Over 1,100 Sexual Predators Arrested During U.S. Marshals "Operation Falcon II"

Phoenix, Ariz. Just one year after the United States Marshals Service (USMS) announced the apprehension of more than 10,000 violent fugitives as part of Operation FALCON (Federal And Local Cops Organized Nationally), the USMS has done it again. Earlier today, U.S. Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales and Marshals Service Director John F. Clark revealed that more than 9,000 fugitives, including 1,102 fugitives wanted for committing felony sex offenses, violent sexual assaults, and failure to register as sex offenders, had been arrested during Operation FALCON II, which took place from April 17 to April 23. More than 240 fugitives were arrested in the Phoenix local area. Over the course of the seven-day operation, Deputy United States Marshals, in cooperation with hundreds of federal, state, and local law enforcement partners in 27 states, primarily west of the Mississippi, and the territories of Guam and Northern Mariana Islands arrested more than 9,000 violent fugitives. Here in the Valley, one of those fugitives was David Ramirez Jr, who was wanted by Maricopa County for Probation Violation. Ramirez has been on lifetime probation since his 2003 conviction for Sexual Conduct Against a Minor. A team of Deputy U.S. Marshals from the District of Arizona and state and local law enforcement officers from the area arrested Ramirez in South Phoenix on April 21, 2006. Like the original FALCON, this operation was an enormous success, said David P. Gonzales, United States Marshal for the District of Arizona. The capture of Ramirez and the hundreds of others we have arrested across the country demonstrate the power of law enforcement when we partner up with our federal, state, and local counterparts. Like last year, Operation FALCON II coincided with the Department of Justices National Crime Victims Rights Week. In announcing the results of the fugitive initiative, Attorney General Gonzales praised the efforts of both the Marshals Service and the hundreds of participating agencies, noting that the significance of holding it during this week was that it allows the victims and their families to find some element of closure. Just as we recognize the survivors for their courage, we applaud all of the law enforcement officers for their dedication. In the District of Arizona, more than 240 fugitives were arrested. Eight fugitives whose original charges involved sexual offenses, were arrested for probation violations to include failure to register as sex offenders. Deputy Marshals and local task force officers also arrested 91 individuals wanted on narcotics charges, 56 for immigration offenses, and 5 for weapons violations. During the operation deputies seized, 6 guns, including one AK-47 assault rifle and several boxes of ammunition, over 1 pound of marijuana, various quantities of methamphetamine, and uncovered a meth lab. Director Clark reinforced the sentiments of both the Attorney General and Marshal Gonzales. It is fitting that the theme of this years National Crime Victims Rights Week is ˜Strength in Unity, stated the Director. Operation FALCON II does justice to this theme by honoring the victims and their families who have suffered indignities at the hands of violent criminals. The force multiplier effect of the Marshals Service working together with thousands of our federal, state, and local partners has, once again, produced results that are unmatched in law enforcement. Nationally, Deputy U.S. Marshals and their law enforcement partners arrested a total of 9,037 fugitives, and cleared more than 10,419 felony warrants during the seven-day operation. Task force members arrested 462 fugitives wanted for a variety of violent sex offenses, 311 fugitives for other felony sex crimes, 783 unregistered sex offenders, 73 homicide arrests with 87 warrants cleared, and 163 documented gang members. They also cleared 2,941 drug cases, and seized 111 guns, more than $120,265.00 in cash, and more than 91 kilograms of narcotics. Fugitives whose cases were adopted by Operation FALCON II were wanted by the Marshals Service, other federal agencies, United States Attorneys, and courts at every level of government. Because the highest priority was given to sexual predators and unregistered convicted sex offenders, the USMS entered into a partnership with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, which provided high-profile cases and facilitated contacts with state agencies that maintain sex offender registries. The USMS also worked closely with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to