FBI Recognizes Two Auditors for Critical Role in Investigations

(Dover, Delaware) – On October 18, 2018, the Federal Bureau of Investigation formally recognized two employees of the Office of Auditor of Accounts (AOA) for their assistance with two cases.  Auditors Nicole Polite and Stephenie Tatman played a key role in the investigation that led to former Academy of Dover Charter School Principal, Noel Rodriguez, being sentenced to 13 months of imprisonment and $145,480 in restitution payments.  Additionally, Polite and Tatman conducted the investigation of the Family Foundations Academy which led to Sean Moore, the Director of Finance and Operations for the Family Foundations Academy, being sentenced to 18 months of imprisonment for embezzling $161,871 from the school.

R. Thomas Wagner stated, “Without the work of Stephenie and Nicole, the arrest and prosecution of both Rodriguez and Moore might not have been possible.  Our auditors work day in and day out to protect the tax dollars of Delawareans, and I am thankful for the contributions that Stephenie and Nicole had in bringing these violators of the public trust to justice.”

Nicole Polite, a Certified Fraud Examiner, has been employed with the AOA office since 2014.  She is currently an Audit Supervisor.

Stephenie Tatman, a Certified Public Accountant and Certified Fraud Examiner, was hired by the AOA office in 2007 and was promoted to Audit Manager.  She is currently the Internal Audit Director for the Office of Pensions.

Plaques presented to Tatman and Polite

Contact: Deputy Auditor James Spadola
James.spadola@delaware.gov
Office: 302.857.3946
Cell:  302.746.2584


46 Criminal Cases Against Members of Heroin Enterprise Successfully Prosecuted

“Operation Son Sun” investigation concludes with convictions of leaders of one of Delaware’s largest heroin trafficking organizations.

Joined by the local and federal law enforcement agencies who successfully worked together to bring down one of the largest heroin trafficking organizations in Delaware history, Attorney General Matt Denn announced Thursday that the prosecutions of “Operation Son Sun” defendants had concluded with guilty adjudications for 46 defendants and multiple-decade sentences for the leaders of the organization.

The successful prosecutions were highlighted by the recent sentencings of Andrew “Rock” Lloyd, 32, of Wilmington and Antoine “Flock” Miller, 35, of Wilmington.  Lloyd led one of the largest heroin trafficking organizations in Delaware history before it was shut down in December 2014, after a multi-agency investigation. Known as “Operation Son Sun,” the investigation included the Delaware Department of Justice, the Drug Enforcement Administration-Wilmington Office (DEA), the Wilmington Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the New Castle County Police Department, the Division of Probation and Parole, the Newark Police Department, and the Delaware State Police.

The final indictment charging 46 people was handed down on December 22, 2014.  One year later, all 46 persons indicted have pled guilty or been convicted of criminal offenses.  Lloyd was sentenced to 25 years in prison, followed by probation for charges of organized crime and racketeering, six counts of Tier Five heroin possession, six counts of Tier Four drug dealing heroin, drug dealing with an aggravating factor, Tier One drug possession with an aggravating factor, possession of drug paraphernalia, and eight counts of second degree conspiracy.  Miller was sentenced to 20 years in prison followed by probation for charges of organized crime and racketeering, Tier Five heroin possession, possession of drug paraphernalia, and two counts of second degree conspiracy.

“The successful resolutions to these cases sends a strong message that we will seek to prosecute not just the street-level dealers, but the organizational heads of drug-dealing operations in our state,” said Attorney General Matt Denn. “These racketeering cases are notoriously hard to put together and present, and the fact that we were able to get convictions is in large part a credit to the front-line law enforcement work that was done.”

“The cases brought against this criminal enterprise demonstrates the strength of law enforcement’s dedication to stopping dangerous criminals in New Castle County.  This isn’t the end game for the FBI or our law enforcement partners.  We are continuing to go after the criminals who are creating violence and fear in our communities,” said Kevin Perkins, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Delaware.

