Aug. 17, 2006

DOG TRAINER WHO AIDED ESCAPEE
FACES FEDERAL FIREARMS CHARGE

Toby Young and John Manard both charged in federal indictment

KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A dog trainer who is serving a 21-month sentence for helping a Leavenworth inmate escape has been charged with a federal weapons violation that could send her to prison for up to 10 more years.

In a federal grand jury indictment announced Thursday, Toby Young, 48, Kansas City, Kan., and John Manard, 27, are charged with firearms violations. Young is charged with one count of knowingly giving a firearm to a felon and fugitive. Manard is charged with one count of unlawfully possessing a firearm after a felony conviction. The crimes are alleged to have occurred Feb. 12, 2006, at Young’s home in Kansas City, Kan.

Young, who ran a dog training program using inmates at Lansing Correctional Facility, pleaded guilty in Leavenworth County District Court to aiding and abetting aggravated prison escape and introducing contraband into the prison. She was sentenced in July to 21 months. Manard is serving a life sentence for a 1996 Johnson County murder during a car jacking.

If convicted, they each face a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Terra Morehead is prosecuting.

 

OTHER INDICTMENTS

In other cases, a federal grand jury meeting in Kansas City, Kan., returned the following indictments:

Frank Jerome Robinson, 30, Topeka, Kan., is indicted on one count of arson that led to the death of Marvina Washington and the injury of another person during a fire Aug. 8, 2006, in an apartment building at 427 SW Tyler in Topeka.

Robinson was charged by criminal complaint in the case Aug. 10.

The maximum penalty for an arson that results in a death is life imprisonment, or even the death penalty. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Topeka Fire Department, the Topeka Police Department, and the Kansas Fire Marshal’s Office investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Mattivi is prosecuting.

Robert Czirr, 59, Kansas City, Kan., is charged with 6 counts of sending child pornography through emails and one count of possession of child pornography. The crimes are alleged to have occurred at various times in 2003 and 2004 in Kansas City, Kan.

If convicted, he faces a penalty of not less than 5 years and not more than 20 years and a fine up to $250,000 on each count. The Federal Bureau of Investigation prepared the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kim Martin is prosecuting.

Gerardo Leal, 25; Deborah Gutierrez, 38; Emeldo Martinez-Acosta, 52, and Victor Renteria, 24, Kansas City, Kan., are charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute more than 5 kilograms of cocaine, and one count of possession with intent to distribute more than 5 kilograms of cocaine. The crimes are alleged to have occurred during the time from Aug. 1, 2006, to Aug. 9, 2006, in Wyandotte County, Kan.

If convicted, they face a penalty of not less than 10 years and not more than life and a fine up to $4 million on each count. The Drug Enforcement Administration investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sheri McCracken is prosecuting.

Luis Alexander Vargas, 18, Long Beach, Calif., and Luis Alberto Moreno-Tovar, 23, Tecoman, Mexico, are charged with possession with intent to distribute more than 500 grams of methamphetamine. The crime is alleged to have occurred July 20, 2006, in Kansas City, Kan.

If convicted, they face a penalty of not less than 10 years and not more than life, and a fine up to $4 million. The Drug Enforcement Administration investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney David Zabel is prosecuting.

Leroy Fondren, Jr., 45, Kansas City, Kan., is charged with drug trafficking. The charges include:

– One count of possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of crack cocaine.
– Two counts of unlawfully possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
– One count of possession with intent to distribute marijuana.
– Two counts of unlawfully possession of a firearm after a felony conviction.
– Two counts of possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine.
– Two counts of possession with intent to distribute 5 grams or more of crack cocaine.
The crimes are alleged to have occurred during November 2004, March 2005, August 2005, September 2005 and August 2006 in Wyandotte County, Kan.

Upon conviction, penalties for the offenses are as follows:

– Not less than 10 years and not more than life and a fine up to $4 million on the charge of possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of crack.
– Not less than 5 years and not more than life and a fine up to $250,000 on the charges of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
– A maximum penalty of 5 years and a fine up to $250,000 on the charge of possession with intent to distribute marijuana.
– Not more than 10 years and a fine up to $250,000 on each count of unlawful possession of a firearm after a felony conviction.
– A maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine up to $1 million on the charge of possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine.
– Not less than 5 years and not more than 40 years and a fine up to $2 million on each count of possession with intent to distribute 5 grams or more of crack cocaine.
– Not less than 25 years and not more than life and a fine up to $250,000 on the second charge of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Terra Moorehead is prosecuting.

Juan Jose Gutierrez-Duran, 23, is charged with possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. The crime is alleged to have occurred Aug. 8, 2006, in Wyandotte County, Kan.

If convicted, he faces a penalty of not less than 10 years and not more than life in federal prison and a fine up to $4 million. The Drug Enforcement Administration investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sheri McCracken is prosecuting.

Daryl C. Bagby, 20, Kansas City, Kan., is charged with one count of unlawfully possessing a firearm after a felony conviction. The crime is alleged to have occurred May 20, 2006 in Wyandotte County, Kan.

If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Terra Morehead is prosecuting.

Joseph R. Grooms, 28, is charged with one count of possession with intent to distribute more than 5 grams of methamphetamine, one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine, one count of possession with intent to distribute marijuana, and one count of unlawfully possessing a firearm after a felony conviction. The crimes are alleged to have occurred March 30, 2005, in Wyandotte County, Kan.

If convicted, he faces a penalty of not less than 5 years and not more than 40 years in federal prison and a fine up to $2 million on the methamphetamine charge; a maximum penalty of 20 years and a fine up to $1 million on the cocaine charge; a maximum penalty of 5 years and a fine up to $250,000 on the marijuana charge; and penalty of not less than 15 years and a fine up to $250,000 on the firearms charge. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Terra Morehead is prosecuting.

Joseph M. Uman, 24, is charged with one count of unlawfully possessing a firearm after a felony conviction and one count of knowingly possessing a stolen firearm. The crimes are alleged to have occurred April 12, 2006, in Wyandotte County, Kan.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on each count. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Terra Morehead is prosecuting.

Joseph Reyes, 25, Parsons, Kan., is charged with one count of possession with intent to distribute more than 5 grams of crack cocaine. The crime is alleged to have occurred in April 22, 2006, in Parsons.

If convicted, he faces a penalty of not less than 5 years and not more than 40 years and a fine up to $2 million on the crack cocaine charge. The case was developed by The Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force’s Operation Little Big Man. Investigators included the Parsons Police Department, the Labette County Sheriff’s Office, the Labette County Attorney’s Office, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

As in any criminal case, a person is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. The indictments filed merely contain allegations of criminal conduct.

##