ensure maximum support for cases involving narcotics and weapons. Robert J. Finan II, the Marshals Services Assistant Director for Investigative Services, expressed his deep appreciation to officers from every agency that participated in Operation FALCON. I applaud the achievements of every Deputy Marshal, police officer, detective, trooper, investigator, deputy sheriff, and special agent who hit the street virtually around-the-clock for seven days, said Finan. To many of these men and women, they were just doing their jobs. But for the communities across the country that benefited from this operation, ˜just doing their jobs made a world of difference. United States Marshals Service ¢ 462 violent sex crime arrests ¢ 311 other sex crime arrests ¢ 783 unregistered sex offenders arrested ¢ 111 guns seized ¢ 139 drug seizures, in which more than 91 kilograms of narcotics were confiscated ¢ $120,265.00 in cash seized ¢ 14 vehicles seized ¢ 163 documented gang members arrested ¢ 87 homicide warrants cleared ¢ 2,941 narcotics/OCDETF cases cleared ARREST HIGHLIGHTS ARIZONA JOHHNY LEE JOHNSON: On April 17, 2006, Johnny Lee Johnson was arrested in Phoenix, on a Maricopa County felony probation violation warrant. Johnson has an extensive criminal history including; aggravated assault with deadly weapon, aggravated assault on a minor, and cruelty to children. LUIS LOPEZ: On April 18, 2006, Luis Lopez was arrested at his house in Phoenix, for probation violation; original charge was theft. He was arrested in bed with his girlfriend next to him. Next to his bed was a loaded AK-47 Assault Rifle with two fully loaded magazines. The weapon was seized, and Lopez will face additional federal firearms charges. His criminal history includes arrests for assault, burglary, theft of means of transportation, making threats, and damage to property. JARED DANIEL LOSEY: U.S. Marshals arrested Jared Losey, 23, Saturday, April 22, 2006, on West Miracle Mile in Tucson on a federal warrant for a Violation of Pretrial Release (original charge: Smuggling Aliens). Upon his arrest investigators suspected the van Losey was driving contained a mobile methamphetamine lab. U.S. Marshals and Tucson Police immediately secured the scene and requested assistance from the Counter Narcotics Alliance. Once on the scene, officers of the Counter Narcotics Alliance evacuated the surrounding area and obtained a search warrant for the van. The subsequent search revealed an operating methamphetamine lab containing various dangerous precursor chemicals used in the manufacture of methamphetamine. Additionally, LOSEY was in the possession of two (2) debit cards belonging to other individuals which were seized and turned over to Tucson Police for investigation. Losey was booked on the federal warrant and may face state charges in connection with the mobile methamphetamine lab and possession of the debit cards. THE FOLLOWING AGENCIES PARTICIPATED IN OPERATION FALCON II IN ARIZONA Arizona Department of Public Safety (DPS) Arizona Department of Corrections Arizona State Parole Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Bureau of Indian Affairs Chandler Police Department Coconino County Probation Coconino County Sheriffs Office Counter Narcotics Alliance (CNA) Colorado River Indian Tribal Police Department (CRIT) Douglas Police Department Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Flagstaff Police Department Gang Intelligence Team Enforcement Mission (GITEM) HAZMAT Response Team HIDTA/SW Border Alliance Housing and Urban Development-Office of Inspector General (HUD-OIG) Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Immigration and Naturalization Service- Deportations Lake Havasu Police Department La Paz County Sheriffs Department Maricopa County Adult Probation Maricopa County Sheriffs Office Mesa Police Department Navajo Department of Criminal Investigation Navajo Reservation Bilkon Tribal Police Northern Arizona Narcotics Task Force-Metro Oro Valley Police Department Parker Police Department Pima County Adult Probation Pima County Sheriffs Department Santa Cruz County Sheriffs Department Tohono O Odam Police Department Tucson Police Department United States Army CID-Ft. Huachuca United States Customs and Border Protection United States Postal Service-Inspections United States Probation Office District of Arizona United States Border Patrol (USBP) United States Marshals Service Veterans Administration-OIG Yuma County Adult Probation The "FALCON 15" represent the a sample of the worse of the worse offenders captured during the operation. Reginald DOZIER - At 12:01 a.m. (CST), April 17, 2006, Reginald Dozier was arrested