United States Attorney David Capp

Northern District of Indiana

5400 Federal Plaza, Suite 1500

Hammond, Indiana 46320

Hammond                                                 South Bend                                               Fort Wayne

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                         CONTACT: Mary L. Hatton

June 3, 2011                                                                                        PHONE: (219) 937-5500

www.usdoj.gov/usao/inn/                                                                    Fax: (219) 852-2770 

WEEK IN REVIEW - HAMMOND

Hammond, Indiana—The United States Attorney's Office announced the following:

James Gaskill, 29, of Attica, Indiana, was sentenced by Judge Joseph Van Bokkelen to 30 months imprisonment and 3 years of supervised release after pleading guilty to count one of an indictment charging him with being a felon in possession of a firearm. This case was the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David Nozick.

Julio Cortes, 30, of Hammond, Indiana, was sentenced by Senior Judge Rudy Lozano to 6 months imprisonment with credit for time served, and if not immediately deported, 1 year of supervised release after pleading guilty to count one of an indictment charging him with misuse of a social security number. This case was the result of an investigation by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Office of Homeland Security Investigations. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Gary Bell.

Samuel Gant, 37, of Gary, Indiana, was sentenced by Judge Joseph Van Bokkelen to 20 months imprisonment and 3 years of supervised release after pleading guilty to count one of an indictment charging him with being a felon in possession of a firearm. This case was the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives HIDTA Task Force. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Nicholas Padilla.

Vladimir Debeljak, 33, of Hobart, Indiana, was sentenced by Senior Judge James Moody to 3 years probation and 8 months of home detention after pleading guilty to count one of an indictment charging him with counterfeiting. This case was the result of an investigation by the United States Secret Service. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Gary Bell.

Sandra Mills, 61, of Lafayette, Indiana, pled guilty before Senior Judge James Moody to count three of an indictment charging her with filing a false income tax return. These charges were filed as the result of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Thomas Ratcliffe.

Brandon Hinkle, 32, of Gary, Indiana, was sentenced by Judge Joseph Van Bokkelen to two years probation and restitution in the amount of $14,651 to the Department of Workforce Development. after pleading guilty to count one of an indictment charging him with theft of government property. This case was the result of an investigation by the Department of Labor Office of the Inspector General. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Thomas Ratcliffe.

Marcell Seawood, 26, of Gary, Indiana, pled guilty before Senior Judge James Moody to count one of a second superseding indictment charging with use of a communication facility to distribute a controlled substance in the case US v Crawford et al. These charges were filed as the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jacqueline Jacobs.

Jay Anderson, 50, of Delphi, Indiana, was sentenced by Senior Judge James Moody to one year probation after pleading guilty to count one of a superseding indictment charging him with being a felon in possession of a firearm. This case was the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dean Lanter.

Armando Vera, 55, of East Chicago, Indiana, pled guilty before Judge Joseph Van Bokkelen to count two of an indictment charging him with distribution of marijuana. Sentencing has been set for 8/3/11. These charges were filed as the result of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David Nozick.

Harold Pemberton, III, 35, of East Chicago, Indiana, was sentenced by Chief Judge Philip Simon to 24 months imprisonment and 3 years of supervised release after pleading guilty to count one of an indictment charging him with being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. This case was the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Nicholas Padilla.

Ricardo Valenzuela, 28, of Lafayette, Indiana, was sentenced by Senior Judge James Moody to 12 months and 1 day imprisonment and 3 years of supervised release if not deported after pleading guilty to count one of an indictment charging him with distribution of cocaine. This case was the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jacqueline Jacobs.

Richard Hasza, 28, of Hobart, Indiana, pled guilty before Judge Joseph Van Bokkelen to count two of an indictment charging him with making false statements in the purchase of a firearm. Sentencing has been set for 9/8/11. These charges were filed as the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives HIDTA Task Force. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Nicholas Padilla.

Chiquita Deshazer, 24, of Chicago, Illinois, was sentenced by Chief Judge Philip Simon to 6 months imprisonment and 1 year of supervised release after pleading guilty to counts one and two of an indictment charging her with conspiracy to commit identity theft and social security fraud . This case was the result of an investigation by the United States Postal Inspection Service. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Toi Houston.

Tiffany Nelson, 24, of Portage, Indiana, was sentenced by Chief Judge Philip Simon to 3 months probation and 6 months of home detention after pleading guilty to count one of an indictment charging her with bank fraud of the Fifth Third Bank. This case was the result of an investigation by the United States Secret Service. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Randall Stewart.

            The specific sentence in each case to be imposed upon conviction will be determined by the judge after a consideration of federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.