Federal Grand Jury Criminal Indictments Announced

TULSA, Okla. — The results of the February 2014 Federal Grand Jury were announced today by Danny C. Williams Sr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma.

The following named individuals have been charged with a federal crime or crimes by the return of an indictment by the Grand Jury. The return of an indictment is a method of informing the defendant of alleged violations which must be proven in a court of law beyond a reasonable doubt to overcome the defendant’s presumption of innocence.

Francisco Cedeno-Esquivel. Alien in the United States After Deportation. Cedeno-Esquivel, 33, was arrested in Tulsa County and is charged with having returned to the United States unlawfully after being deported in May 2011 near Hidalgo, Texas. If convicted, the maximum penalty would be twenty (20) years imprisonment and/or a fine up to $250,000. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is the lead agency.

Jose Diaz-Hernandez. Alien in the United States After Deportation. Diaz-Hernandez, 42, was arrested in Tulsa County and is charged with having returned to the United States unlawfully after being deported in October 2013 near Brownsville, Texas. If convicted, the maximum penalty would be twenty (20) years imprisonment and/or a fine up to $250,000. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is the lead agency.

Gelvin Garcia-Alvarado. Alien in the United States After Deportation. Garcia-Alvarado, 31, was arrested in Tulsa County and is charged with having returned to the United States unlawfully after being deported in April 2008 near Alexandria, Louisiana. If convicted, the maximum penalty would be twenty (20) years imprisonment and/or a fine up to $250,000. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is the lead agency.

Cesario Hernandez-Aldaba. Alien in the United States After Deportation. Hernandez-Aldaba, 52, was arrested in Tulsa County and is charged with having returned to the United States unlawfully after being deported in April 2012 near Del Rio, Texas. If convicted, the maximum penalty would be twenty (20) years imprisonment and/or a fine up to $250,000. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is the lead agency.

Hunter Lee Hines. Threats Against the President. Hines, 18, of Claremore, Okla., an inmate at Rogers County Jail, is charged with mailing a threatening letter on December 16, 2013 to United States President Barack Obama. If convicted, Hines would face not more than five (5) years imprisonment and/or a $250,000 fine. The United States Secret Service is the lead agency.

Jose Guadalupe Reyes-Banuelos. Alien in the United States After Deportation. Reyes-Banuelos, 40, was arrested in Tulsa County and is charged with having returned to the United States unlawfully after being deported in February 2010 near San Ysidro, California. If convicted, the maximum penalty would be twenty (20) years imprisonment and/or a fine up to $250,000. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is the lead agency.

Dominique Amoia McDowell, II. Robbery in Indian Country (Count One) and Brandishing a Firearm During and in Relation to a Crime of Violence (Count Two). McDowell, 19, of Tulsa, is charged in a two count Indictment with brandishing a pistol while robbing an Indian female of $600 in Indian Country. If convicted, Robbery in Indian Country carries a maximum penalty of fifteen (15) years in prison and/or a fine of $250,000. Brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence carries a statutory mandatory minimum penalty of seven (7) years imprisonment and/or a fine of $250,000. The Bureau of Indian Affairs-Office of Justice Services and the Osage Nation Police Department jointly investigated this matter. This matter is in Federal court because the alleged crime occurred in Indian Country within the Northern District of Oklahoma.

Michael Medlock. Bank Fraud and Money Laundering. Medlock, 57, of Tulsa, is charged with defrauding over $2,000,000 from ONB Bank & Trust Company between December 2007 and April 2011. As part of the scheme, Medlock, owner of Klutts Equipment, Inc., and Vincens Omnibus, LLC., diverted account receivable payments into personal accounts. If convicted, bank fraud carries a maximum penalty of thirty (30) years imprisonment and/or a fine of $1,000,000 on each count. The penalty for money laundering is not more than ten (10) years imprisonment and/or a fine of $250,000. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is the lead agency.

Jose De Jesus Salinas-Ramirez. Alien in the United States After Deportation. Salinas-Ramirez, 24, was arrested in Tulsa County and is charged with having returned to the United States unlawfully after being deported in July 2012 near Calexico, California. If convicted, the maximum penalty would be twenty (20) years imprisonment and/or a fine up to $250,000.  The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is the lead agency.

Thomas Kevin Vaughn. Embezzlement of Mail Matter. Vaughn, 49, of Nowata, Oklahoma, a United States Postal Service employee, is charged with embezzling letters and mail matter on December 18, 2013. If convicted, Vaughn would face a maximum penalty of five (5) years imprisonment and/or a fine up to $250,000. The United States Postal Service-Office of the Inspector General is the lead agency.

Damien Dinchie Wardell. Sex Trafficking of a Child (Count One) and Sex Trafficking by Force, Fraud, and Coercion (Count Two). Wardell, 39, of Tulsa, is charged in a two count Indictment with crimes pertaining to the sex trafficking of a child by force, fraud, and coercion in November 2013. Sex Trafficking of a Child carries a statutory mandatory minimum penalty of ten (10) years imprisonment and/or a fine of $250,000. Sex Trafficking by Force, Fraud, and Coercion carries a statutory mandatory minimum of not less than fifteen (15) years imprisonment and/or a fine of $250,000. The Tulsa Police Department investigated this matter.

Terrance Cortez Whitfield. Sex Trafficking of a Child (Count One), Interstate Travel and Transportation in Aid of Racketeering Enterprises (Count Two), and Possession of Child Pornography (Count Three). Whitfield, 36, of Muskogee, is charged in a three count Indictment with sex trafficking of a child and possessing child pornography.  If convicted, Sex Trafficking of a Child carries a statutory mandatory minimum penalty of ten (10) years in imprisonment and/or a fine of $250,000. Interstate Travel and Transportation in Aid of Racketeering Enterprises carries a penalty of up to five (5) years imprisonment and/or a fine of $250,000. Possession of Child Pornography carries a maximum penalty of ten (10) years imprisonment and/or a fine of $250,000. The Tulsa Police Department investigated this matter.