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Alexandria-area man pleads guilty to stealing $1.5 million in PPP loans and unemployment benefits

Published November 3, 2023 at 2:00PM

The Albert V. Bryan United States Courthouse in Alexandria's Carlyle neighborhood (via Google Maps)

A 32-year-old man from the Groveton area of Fairfax County, just south of Alexandria, pleaded guilty yesterday to defrauding the government of more than $1.4 million in fraudulent pandemic-related PPP loans and unemployment benefits.

George Mensah, Jr., 32, admitted in federal court to wire and mail fraud by collecting fees with two unnamed conspirators through CashApp, Zelle and bank transfers, according to court records. The scheme ran from Oct. 2020 to Sept. 2021, during which time Mensah admitted to preparing dozens of fake PPP loans and unemployment insurance claims under the CARES Act.

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Alexandria woman sentenced 41 months in prison for wire fraud

By James Cullum

Published May 8, 2023 at 10:45AM | Updated May 9, 2023 at 12:32PM

Police car lights (file photo)

A 56-year-old Alexandria woman was sentenced to 41 months in prison for ordering more than $600,000 in cell phones through her former employer, the YMCA of Metropolitan Washington, and keeping the money.

The former office manager at YMCA-DC was sentenced Thursday, according to an announcement from the U.S. Department of Justice. According to court documents, she worked at YMCA-DC from 2007 until her termination in May 2019.

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JUST IN: Alexandrians react to Roe v. Wade being overturned by Supreme Court

By Vernon Miles

Published June 24, 2022 at 11:05AM

Supreme Court (file photo)

The U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade today (Friday) in a landmark decision that will effectively ban abortion in more than a dozen states.

While Virginia is not a state with any “trigger laws” that go into effect as a result of the decision, Alexandria has seen its share of back and forth over abortion. In March, the City Council withdrew a proclamation recognizing abortion providers, a decision some on the City Council said they later regretted. Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) has also expressed support for banning most abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy.

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Morning Notes

By James Cullum

Published May 24, 2021 at 5:00AM

Waiting in line for frozen custard outside The Dairy Godmother at 2310 Mount Vernon Avenue in Del Ray. (Staff photo by James Cullum)

Suit alleging admissions discrimination at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology moves forward — “More than 70 percent of the student body at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology is Asian American; Black and Hispanic students have been woefully underrepresented there for decades. At a hearing Friday in Alexandria, lawyers for the Fairfax County School Board urged a judge to toss out the lawsuit. They argue that the new admissions policies are race-neutral. But the judge ruled that the parents’ group made a compelling claim that the board’s true motivation was to increase Black and Hispanic representation at the expense of Asian Americans.” [WAVY.com]

Alexandria Symphony Orchestra extends contract for Maestro James Ross — “The Alexandria Symphony Orchestra (ASO) announced that Music Director James Ross received a contract extension through the 2023-24 season. Ross has been at the helm of ASO since 2018. He is the fifth music director in ASO’s 78-year history.” [Zebra]

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NEW: Man sentenced 41 months for targeting Alfred Street Baptist Church, journalists and others in ‘swatting’ conspiracy

By James Cullum

Published May 4, 2021 at 1:55PM

Alexandria Police lights (staff photo by James Cullum)

A 27-year-old Texas man was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison today for his role in calling in a bomb threat to Alfred Street Baptist Church, as well as other “swatting” incidents against a U.S. Cabinet member, journalists and Old Dominion University.

John Cameron Denton of Montgomery, Texas, a leader with the Atomwaffen Division neo-Nazi group, participated with three others in at least 134 swatting attacks around the country between October 2018 and February 2019. He pleaded guilty last year after being arrested in a sting operation to committing an offense against the United States and interstate threats to injure.

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Alexandria man pleads guilty to producing child pornography

By Vernon Miles

Published March 24, 2021 at 2:15PM

An Alexandria man has pleaded guilty to two counts of producing child pornography, according to the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia.

Abel Amcrocio, 54, was arrested last year, and after pleading guilty, is scheduled to be sentenced on August 4. Amcrocio faces a minimum penalty of 15 years in prison.

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Alexandria Pastor’s Wife Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering Scheme

By Vernon Miles

Published December 11, 2020 at 2:50PM

Federal courthouse (image via Google Maps)

An Alexandria woman pleaded guilty to money laundering as part of a scheme to defraud investors in a church-related investment business.

The fraud involved Brenda Millender and her husband, Pastor Terry Millender — leaders of the Victorious Life Church — soliciting themselves as leaders of a Christian organization brokering Nigerian oil sales. The pair were convicted in 2017.

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‘Beltway Bank Bandit’ Pleads Guilty to Brandishing Firearm During Alexandria Bank Robberies

By James Cullum

Published November 4, 2020 at 3:45PM

Alexandria Police lights (staff photo by James Cullum)

A 34-year-old Washington D.C. man labeled the Beltway Bank Bandit by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, pleaded guilty to three counts of brandishing a firearm during a series of bank and shoe store robberies in and around Alexandria in 2018 and 2019.

Freddie Lee McRae will be sentenced on February 23, 2021, and faces up to life in prison and a mandatory minimum of 21 years in prison. On November 13, 2018, McRrae robbed a Wells Fargo Bank in Alexandria, handed the teller a note and demanded money, indicated that he had a gun and said he would “kill all bankers” if his directions were not followed. He then pointed a handgun at two tellers and ran out of the bank with $8,750, according to prosecutors.

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ISIS ‘Beatles’ Held in Alexandria Jail, Charged with American Murders in Syria

By James Cullum

Published October 8, 2020 at 5:00PM | Updated October 8, 2020 at 5:41PM

The Alexandria Sheriff’s Office on Thursday confirmed that suspected ISIS terrorists Alexanda Amon Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh are being held in the city jail.

The former British citizens are accused of conspiring to kidnap and kill U.S. and western hostages between 2012 and 2015, including Americans Jim Foley, Steven Sotloff, Peter Kassig and Kayla Mueller. The British government reportedly allowed their extradition after the U.S. Justice Department agreed not to seek the death penalty.

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Alexandria Man Indicted for Providing Support to Somali Terrorist Organization

By Vernon Miles

Published May 27, 2020 at 10:15AM

A 34-year-old Alexandria taxi driver has been indicted for conspiring and attempting to provide material support to al-Shabaab, a militant group designated operating in Somalia and designated by the United States as a terrorist organization.

Alexandria resident Liban Haji Mohamed, 34, was charged Wednesday by a grand jury at the Alexandria Federal Courthouse.

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Just In: Alexandria Man Arrested for Allegedly Producing and Distributing Child Porn

By James Cullum

Published May 19, 2020 at 1:25PM

Police car lights (file photo)

A 53-year-old Alexandria man was arrested today on charges of producing and distributing child pornography, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.

Abel Ambrocio was arrested for allegedly instructing an adult woman on Facebook to send him more than 100 pictures of the woman sexually exploiting a three-year-old boy and an eight-year-old girl. He then allegedly sent the photos to another person, and the activities occurred over the course of several months, according to court documents.