Week In Review – Hammond

Hammond, Indiana - The United States Attorney’s Office announced the following activity in Federal Court:

DISPOSITIONS:

Raynell Vaxter, 53, of Gary, Indiana was sentenced by Chief Judge Philip P. Simon to 120 months imprisonment with 3 years supervised release after pleading guilty to the felony offense of being a felon in possession of a firearm.According to documents filed in this case, in April 2011, Gary Police responded to a disturbance involving an unwanted male in possession of a firearm.Local law enforcement determined that the man was Vaxter who was threatening and harassing an ex-girlfriend located at the address. Vaxter was arrested later while also being suspected of vehicular arson behind the same location.While the vehicle Vaxter was using was searched, officers recovered an AMT .380 caliber pistol that was later determined to have been reported stolen.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 Joshua Kolar.

Marilyn Krusas, 70, of Gary, Indiana was sentenced by District Judge Joseph Van Bokkelen to 1 year and a day with 2 years of supervised release after pleading guilty to the felony offense of tax evasion.According to documents filed in this case, Krusas, a council member for the city of Gary, did not file tax returns for 20 consecutive years. This case was the result of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service.This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Gary Bell.