May 18, 2013

       An unidentified male bank robber linked to at least ten robberies in the south bay area of Los Angeles County is suspected of robbing a Gardena bank inside a supermarket on Friday, May 17, 2013, a branch he’s suspected of robbing three previous times since 2011. U.S. Bank is offering a reward of up to $10,000 in exchange for information provided to law enforcement that leads to the arrest and conviction of the suspect responsible for these robberies.

       The FBI and local law enforcement officers in Los Angeles County are seeking information leading to the suspect’s identity. The robber is known as the “Make it Quick” Bandit, based on the instructions he has given to victim tellers while demanding cash.

       During the robbery at a U.S. Bank located inside a Vons supermarket, the suspect presented a demand note and, according to the victim teller, apologized as he took the cash. During his robberies, the suspect has been seen in bank surveillance photos wearing sunglasses and has indicated to victim tellers that one or more people were waiting outside of the bank. The suspect has targeted banks inside grocery stores and witnesses have advised investigators that he usually spends time wandering the aisles of the grocery store prior to committing the robbery.

       The Make It Quick Bandit is further described as Hispanic with dark hair, possibly thinning on top, with a goatee; 5’10” - 6’01,” 200–230 lbs. and between 25 -35 years of age.

The Make It Quick Bandit has been linked to the following robberies:

1/4/2009 U.S. Bank 1221 S. Gaffey San Pedro

6/25/2011 U.S. Bank 1221 S. Gaffey San Pedro

9/21/2011 U.S. Bank 500 E. Manchester Inglewood

10/26/2011 U.S. Bank 200 E. Sepulveda Carson

11/13/2011 U.S. Bank 500 E. Manchester Inglewood

12/21/2011 U.S. Bank 1260 W. Redondo Beach Gardena

6/30/2012 U.S. Bank 1260 W. Redondo Beach Gardena

7/14/2012 U.S. Bank 1770 W. Carson Torrance

8/24/12 U.S. Bank 1260 W. Redondo Beach Gardena

5/17/13 U.S. Bank 1260 W. Redondo Beach Gardena

       Anyone with information about the identity or whereabouts of the suspect is urged to contact their nearest FBI office or dial 911.

Bank surveillance photographs of the “Make It Quick” Bandit are being provided. Additional information about bank robbers currently wanted by the FBI’s Los Angeles Division can be found at www.labankrobbers.org.

       This investigation is being conducted by detectives and officers with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department; Gardena Police Department; Inglewood Police Department; Torrance Police Department; and agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

April 12, 2013

      A Los Angeles man and member of a criminal street gang that used violence and intimidation in an attempt to control the Pueblo del Rio Housing Projects in South Los Angeles, was sentenced to more than 15 years in federal prison, announced André Birotte Jr, the United States Attorney in Los Angeles, and Bill Lewis, the Assistant Director in Charge of FBI in Los Angeles.

      Jermaine Hardiman, aka “Lil Jay Killa,” 32, who was also a local rapper whose songs boasted of his prolific gang exploits, was sentenced Monday afternoon,  April 8, 2013, by United States District Judge, S. James Otero. In addition to the prison term, Judge Otero ordered Hardiman to serve ten years of supervised release.

      Hardiman was convicted in July 2012 during the first of two trials involving defendants identified as members of the Pueblo Bishop Bloods street gang. Hardiman was convicted on all counts of an indictment that charged federal racketeering (RICO), conspiring to distribute cocaine, crack cocaine and heroin, and drug trafficking within a public housing project and near schools and parks.

      During the trial, the government produced evidence against Hardiman that demonstrated his gang membership and leadership over the “YGs” or “young gangsters,” as well as Hardiman’s significant drug trafficking, firearms trafficking and armed robberies, including a formerly unsolved bank robbery from 2004.

      During the sentencing hearing, Hardiman read aloud a letter he addressed to Judge Otero and claimed that he intended to renounce his membership in the gang, and even remove all of his gang tattoos that covered his chest and back.

      Judge Otero commented that in light of recent tragic gun crimes, offenders like Hardiman demanded “a severe sentence” to deter future gun violence. The Judge also told Hardiman that but for his disavowal of the Pueblo Bishops, Hardiman would have received an even longer sentence.

