NDTX Weekly Roundup -- 2/8/19

SENTENCING – Bradley Matocha
On Feb. 8, Bradley James Matocha, II, was sentenced to more than 13 years in prison, followed by a 20-year term of supervised release, after pleading guilty to attempted enticement of a minor.  Matocha, 32, of Plano, responded to an ad in which a father stated he had a daughter who needed to “learn the ropes.” Matocha chatted with both the father and the daughter, offering to meet them and have sex with the minor.  With the meeting scheduled for June 26, 2018, Matocha suggested that he and the father first meet at a Jack-in-the-Box in Fort Worth and from there go back to their house where he would have sex with the daughter. When Matocha arrived at the Jack-in-the-Box, however, he was arrested by Fort Worth police, who had engaged in an undercover online operation to ferret out sexual predators.

SENTENCING – Paul Morris
On Feb. 8, Paul David Morris of Irving, TX was sentenced to 20 years in prison on drug charges. Mr. Morris pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine in March. The Texas Department of Public Safety investigated the case.

SENTENCING – Alvin Penn
On Feb. 5, Alvin Christopher Penn was sentenced to 14 years in prison for escape from federal custody and unlawful possession of a firearm. In July, a jury found Mr. Penn guilty of escaping from a residential reentry center in Hutchins, Texas. According to evidence presented at trial, shortly after he escaped from the halfway house, Mr. Penn took possession of a Smith & Wesson pistol and engaged in a gunfight with two men at an apartment complex in Grand Prairie. Shortly thereafter, he fled from police, driving 70 mph in a residential neighborhood, and ultimately crashed into another apartment building. Brandishing the gun at bystanders, he then fled on foot, and was subsequently apprehended by a U.S. Marshals and Grand Prairie Police officers.

INDICTMENT* -- Modesto Balderas
On Feb. 5, a federal grand jury indicted Modesto Balderas on a firearm charge. Mr. Balderas, a convicted felon, allegedly possessed a Ruger 9 mm pistol with an obliterated serial number. If convicted, Mr. Balderas faces up to 10 years in federal prison. 

SENTENCING – Jose Velasquez
On Feb. 4, Jose DeJesus Velasquez was sentenced to more than a year in prison for conspiracy to defraud the United States. Mr. Vasquez, a commercial tax preparer, admits he allowed employees to file tax returns claiming education credits regardless of whether the taxpayer was entitled to those credits. The IRS - Criminal Investigation Division conducted the investigation.  

* An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.