in Belleville, IL by deputy U.S. marshals from the Southern District of Illinois and troopers from the Illinois State Police. A warrant in Missouri charged Dozier, a convicted sex offender, with Failure to Register as a Sex Offender. Herbert DAMWIJK - On April 17, 2006 Herbert Damwijk was arrested in Hauula, Oahu, Hawaii by investigators from the District of Hawaii participating in Operation FALCON II. The Snohomish County (WA) Sheriffs Department, on a warrant dated January 11, 2005, sought Damwijk for two counts each of Child Rape and Child Molestation. Joseph Albert HODGSON - On April 17, 2006 Joseph Hodgson was arrested in Tulsa, OK by a team of FALCON II deputy US marshals from the Northern District of Oklahoma. Authorities sought Hodgson for Failure to Register as a Sex Offender, as well as for Probation Revocation. Demarcus JONES - On April 17, 2006 Demarcus Jones was arrested in Dallas, TX by Northern District of Texas investigators assigned to Operation FALCON II. Authorities in Dallas wanted Jones for Sexual Assault of a Child, as well as for Forced Prostitution. Darwin PARSONS - On April 17, 2006 Darwin Parsons was arrested in Las Vegas, NV by investigators from the District of Nevada assigned to Operation FALCON II. Authorities in Nevada wanted Parsons for forty (40) counts of Sexual Assault, as well as for ten (10) counts of Incest. Clifford CASH - On April 18, 2006 Clifford Cash, a documented member of the Gangster Disciple street gang, was arrested in Chicago, IL by investigators from the Northern District of Illinois committed to Operation FALCON II. Authorities wanted Cash for Parole Violation, in that he failed to register as a Sexual Predator. Elias FLORES-MARTINEZ - On April 18, 2006 Mexican citizen Elias Flores-Martinez was arrested on a Provisional Arrest Warrant (PAW) with a view towards extradition in Ticuman, Morelos, Mexico by agents from a specialized unit of the Agencia Federal de Investigacion (AFI) based out of Mexico City. The PAW related to an outstanding warrant in San Bernardino County (CA) charging Flores-Martinez with Kidnapping and Child Stealing. Primo MONTES - On April 18, 2006 Primo Montes was arrested in Escondido, CA by investigators from the Southern District of California participating in Operation FALCON II. Escondido authorities wanted Montes for the 1996 sexual molestation / rape of a minor, as well as for Failure to Appear. Mark Allen HAYWARD - On April 20, 2006 the cooperative efforts of FALCON II investigators in the Districts of Colorado, Eastern Missouri, and Maryland resulted in the arrest of Mark Allen Hayward in Baltimore, MD. The Douglas County (CO) Sheriffs Office wanted Hayward for kidnapping, sexual assault, and robbery. Josh KRAMP - On April 20, 2006 Josh Kramp was arrested in Hamilton County (IN) by investigators from the Southern District of Indiana assigned to Operation FALCON II. The Hamilton County Sheriffs Department wanted Kramp for five (5) counts of Felony Child Molestation. Antione SALLAY - On April 20, 2006 Antoine Sallay was arrested on a charge of parole violation in Chicago, IL by FALCON II investigators from the Northern District of Illinois. Sallays original conviction was for the Criminal Sexual Assault of a Child Under the Age of Thirteen (13). Carlos BERMUDEZ - On April 21, 2006 Carlos Bermudez was arrested in Houston, TX by FALCON II investigators from the Southern District of Texas pursuing a collateral lead provided by the United States Marshals Service District of Nevada. Authorities in Las Vegas, NV wanted Bermudez for ten (10) counts of Sexual Assault on a Minor Under Fourteen (14), as well as ten (10) counts of Lewdness with a Child Under Fourteen (14). Salvador HERRERA - On April 21, 2006 resident alien Salvador Herrera was arrested in Madison, WI by investigators from the Western District of Wisconsin assigned to Operation FALCON II. Authorities in Dane County (WI) wanted Herrera for failing to appear to face charges of First Degree Sexual Assault of a Child. William WISHAM - In April 1979, William Wisham pled guilty to charges of Crimes Against Children / Lewd and Lascivious Acts. Upon release from the California State Hospital in February 1991, California law required Wisham to register as a sex offender. On April 21 2006 investigators from the Central District of California assigned to Operation FALCON II encountered Wisham at a motel in Victorville, CA. Timothy GOINS - On April 22, 2006 Timothy Goins was arrested in Baton Rouge, LA by FALCON II investigators from the Middle District of Louisiana. Authorities in Las Vegas, NV wanted Goins for Sexual Assault of a Child Under Fourteen (14).