Latest news with #LeahB.Foley
Boston Globe
20-05-2025
- Boston Globe
Assumption University student to plead guilty to cyber extortions, prosecutors say
He also allegedly stole records from a software and cloud storage company that served school systems in the US, Canada, and obtained records with personal information for millions of students and teachers that he then transferred on the server he leased in Ukraine, according to prosecutors. The company later received threats to pay a ransom of $2.85 million in Bitcoin or the information would be released publicly, prosecutors said. Advertisement Lane's attorney could not immediately be reached for comment Tuesday. Assumption University did not immediately return a message seeking comment. 'As alleged, this defendant stole private information about millions of children and teachers, imposed substantial financial costs on his victims, and instilled fear in parents that their kids' information had been leaked into the hands of criminals – all to put a notch in his hacking belt,' US Attorney Leah B. Foley said in a statement. Advertisement Kimberly Milka, acting special agent in charge for the FBI's Boston office, said Lane 'apparently thought he found a way to get rich quick, but this 19-year-old now stands accused of hiding behind his keyboard to gain unauthorized access to an education software provider to obtain sensitive data which was used in an attempt to extort millions of dollars.' The companies were not identified in court records. Prosecutors alleged that between April and May last year, Lane 'agreed with others' to extort $200,000 from a telecommunications company by threatening to release customer data that had previously been stolen from the company's computer network. When the company asked if making the payment would in fact stop the threat of the information being leaked, prosecutors said Lane allegedly told the company, 'We are the only ones with a copy of this data now. Stop this nonsense [or] your executives and employees will see the same fate . . . . Make the correct decision and pay the ransom. If you keep stalling, it will be leaked.' With the second company, prosecutors said Lane allegedly used stolen login credentials to access the company's computer network and the personal records of students and teachers, including names, email addresses, phone numbers, social security numbers, dates of birth, medical information, residential addresses, parent and guardian information, and other data. That company later received threats that the personal information of more than 60 million students and 10 million teachers would be leaked 'worldwide' if the company did not pay $2.85 million in Bitcoin, prosecutors said. A plea hearing for Lane has not yet been scheduled, prosecutors said. Nick Stoico can be reached at
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Yahoo
Registered sex offender from Holyoke charged with possessing child pornography
SPRINGFIELD — A Holyoke man who is a registered sex offender has been charged in federal court with possession of child sexual abuse material. Justin Ouimette, 34, had already been convicted in Hampden Superior Court of child porn possession and is a Level One registered sex offender, a spokesperson for U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley announced Monday. He is serving a one-year jail sentence for violating his probation from the previous conviction, authorities say. He will be arraigned in U.S. District Court in Springfield on a date not yet determined. Investigators allegedly recovered more than 400 images of child porn in 2024 after a search of his home and electronic devices. The images appear to feature children as young as 3, according to Foley's office. The charge of possession of child pornography as a registered sex offender provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and up to 20 years in prison, plus five years to life of supervised release.
