Associated Community Services Defendants

Each of these defendants will be permanently prohibited from conducting or consulting on any fundraising activities and from conducting telemarketing of any kind to sell goods or services. In addition, they will be prohibited from using any existing donor lists and from further violations of state charitable giving laws, as well as from making any misrepresentation about a product or service. The defendants will be also be subject to the following monetary judgments:

• Associated Community Services, Inc.; Community Services, Inc.; Central Processing Services, Inc.; and Richard “Dick” Cole are subject to a monetary judgment of $110,063,843.
• Community Services Appeal, Inc. and Barbara Cole are subject to a monetary judgment of $110,063,843. Barbara Cole also will be required to turn over the proceeds of the sale of a vacation home in Michigan.
• Robert W. “Bill” Burland and Amy J. Burland are subject to a monetary judgment of $110,063,843.

Directele Defendants and ACS Senior Managers Scot Stepek and John Lucidi

Each of these defendants will be permanently prohibited from any fundraising work or consulting on behalf of any charitable organization or any nonprofit organization that claims to work on behalf of causes similar to those outlined in the complaint. They will also be prohibited from using robocalls for any form of telemarketing, using abusive calling practices, or making any misrepresentation about a product or service. In addition, the defendants will be required to clearly and conspicuously disclose when a donation they are requesting is not tax deductible.

In addition, the two corporate defendants—Directele Inc. and The Dale Corporation—will be required to cease operations and dissolve.

The defendants will also be subject to the following monetary judgments:

• Scot Stepek will be subject to a monetary judgment of $110,063,843. Stepek will be required to sell a ski boat in his possession and turn over the net proceeds from the sale.
• Directele Inc., The Dale Corporation, Nikole Gilstorf, and Antonio Lia will be subject to a monetary judgment of $1.6 million. Gilstorf and Lia also will be subject to a judgment of $110,063,843.
• John Lucidi will be subject to a judgment of $110,063,843.

The funds being surrendered by the defendants will be paid to an escrow fund held by the State of Florida and, following a motion by the participating states and approval by the court, be contributed to one or more legitimate charities that support causes similar to those for which the defendants solicited.

The FTC has more information for consumers about charitable giving, including tips on how to spot sham charities at https://ftc.gov/charity. In addition, consumers are encouraged to let the FTC know about charity fraud, robocalls, and other consumer issues at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov. This matter is being handled by the DOJ’s Fraud and Consumer Protection Division.  Deputy Attorney General Oliver Cleary represented Delaware in this matter. Delawareans can find information from the Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Unit, including how to report fraud or deceptive business practices, at de.gov/consumer.

Recommendations include housing, trauma training, expanding recovery resources in the criminal justice system

The Delaware Drug Overdose Fatality Review Commission (DOFRC) has released its second annual report to Governor John Carney and the General Assembly.

The 18-page report, released Tuesday, details five policy recommendations based on its review of a sample of 130 overdose fatalities that occurred in 2019.

“The addiction epidemic hasn’t gone away,” said Attorney General Jennings. “Delaware’s public health officials are fighting two wars: one against COVID-19 and another against substance use disorder. Thousands of Delawareans in public health agencies, law enforcement, hospitals, nonprofits, and our neighborhoods have stepped up to fight the epidemic. This report’s findings show that they’re doing great work, but that they still need our help.”

Notable findings from the report include:

• 38% of decedents in the sample were unhoused or had unstable housing. Decedents without stable housing were significantly likelier to have been previously incarcerated
• 4% of decedents in the sample had experienced one or more traumatic events—including 15% who witnessed an overdose—but only 8.5% of decedents had received counseling
• 40% of decedents had at least one prior non-fatal overdose; some had as many as nine

“Substance use disorder affects everyone: not only its victims, but their families and their entire communities,” said DOFRC Chair Erin Booker. “We need to bring everyone together – from health care providers and public officials to law enforcement and advocates – to confront this issue and reduce the harm that the epidemic has caused throughout our state. That’s exactly why DOFRC exists. Our findings provide new, empirically-based opportunities for action in the fight against the opioid epidemic. I’m grateful to, and proud of, all of my colleagues on the Commission for their work addressing this difficult but critical issue.”

The report makes five key recommendations:

1. Provide safe and secure housing through the empirically-backed Housing First model for unhoused or unstably housed individuals.
2. Expand Continuing Education availability for Licensed Clinicians to increase knowledge of Trauma Intervention Services
3. Intervene for those whose contact with law enforcement does not result in arrest or incarceration; and initiate substance abuse treatment services immediately following incarceration for inmates awaiting sentencing
4. Establish a notification system within the Prescription Monitoring Program to ensure prescribers are aware of patient non-fatal overdose(s)
5. Improve outreach and follow-up with individuals who engaged in substance abuse related treatment

The full report is available here.

The DOFRC was established to examine the facts and circumstances of deaths resulting from prescription opioid, fentanyl, and heroin overdoses and make evidence-based recommendations on to how to prevent future overdose deaths. The Commission is staffed by the Department of Justice and is required to report its findings on at least an annual basis.