News

The Justice Department today announced the seizure of a web domain and database used in furtherance of a scheme to target and defraud Americans through bank account takeover fraud. The domain, web3adspanels.org, was used by those involved in the scheme as a backend web panel to store and manipulate illegally harvested bank login credentials. This domain seizure comes approximately one month after the FBI issued a Public Service Announcement relating to Account Takeover Fraud via Impersonation of Financial Institution Support.

Matthew Neet has been arraigned on federal charges of wire fraud after allegedly scamming real estate investors and college football fans seeking tickets for University of Georgia (“UGA”) games.

Johann Rainer Nix has been sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for production of child sexual abuse material. Nix used social media platforms to entice minors to send him sexually explicit images of themselves.

David Bradford, the former Chief Operating Officer of the Georgia-based financial advisory group Drive Planning LLC (“Drive Planning”), pleaded guilty yesterday to conspiracy to commit wire fraud arising from a multi-year Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors out of millions of dollars.

Former correctional officer Jabin Bethea has pleaded guilty to depriving a pretrial detainee at the Clayton County Jail of his civil rights by tasing him multiple times without justification. 

Norman Dixson has been arraigned on federal charges of sponsoring and exhibiting a dog in an animal fighting venture, promoting an animal fighting venture, animal crushing, and wire fraud. 

GAINESVILLE, Ga. – Former Athens-Clarke County Police Officer Amber Nicole Ferguson has been indicted on charges of production and attempted production of child sexual abuse material, possession of child sexual abuse material involving a minor under the age of 12, and production of obscene material. 

Mitchell Parsons Hughes has pleaded guilty to committing a federal crime by flying a drone over Truist Park during the Major League Baseball All-Star game in July 2025 and was sentenced to six months’ probation.  

Sharon Henderson, a member of the Georgia House of Representatives, was arrested today and should appear in court this afternoon after a federal grand jury charged her with two counts of theft of government funds and ten counts of making false statements.

Gerardo Solorio-Alvarado, an illegal alien from Mexico who previously served time in federal prison, and Nelson Enrique Sorto face federal drug charges related to a recent seizure of a combined 1,585 pounds of methamphetamine concealed in blackberry shipments at locations in Southeast Atlanta and Gainesville, Georgia. 

Following a six-week trial, Jared Wheat and his dietary supplement company, Hi-Tech Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (“Hi-Tech”), were convicted by a federal jury of wire fraud after fabricating documents to deceive customers into believing that the company was certified as compliant with industry manufacturing standards. Hi-Tech, which is headquartered in Norcross, Georgia, was also convicted for laundering millions of dollars in proceeds from the fraudulent scheme.