Yahoo
03-05-2025
- Yahoo
49-year-old Mass. woman accused of ID theft for passport, license, DOJ says
A woman from Lawrence was charged in federal court on Friday after being accused of using someone else's identity to obtain a passport and other government issued IDs, according to a statement from U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley's office. Wendy Chavez, 49, was arrested on Thursday and charged with passport fraud, aggravated identity theft and misuse of a social security number. Chavez made her initial appearance in court Thursday afternoon and a detention hearing is scheduled for May 7. The incident happened in June 2020 when Chavez is accused of submitting a passport renewal application using another person's name, date of birth and Social Security number, Foley's office said. The passport was issued to Chavez. Chavez is also accused of using the same identification information to acquire 'multiple' government-issued IDs, including a Massachusetts driver's license. If convicted of false statement in a passport application, Chavez could face up to 10 year sin prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine, the statement reads. The charge of aggravated identity theft calls for a mandatory minimum of two years in prison to be added to the felony committed while using the means of identification of another without lawful authority. The charge of misuse of social security number provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and $250,000 in fines. Mass. lawmakers eye lesser charge to deter animal cruelty 'Summer-like' warmth Saturday in Mass., storms likely, National Weather Service reports One dead after four-car crash on Route 28 in Reading Wareham man accused of possessing thousands of child sex abuse material, DOJ says Trump gets put on blast for historic gaffe that disrespects 'greatest generation'
Yahoo
03-05-2025
- Yahoo
Mass. man accused of possessing thousands of child sex abuse files, DOJ says
A 49-year-old man from Wareham was charged on Friday for possessing and receiving child sexual abuse material, according to a statement from U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley's office. Brandon Bendall, 49, was charged with one count of possession of child pornography and one count of receipt of child pornograph, the release reads. Bendall made his initial appearance in federal court on Friday and is being held in custody pending a detention hearing to be held at a later date. Bendall is accused of being a member of an online chat group where members viewed and posted child sexual abuse material. During a search of his home and phone, officials found nearly 9,400 images and videos of child sexual abuse material, including images of children as young as infants being sexual assaulted, Foley's office wrote. The charge of receipt of child pornography provides for a sentence of at least five years and up to 20 years in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of possession of child pornography carries a sentence of up to 20 years in prison. This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood , a nationwide initiative launched in 2006 by the Department of Justice to 'combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.' Mass. lawmakers eye lesser charge to deter animal cruelty 'Summer-like' warmth Saturday in Mass., storms likely, National Weather Service reports One dead after four-car crash on Route 28 in Reading 49-year-old Lawrence woman accused of ID theft for passport, license, DOJ says Trump gets put on blast for historic gaffe that disrespects 'greatest generation'
Epoch Times
02-05-2025
- Business
- Epoch Times
US Files False-Claim Complaint Against Health Insurance Companies, Brokers
The Department of Justice filed a complaint under the False Claims Act on May 1 against three health insurance companies and three large insurance brokerage organizations, alleging that hundreds of millions of dollars in kickbacks were paid by the insurance companies to the brokers in exchange for enrollments into their Medicare Advantage plans. The insurer defendants are Aetna Inc., and its affiliates, Humana Inc., and Elevance Health Inc. (formerly known as Anthem). The broker defendants are eHealth Inc. and one of its affiliates, GoHealth Inc., and SelectQuote Inc. According to the complaint, the kickbacks were allegedly paid out from 2016 through at least 2021. DOJ explained in a press release that the Medicare Advantage Program beneficiaries may choose to enroll in plans offered by private insurance companies, and many of those beneficiaries rely on brokers to help them choose the best plan to meet their needs. 'Rather than acting as unbiased stewards, the defendant brokers allegedly directed Medicare beneficiaries to the plans offered by insurers that paid brokers the most in kickbacks, regardless of the suitability of the MA plans for the beneficiaries,' the DOJ stated in 'According to the complaint, the broker organizations incentivized their employees and agents to sell plans based on the insurers' kickbacks, set up teams of insurance agents who could sell only those plans, and at times refused to sell MA plans of insurers who did not pay sufficient kickbacks.' DOJ also alleged that Humana and Aetna conspired with the brokers to discriminate against beneficiaries with disabilities deemed to be less profitable by allegedly threatening to withhold the kickbacks to the brokers. Related Stories 4/17/2025 4/8/2025 'Health care companies that attempt to profit from kickbacks will be held accountable,' said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Michael Granston of the Justice Department's Civil Division. 'We are committed to rooting out illegal practices by Medicare Advantage insurers and insurance brokers that undermine the interests of federal health care programs and the patients they serve.' The lawsuit was originally filed under whistleblower provisions under the False Claims Act, which permits the United States to intervene and take over the action. 'The alleged efforts to drive beneficiaries away specifically because their disabilities might make them less profitable to health insurance companies are even more unconscionable,' said U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley for the District of Massachusetts. 'Profit and greed over beneficiary interest is something we will continue to investigate and prosecute aggressively. This office will continue to take decisive action to protect the rights of Medicare beneficiaries and vulnerable Americans.' According to the
