U.S. Department
of Justice
Riverside Branch Office
Section Overview
AUSAs in the Riverside Branch Office prosecute federal crimes that occur in San Bernardino and Riverside Counties. These are the two geographically largest counties in the Central District of California, covering approximately two-thirds of the District’s land area, and have the fastest growing populations, with a current combined population of approximately 4.4 million residents.
AUSAs in the Riverside Branch Office handle all federal criminal cases, including: public corruption cases involving government officials; fraud cases, including mortgage fraud, investment fraud, bank fraud, identity theft, tax fraud, health care fraud, and fraud against the government; Project Safe Childhood cases, including those involving child pornography and child prostitution; violent crime cases, including prison murders and assaults, gang cases, firearms offenses, and bank robberies; drug trafficking cases; and immigration cases, including those involving alien smuggling and passport fraud.
Riverside Branch Office AUSAs work closely with agents from virtually every federal law enforcement agency, as well as with state and local law enforcement. AUSAs in the Riverside Branch Office also serve as coordinators for, or otherwise work closely with, a number of task forces in Riverside and San Bernardino Counties, including the Gang Impact Team, which focuses on reducing gang-related drug trafficking and violent crimes in San Bernardino County, the Sexual Assault Felony Enforcement task force, which focuses on child exploitation crimes, and the Inland Regional Corruption Task Force. The Riverside Branch Office also works closely with the District Attorney’s Offices of Riverside and San Bernardino Counties, with some Deputy District Attorneys being cross-designated as Special Assistant United States Attorneys (SAUSAs) to work on cases of mutual interest.
Section Leadership
Sean Peterson
Sean Peterson is the Chief of the Riverside Branch Office. He joined the United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California in the fall of 2012.
As an AUSA, Mr. Peterson has prosecuted defendants who engaged in a wide variety of criminal conduct including public corruption and other misconduct by public officials and officers, investment fraud and fraud on the government, violent crime, theft, and narcotics trafficking, among other types of offenses. Mr. Peterson has also served the Office in different collateral roles including as a Henthorn Requesting Official, and as a CASA (the Central District’s Interagency Sentencing Alternatives Program) representative.
Prior to joining the United States Attorney’s Office, Mr. Peterson spent five years working as an associate at Clifford Chance US LLP split between offices in New York and Washington D.C. Mr. Peterson also worked as a law clerk for the Honorable Francisco A. Besosa in the District of Puerto Rico. Mr. Peterson graduated from Occidental College and New York University School of Law.
Recent Cases
November 1, 2022
Press Release
San Bernardino County Woman Found Guilty of Obtaining Custody of Infant for the Purpose of Producing Sexually Explicit Videos
October 12, 2022
Press Release
Michigan Man Arrested on Complaint Alleging He Deliberately Set 25 Commercial Trucks Ablaze in Eight Different States Over 2 Years
October 3, 2022
Press Release
Former Adelanto Mayor Pro Tem Sentenced to 5 Years in Prison for Accepting Bribe and Attempting to Burn Down His Own Restaurant
August 30, 2022
Press Release
San Bernardino County Man Sentenced to 14 Years in Federal Prison for Multimillion-Dollar Investment Fraud and Cheating on His Taxes
August 9, 2022
Press Release
Inland Empire Man Sentenced to 25 Years in Federal Prison for Coercing 9-Year-Old Girl to Produce Child Pornography
SECTION CONTACT INFORMATION
The United States Attorney's Office
Central District of California
Riverside Branch Office
3403 Tenth St. Suite 200
Riverside, CA 92501
(855) 700-2768 (Toll Free)
(951) 368-1488 (Complaints)