“Andrew Lloyd and his associates were responsible for distributing large amounts of heroin and crack cocaine in Wilmington, Delaware. They destroyed numerous lives as a result of their drug-trafficking activities and were responsible for numerous shootings in furtherance of these same activities,” said Gary Tuggle, the Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Philadelphia Field Division.  “Joint investigations such as this, where we worked with our local, state, and federal law enforcement counterparts on a case that leads to this many arrests, drug, and firearms seizures has resulted in a significant increase in the quality of life for the residents of Wilmington.”

“Our hope is that the communities impacted by these folks are safer communities today because they were arrested and successfully prosecuted,” said Col. Nathaniel McQueen, Superintendent of the Delaware State Police. “It again shows what can be done when we all work together, and the folks that benefit from our working together are those impacted communities that we serve every day.”

“This operation was a multi-agency effort to combat drug sales throughout the state and the many communities within New Castle County,” said Col. Elmer Setting, Chief of the New Castle County Police. “The New Castle County Police were glad to assist in this operation with all of our resources needed to successfully put these individuals out of the drug sales business. This is empirical evidence of how all police agencies in the state can work together to accomplish a similar goal.”

“We continue to aggressively address crime through a multi-faceted approach including working together with local, State, and federal agencies to arrest and prosecute those individuals who are committing violent crimes in our city,” said Wilmington Police Chief Bobby Cummings

“We appreciate the cooperation and partnership from the other law enforcement agencies that took part in this investigation, and we will continue our collaborative efforts to arrest and prosecute those who commit senseless acts of violence,” Denn said. “From the DOJ, I want to thank and commend Deputy Attorneys General Mark Denney, Julie Finocchiaro, Caterina Gatto, and John S. Taylor who handled the cases against all of the co-defendants. The prosecutors had a tremendous support team in paralegal Stefania Iannocco, administrative assistants Shannon Daniels, Tonya Kinsey, and Evelyn Davis and case processing unit members Diane Madric, Sandra Colicchio and Jeanne Kenney. I also want to recognize Kathy Jennings, our State Prosecutor, and Joe Grubb, the New Castle County Prosecutor, for the roles they played as well in these cases.”


13 Wilmington Gang Members Indicted

91-count indictment against Touch Money Gang members includes murder, robbery, conspiracy and weapons charges

Following a lengthy investigation involving multiple local, state and federal agencies, 13 members of the Touch Money Gang, or TMG, a violent Wilmington neighborhood youth gang, were indicted by a grand jury last week for a long list of crimes including six murders, five shootings with injuries and a bank robbery.

The indictment charges all 13 individuals with gang participation because of membership in TMG and re-indicts a number of previous crimes that have now been determined to have TMG involvement.

Delaware Department of Justice, Wilmington Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation led the investigation that led to the 91-count indictment by a grand jury on August 31, which also involved the Delaware State Police, New Castle County Police, Juvenile Probation, New Castle City Police, Department of Corrections, Elsmere Police, Federal Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and U.S. Marshal Service. It is the largest indictment in memory by DOJ in terms of the number of homicides and shootings involved.

All 13 individuals indicted are now in custody.

“This indictment alleges what the residents of Wilmington unfortunately have experienced for the last several years, that a gang called TMG was bringing violence to their streets, some of which was committed by teens as young as 14 and 15 years old,” Attorney General Matt Denn said in announcing the indictments. “The level of violence and brazenness alleged to have been exhibited by TMG members is shocking. The number of shots being fired and the indiscriminate nature of the shootings are alarming. We believe the murders were committed by TMG members who were between the ages of 14 and 19 years old when they pulled the trigger.”

“These indictments are a step in making city neighborhoods safer, but also are a reminder of the gun violence we unfortunately continue to see daily, often perpetrated by teens and young adults,” Attorney General Denn said.

