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 Hatton

April 13, 2012 PHONE: (219) 937-5603

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

WEEK IN REVIEW – HAMMOND

Hammond, Indiana- The United States Attorney’s Office announced the following:

PLEAS:

Ø Brian Blasingame, 47, of Gary, Indiana, pled guilty before Judge Joseph Van Bokkelen to the felony offense of possession of a firearm as a convicted felon. According to the plea agreement filed by the government in this case, Blasingame was convicted of forgery in Texas in 1988. Sentencing has been set for 6/25/12. These charges were filed as the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives HIDTA Task Force and the Gary Police Department. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Nicholas Padilla.

Ø Brian Kurth, 30, of Crown Point, Indiana, pled guilty before Judge Rudy Lozano to the felony offense of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute heroin. Sentencing has been set for 7/20/12. 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 Jennifer Chang-Adiga.

If convicted in court, any specific sentence to be imposed will be determined by the judge after a consideration of federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

DISPOSITIONS:

Ø Jermaine Jackson, 30, of Gary, Indiana, was sentenced by Judge Rudy Lozano to 87 months imprisonment and 3 years of supervised release after pleading guilty to the felony offense of possession with the intent to distribute cocaine. According to the Complaint affidavit filed in this case, law enforcement executed a federal search warrant on Jackson’s residence and recovered approximately 6.6 grams of crack cocaine and a 12 gauge shotgun and ammunition. Jackson has previous felony narcotics convictions in Lake County, Indiana. This case was the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation GRIT Task Force and the Gary Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dean Lanter.

Ø Ralph Oliver, 24, of Chicago, Illinois, a defendant in the case US v Ross et al., was sentenced, by Judge Joseph Van Bokkelen to 190 months imprisonment after pleading guilty to Counts 3s and 5s of a superseding Indictment charging him with the felony offenses of use of a firearm during and in relation to a federal crime of violence and conspiracy to interfere with commerce by threats or violence. Oliver was ordered to pay $16,259.32 in restitution.

According to the Indictment in this case, on September 3, 2010, Oliver committed an armed robbery at a Federally Licensed Firearm Dealer and pawn shop, Jack’s Loan Office, in Gary, Indiana. During the course of this robbery, Oliver was armed with a firearm and stole United States currency and firearms. On August 20, 2010, Oliver committed an armed robbery at cellular phone store Cricket Phone MGM Communication in Chicago, Illinois. During the course of this robbery Oliver was armed with a firearm and stole United States currency.

This case was the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Gary Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David Nozick.