Georgia Man Sentenced to Life in Prison for Child Sex Abuse Offenses

Dwain D. Williams, age 37, a resident of Pelham, Georgia, was sentenced today (January 28) before the Honorable W. Louis Sands, United States District Court Judge for the Middle District of Georgia, to life in prison for child sex abuse offenses, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division and United States Attorney Michael J. Moore of the Middle District of Georgia.

Williams was convicted on Aug. 19, 2010, by a federal jury in Valdosta, Georgia, of one count of traveling in foreign commerce and engaging in illicit sexual conduct, one count of aggravated sexual abuse and one count of abusive sexual contact of a child under 12 years of age. The aggravated sexual abuse and the abusive sexual contact charges were committed while Williams was accompanying a member of the Armed Forces outside of the United States in violation of the Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act (MEJA).

At trial, the female victim testified that Williams had repeatedly raped her starting from when she was nine years old until she was 13.

“The law, not to mention human decency, demands that we protect innocent children, whether they be here or abroad, from predators like Mr. Williams”, said United States Attorney Moore.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Leah McEwen of the Middle District of Georgia and Trial Attorney Mi Yung Park of the Criminal Division’s CEOS. The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Office of Special Investigations for Moody Air Force.

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Former Archbold CEO Ken B. Beverly Convicted of All Six Counts Related to Medicaid Fraud

The United States Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia, Michael J. Moore, announced that on December 8, 2010, Ken B. Beverly was convicted after a seven-day jury trial of six felony offenses related to Medicaid fraud and obstruction of justice.

Moore said, “Mr. Beverly’s conduct is an example of extraordinary greed. He was willing to try and fraudulently obtain money from a public program specifically designed to guarantee that those who need medical care but can’t afford it have a way to receive treatment. With the crisis in our health care system, this type of fraud and abuse is simply reprehensible.”

The trial took place in the United States District Court in Valdosta, Georgia, the Honorable W. Louis Sands presiding. Defendant Beverly was formerly the CEO and president of Archbold Medical Center and Archbold Memorial Hospital, Thomasville, Georgia, and served in those positions for over 20 years. Beverly was convicted of all six counts of the indictment:

Count One: Conspiracy to Falsify Records - 18 U.S.C. § 1519 /i/c/w § 371
Counts Two and Three: Falsification of Records -18 U.S.C. § 1519
Counts Four and Five: Obstruction of Justice - Witness Tampering - 18 U.S.C. § 1512(b)(1)
Count Six: Misleading Statements - 18 U.S.C. § 1512(b)(3)

Counts One, Two and Three of the indictment charged Ken Beverly with participating in, and committing acts in furtherance of, a conspiracy to falsely portray Archbold Memorial Hospital as a public hospital, controlled and owned by a governmental authority, in order to qualify for additional Medicaid funds. In fact, Archbold Memorial Hospital is, and always has been, a private, not-for-profit hospital. Defendant Beverly conspired with former CFO William Sellers to create fictitious documents showing the City of Thomasville Hospital Authority owned and controlled Archbold Memorial Hospital. Beverly directed Sellers to send these fraudulent documents to the Georgia Department of Community Health in order for Archbold Memorial to receive funds as a public, rather than a private hospital. Federal Medicaid officials had requested proof of Archbold’s public status.

Counts Four and Five of the indictment charged Beverly with witness tampering by attempting to induce Sellers to remain silent about Beverly’s role in the conspiracy in exchange for Beverly’s efforts to protect Seller’s retirement benefits.

Count Six charged Beverly with making misleading statements in a civil deposition when questioned about the fraudulent documents.

Count One carries a maximum term of imprisonment of five years, a maximum fine of $250,000.00, and three years supervised released. Counts Two through Six each carry a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years, together with supervised release of three years, and a maximum fine of $250,000.00, per count.

Defendant Beverly remains released on bond pending sentencing, which is expected to take place in about sixty days at a time set by the court.

This case was prosecuted by the Assistant United States Attorney Jim Crane, together with Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent Steve McDermond.

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Carjacking and Firearms Conviction Results in 77-Year Prison Sentence

Michael J. Moore, United States Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia, announced that Albert Eugene Dunn, age 27, of Valdosta, Georgia, was sentenced by the Honorable W. Louis Sands, United States District Judge, on November 17, 2010, to 924 months (77 years) in federal prison without parole.

Dunn was charged in a seven-count indictment with three counts of carjacking and four counts of federal firearm violations arising from two separate home invasions. The jury trial concluded on May 10, 2010 with Dunn being convicted on all counts.

Evidence presented during the course of the trial revealed that Dunn, with the help of an accomplice, invaded the homes of college students while armed with and using firearms and knives. He demanded valuables and took vehicles belonging to the victims with the intent to cause death and serious bodily injury.

Judge Sands granted the government’s request to impose a harsher sentence than that normally provided for such cases by Federal Sentencing Guidelines, commenting that this sentence was appropriate to provide punishment and to protect the public from future crimes of the defendant.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation sponsored Multi Agency Task Force with Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office Investigator Tim Davis and Valdosta Police Department’s Sergeant Kari Williams. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Verda Colvin.

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Georgia Man Convicted of Child Sex Abuse Offenses

Dwain D. Williams was convicted Thursday by a federal jury in Valdosta, Ga., on child sex abuse offenses, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division and Acting U.S. Attorney G.F. Peterman III of the Middle District of Georgia.

Williams was convicted of one count of traveling in foreign commerce and engaging in illicit sexual conduct, one count of aggravated sexual abuse, and one count of abusive sexual contact of a child under 12 years of age. The aggravated sexual abuse and the abusive sexual contact charges were committed while Williams was accompanying a member of the Armed Forces outside of the United States in violation of the Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act (MEJA). Williams faces a possible mandatory minimum sentence of 30 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison for his conviction.

At trial, the female victim, currently 15 years old, testified that Williams had repeatedly raped her starting from when she was 9 years old until she was 13, when she lived in Okinawa, Japan.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

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Carjacking and Firearms Conviction

Albert Eugene Dunn, age 26 of Valdosta, Georgia, was found guilty on May 10,2010 after a five-day federal jury trial in Valdosta, Georgia. Dunn was convicted on three counts of carjacking and four counts of federal firearm violations which involved two separate home invasions.

The evidence introduced at trial showed that Dunn, with the help of an accomplice, invaded the homes of college students through the use of firearms and knives. He then demanded valuables and took vehicles belonging to the victims with the intent to cause death and serious bodily injury. In one instance, the jury found that the intended serious bodily injury included Dunn causing another person to engage in a sexual act by using force. The Honorable Louis Sands, U.S. District Judge, presided over the trial. Sentencing will be scheduled by the Court at a later date.

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