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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
Oct. 15, 2009
WICHITA MAN INDICTED ON ARSON CHARGES
WICHITA, KAN. – Francis A. Mlaga, 21, Wichita, Kan., is charged with one count of arson, one count of wire fraud, and one count of using arson to commit a felony, U.S. Attorney Lanny Welch said today.
According to the indictment, on Aug. 24, 2009, Mlaga set fire to Ashbury Court Apartment Complex at 1940 S. Woodlawn in Wichita. On Aug. 25, 2009, he called Farmers Insurance Group in Grand Rapids, Mich., to make a false insurance claim for property damaged in the fire.
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 the arson count, a maximum penalty of 20 years and a fine up to $250,000 on the wire fraud charge, and a maximum penalty of 10 years and a fine up to $250,000 on the charge of using arson to commit a felony. Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matt Treaster is prosecuting.
OTHER INDICTMENTS
A federal grand jury meeting in Wichita, Kan., also returned the following indictments:
Darius E. Delonia, 21, Wichita, Kan., is charged with one count of unlawful possession of ammunition after a felony conviction. The crime is alleged to have occurred Sept. 28, 2009, in Sedgwick County, Kan.
If convicted, he 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. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matt Treaster is prosecuting.
Hugo Alvarez-Gonzalez, 27, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with one count of unlawfully transporting 11 undocumented aliens in a 2002 Nissan pickup truck, and one count of unlawfully re-entering the United States after being deported.
Alvarez-Gonzalez initially was charged in a criminal complaint filed Sept. 29, 2009. According to the complaint, about 1 a.m. Sept. 19, 2009, the Hodgeman County Sheriff’s Department stopped Alvarez-Gonzalez in Jetmore, Kan. He was driving a vehicle occupied by undocumented aliens. Immigration records showed Alvarez-Gonzalez had been deported from the United States on May 18, 2009.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 5 years in federal prison without parole and a fine up to $250,000 on the charge of transporting illegal aliens, and a maximum penalty of 2 years without parole and a fine up to $250,000 on the re-entry charge. Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.
Jose Guadaleupe Chaviz-Arechiga, 27, Mills, Wyoming, and Samuel Castro Hernandez, 23, Denver, Colo., are charged with possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. The crime is alleged to have occurred Oct. 10, 2009, in Sedgwick 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. The Wichita Police Department investigated. The U.S. Attorney’s office is prosecuting.
Rosa Delgado-Rios, 42, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with unlawfully re-entering the United States after being convicted of an aggravated felony and deported. She was found Sept. 25, 2009, in Dodge City, Kan.
If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison without parole and a fine up to $250,000. Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.
Byron A. Arriaza-Lemus, 37, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with unlawfully re-entering the United States after being convicted of an aggravated felony and deported. He was found Oct. 2, 2009, in Sumner County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison without parole and a fine up to $250,000. Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.
Nuren O. Makanjuola, 31, a citizen of Nigeria, is charged in a superseding indictment with one count of making a false claim of United States citizenship on an Alcoholic Liquor Application form submitted to the City of Wichita, and one count of making a false claim of United States citizenship on an Ownership Disclosure Form submitted to the Alcoholic Beverage Control Division of the Kansas Department of Revenue. The crimes are alleged to have occurred Oct. 28, 2008, in Sedgwick County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 3 years in federal prison without parole and a fine up to $250,000 on each count. Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent Anderson is prosecuting.
In all cases, defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. The indictments filed merely contain allegations of criminal conduct.
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