The murder counts included in the indictment are for six killings, including:

• Ioannis Kostikidis, a security guard at the American Beauty School, was shot and killed during a robbery attempt at 6th and Tatnall Streets on February 6, 2013;

• Dwayne Brown was shot and killed in the area of 10th and Kirkwood Streets in Wilmington on May 8, 2014;

• Devon Lindsey was shot and killed on E. 29th in Wilmington on January 18, 2015;

• William Rollins was shot and killed at the corner of W. 21st and Washington Streets in Wilmington on January 24, 2015;

• Deshon Sellers was shot and killed on E. 24th Street near Carter Street in Wilmington on February 16, 2015;

• Malik Watson was shot and killed on 9th Street in the city of New Castle on November 26, 2014. A previous indictment for the murder of Malik Watson was incorporated into this new indictment based on the involvement of the gang.

The indictments also include charges related to five other shootings with injuries including one last month at the Adams Four Shopping Center, multiple illegal firearm and drug possessions and the January 29, 2015 robbery of the WSFS branch on North Union Street in Wilmington.

“There are many people and agencies that helped make these indictments possible. We greatly appreciate the cooperation and partnership from the other law enforcement agencies that took part in this investigation,” Attorney General Denn said. “From the DOJ, I want to recognize deputy attorneys general Ipek Medford, John Downs and Periann Doko, investigator Cliff Dempsey, paralegal Jaime Prater and analysts Bill Moran and Shennette Moore for the long, dedicated and tireless work over many months stitching together the full picture of this gang’s activities and working to take its members off the streets.”

“Through aggressive policing strategies, and by working closely with our partners in public safety, the various federal agencies, and the community, we continue our collaborative efforts to arrest and prosecute those who commit senseless acts of gun violence in our city,” said Wilmington Police Chief Bobby Cummings.

The FBI’s involvement in the Wilmington TMG investigation was part of that agency’s initiative to target gun violence in cities around the country.

“Recent spikes in violence may have led many in the community to mistakenly think law enforcement has given up on fighting crime, but today’s indictments and arrests prove this isn’t true,” said Kevin Perkins, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Delaware. “We are actively investigating cases, making arrests and stopping criminals. Our law enforcement partnerships have deepened and we are more committed than ever to making Wilmington a safer place.”

The list of individuals indicted:

JOHN BRISCO, aka “Bin Laden”, 18 years old
RAYMIRE BRISCOE, aka “Fats”, 15 years old
ALEXANDER FITZGERALD, aka “Trey”, 19 years old
BRYANT HAWKES, aka “Black Sosa”, 20 years old
AQUANTAY GARNER, aka “Caper Boi”, 19 years old
RYLIER GRAYSON, aka “Lier”, 20 years old
RONALD MADDREY, aka “Doo”, 20 years old
KADIR MCCOY, aka “D-Rose”, 17 years old
TYMERE RIGHTER, aka “Frog”, 19 years old
JACQUEZ ROBINSON, aka “Quez”, 20 years old
RANDY SCOTT, aka “YL”, 23 years old
JAYMERE WHITE, aka “Jay 5”, 17 years old
DAYMERE WISHER, aka “Day-Day”, 16 years old

In all cases, defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.


Man Wanted for Fatal Wilmington Shooting Arrested in New York

Wilmington Police and the Delaware Department of Justice have announced the arrest of Taushia Mitchell, 18, of Wilmington the person believed responsible for the July 23rd homicide of James Rogers, 29, of Wilmington, in a home in the 500 block of West 4th Street in Wilmington.

After an extensive investigation involving the Wilmington Police Department, the Delaware Department of Justice, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Taushia Mitchell was arrested in New York City. Mitchell is being held on charges relating to the theft of the homicide victim’s vehicle.

Further investigation by the Wilmington Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Division led to the State of Delaware Department of Justice authorizing arrest warrants for Mitchell for charge of Murder in the First Degree late this afternoon. Mitchell is expected to face extradition next week from New York to Delaware.