United States Attorney David Capp

Northern District of Indiana

M01-204 S. Main Street

South Bend, Indiana 46601

Hammond South Bend Fort Wayne

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Mary L. Hatton

November 16, 2012 PHONE: (219) 937-5500

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

WEEK IN REVIEW – SOUTH BEND

South Bend, Indiana - The United States Attorney’s Office announced that:

PLEAS:

Ø Daniel Tapia, 29, of Granger, Indiana, pled guilty before District Judge Robert Miller, Jr. to the felony offense of possession of child pornography. Sentencing has been set for 2/15/13. These charges were filed as a result of an investigation by the United States Secret Service and the South Bend Police Department. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney John Maciejczyk.

Ø David Dircks, 53, of South Bend, Indiana, a defendant in the case US v Wells et al., pled guilty before District Judge Robert Miller, Jr. to the felony offense of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Sentencing has been set for 2/21/13. These charges were filed as a result of an investigation by the by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the South Bend Police Department. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Donald Schmid.

Ø Darnell Jackson, 31, of South Bend, Indiana, US v Wells et al., pled guilty before District Judge Robert Miller, Jr. to the felony offense of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Sentencing has been set for 2/20/13. These charges were filed as a result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the South Bend Police Department. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Donald Schmid.

Ø Michael Hodowaniac, 21, of South Bend, Indiana, pled guilty before Magistrate Judge Christopher Nuechterlein to the felony offense of arson of a vehicle. Magistrate Nuechterlein is recommending that the district court accept the tendered guilty plea. Parties have 10 days in which to object to the magistrate judge’s recommendation. Sentencing has been set for 2/15/13. These charges were filed as a result of an investigation by the by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the South Bend Police Department. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Donald Schmid.

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 Cedric Washington, 31, of South Bend, Indiana, was sentenced by District Judge Robert Miller, Jr. to 27 months imprisonment and 3 years of supervised release after pleading guilty to the felony offense of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. According to the sentencing memorandum filed by the government in this case, Washington possessed a loaded firearm at night while driving in an erratic manner. Washington has a significant and escalating criminal history that includes drug crimes and assisting criminals. This case was the result of an investigation by the by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the South Bend Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jesse Barrett.

Ø Alejandro Leon, 33, of South Bend, Indiana, was sentenced by District Judge Robert Miller, Jr. to 24 months imprisonment and 3 years of supervised release after pleading guilty to the felony offenses of distribution of cocaine and making false statements on an employment eligibility form. According to the sentencing memorandum filed in this case, Leon sold sizeable quantities of powder cocaine to a police informant on 3 different occasions and that he had used false identification to obtain employment under the another name. This case was the result of an investigation by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Internal Revenue Service and the MSOS. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney William Grimmer.

Ø Eric Barker, 42, of Leesburg, Indiana, was sentenced by District Judge Robert Miller, Jr. to 15 months imprisonment and 2 years of supervised release after pleading guilty to the felony offense of manufacturing marijuana. According to the sentencing memorandum filed by the government in this case, Barker was manufacturing marijuana with a grow operation of over 100 plants. Scales, baggies and other paraphernalia were recovered in his home including loose marijuana. Barker had six prior controlled substance convictions. This case was the result of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Frank Schaffer.