Hardiman was one of three defendants found guilty following a five-week trial in United States District Court last summer, when a jury convicted the three defendants of being members of a criminal enterprise that engaged in narcotics and firearms trafficking, murder, witness intimidation and armed robbery as part of the gang’s efforts to control and terrorize the housing projects.

      Hardiman’s co-defendants, Gary White, also known as “Big J-Killa,” was sentenced on December 4, 2012 to 14 years in federal prison, and Anthony Gabourel, also known as “Bandit,” was sentenced on March 25, 2013 to 40 years in federal prison.

      As a result of the federal investigation into the Pueblo Bishop Bloods, a total of 45 defendants were charged in federal indictments. Prosecutors have secured convictions for 40 of those defendants. Two defendants are in state custody, and two are fugitives. Prosecutors dismissed charges against one defendant. The forty-fifth defendant, Rondale Young, who is charged with conspiring with Gabourel in the murder of Cornelio, is scheduled to be tried before Judge Otero on November 5, 2013. (see initial announcement in this case at: http://www.justice.gov/usao/cac/Pressroom/pr2010/122.html

See related press announcements:

http://www.justice.gov/usao/cac/Pressroom/2012/046.html).

http://www.justice.gov/usao/cac/Pressroom/2012/094.html

http://www.justice.gov/usao/cac/Pressroom/2013/042.html

April 20, 2013                                                                                                                                                             
      Santa Ana - An Orange County man has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges alleging he defrauded dozens of victims in separate schemes that promised large returns on investments in the medical field, announced Bill Lewis, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office and André Birotte Jr., the United States Attorney in Los Angeles.
       David Rose, 56, of Coto de Caza, was charged in an indictment filed Wednesday afternoon in United States District Court in Santa Ana with multiple counts of mail and wire fraud.
The indictment outlines two schemes Rose allegedly operated beginning in or about March 2005 to the present. During this time, Rose owned and operated companies in Irvine, California, including M.D. Venture Partners, LP (MDVP), and Technology Innovation Partners, LP (TIP).
      The indictment alleges that beginning in at least March 2005 and continuing through May 2011, Rose solicited physicians to invest in MDVP and falsely represented lucrative investment opportunities in emerging medical technologies. The defendant is alleged to have prepared a “private placement memorandum” that described MDVP and set forth how investor funds would be used. The agreement stated that a 2.5% management fee would be paid to the defendant.
      In promotional materials and in conversations and e-mails with prospective investors, the defendant claimed that investor money would be pooled and used to invest in companies developing new medical technology, according to the indictment. In fact, investor funds were not used in the manner set forth in the memorandum signed by investors; instead, the defendant used investor funds for personal expenses, including $7,500 a month to rent a house in Coto de Caza; tuition and other college fees for his children; $65,000 for vehicles used by himself and his family; jewelry; attorney fees and other expenses. The investigation revealed that no money was ever invested in companies developing new medical technology. In the MDVP scheme, the defendant caused approximately 32 victims to lose more than $800,000, according to the indictment.
      The indictment further alleges that in a subsequent scheme, the defendant solicited dentists and orthodontists to invest money in TIP, claiming the money would be pooled and invested in a company developing ablation technology for the removal of wisdom teeth in children without surgery. The indictment alleges the defendant prepared a private offering memorandum describing TIP and how investor funds would be used. The agreement stated that a 10% management fee would be paid to the defendant. The investigation revealed that the victims’ funds were not used for investments but, instead, for the defendant’s personal expenses, including $5,000 a month to rent a house in Coto de Caza; tuition and other college fees for his children; $80,000 for a Sea Ray boat; $40,000 for a GMC Acadia; a stock offering in the Green Bay Packers; and other personal expenses. No money was ever invested in a company developing ablation technology. The indictment alleges that the defendant caused approximately 45 victims to lose more than $1 million in the TIP scheme.
      On Monday, FBI agents executed warrants and seized multiple bank accounts, vehicles and the above-mentioned boat purchased by Rose with the proceeds of the alleged schemes.
A federal warrant for Rose’s arrest is outstanding.
This case is a continuing investigation by the FBI. Rose is being prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office in Orange County.