Dana's Dispatch: Organized Retail Crime, Kalamazoo Pride, and more

[logo]( AG Nessel: 3 charged with fraudulent use of EBT cards totaling $4M Tuesday, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel held a press conference alongside members of the FORCE Team to give an update on the Organized Retail Crime Unit’s first large-scale investigation. Video courtesy of WILX News 10 The multi-agency investigation led to three people being charged with fraudulently using EBT cards at Sam’s Club locations in Metro Detroit. Travis Newby, 39 of Detroit, Derriun Williams, 23, of Detroit, and Vanessa Williams, 47, of Highland Park, were charged, but Nessel says she expects to name additional defendants as the investigation progresses. Search warrants were executed at eight Sam’s Club locations on May 24 in connection with the interstate food stamp fraud totaling $4 million. “To date, approximately $4 million worth of purchases have been linked to the fraudulent use of EBT cards at Detroit area Sam’s Club locations,” Nessel said. “This is the first of what we believe will be many to come large-scale criminal enterprises that will be brought to justice as a result of my ORC unit” The ORC is the first of its kind in the nation. Nessel says she anticipates other states will soon follow Michigan’s lead. “Organized Retail Crime isn’t just shoplifting. It’s a highly involved and orchestrated criminal enterprise that costs Michigan businesses and consumers millions of dollars each year,” said Nessel. “I’m incredibly proud that through our partnership with Walmart and many local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies we were able to identify and hold these bad actors accountable.” Michigan State Police assisted the task force in the investigation, MSP along with the AG Office’s newly established Organized Retail Crime Unit (ORC) makes up the FORCE Team. Walmart requested assistance from FORCE at the end of 2022. “Fraud is a problem impacting the retail industry, and it’s only through collaborative efforts like this with states, communities, and law enforcement that the issue can be addressed holistically,” said Claire Rushton, Senior Director of Walmart Global Investigations. “We will continue to work with the authorities in this ongoing criminal investigation.” [READ MORE]( WILX News 10 (May 30, 2023) AG Nessel: 3 charged with fraudulent use of EBT cards totaling $4M Retrieved from: [AG Nessel: 3 charged with fraudulent use of EBT cards totaling $4M](   Former Hartford police chief charged with 8 felonies, including extortion Former Hartford Police Chief Tressa Beltran, who is accused of selling prescription drugs from a drug collection box, turned herself into police custody Wednesday. Beltran is facing eight felony counts and one misdemeanor, which includes possession and delivery of a controlled substance, embezzlement, and larceny in a building, according to her felony warrant. “The majority of Michigan law enforcement officers perform their duties with integrity and with the knowledge that they are not above the law,” Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said. “Members of law enforcement are expected to follow the law and not use their positions for illegal purposes. The Public Integrity Unit of my office is committed to holding accountable officers who misuse the public’s trust and we will continue to investigate and prosecute such cases.” [READ MORE]( Allie Jennerjahn, News Channel 3 (May 31, 2023) Former Hartford police chief charged with 8 felonies, including extortion Retrieved from: [Former Hartford police chief charged with 8 felonies, including extortion](   Michigan must expose political dark money’s ‘corrosive’ influence, AG Nessel says Attorney General Dana Nessel told MLive in an interview she’d like the legislature to require dark money accounts, widely used by politicians in Michigan, to fully disclose their sources of fundraising and spending. Image courtesy of MLive “It’s my profound hope they are able to make some progress, because we’ll never change anything in Lansing, and frankly, the people of our state have every right to be concerned that their state government doesn’t truly represent them until we make some of these changes,” Nessel said. Nessel was prompted to explore the issue in part by her department’s investigation into former House speaker Lee Chatfield, who left office in 2020. He’s the subject of a wide-ranging probe that has encompassed allegations of sexual assault, embezzlement, bribery and campaign finance violations. A Nessel spokesperson said they intend to conclude that investigation, which began in early 2022, by the end of the year. “I came into this job thinking that the influence of dark money was substantial and corrosive to government,” Nessel told MLive in an interview. “My opinion of that now is perhaps ten-fold of what it was when I came into office.” [READ MORE]( Simon Schuster, MLive (May 31, 2023) Michigan must expose political dark money’s ‘corrosive’ influence, AG Nessel says Retrieved from: [Michigan must expose political dark money’s ‘corrosive’ influence, AG Nessel says](   AG: SAKI ‘gold standard’ in cracking rape cold cases Attorney General Dana Nessel was in Kalamazoo Friday, meeting with the local prosecutor’s office and advocates for sexual assault survivors to discuss an ongoing initiative focused on cracking cold cases. Video courtesy of WOOD The Sexual Assault Kit Initiative, or SAKI, was formed in 2017 as a collaboration between the two offices and the YWCA of Kalamazoo. Nessel called SAKI the gold standard. In the last six years, the Kalamazoo SAKI team has produced 17 convictions with 10 cases awaiting trial. This amounts to more than 10% of its 225 total cold case sexual assault investigations, some of which date back as far as 1976. Nessel said these kinds of cases are the “hardest of any kind to solve and prosecute.” “You’re changing lives. You’re improving people’s lives,” Nessel said. “There are all kinds of people out there that are walking around on the streets of Kalamazoo and all over the state of Michigan, who are living normal lives because they never become a crime victim in the first place because of the work that you guys have done.” [READ MORE]( David Horak, WOOD (June 2, 2023) AG: SAKI ‘gold standard’ in cracking rape cold cases Retrieved from: [AG: SAKI ‘gold standard’ in cracking rape cold cases](   Sturgis man sentenced for murder, mutilation, sexual assault A Sturgis man will spend decades in prison for killing and mutilating his girlfriend, then sexually assaulting a fellow inmate once in custody, according to Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel. Allen’s sentencing includes restitution for the victim’s burial expenses, recovery of court costs of prosecution, associated fines and lifetime registration with the state’s sex offender registry. Sturgis police officers arrested Allen on May 22, 2019, after getting a tip about the murder and dismemberment of Allen’s girlfriend. When they searched Allen’s apartment, investigators say they found the mutilated remains of his girlfriend being stored in two coolers. “I am grateful to the Sturgis Department of Public Safety, St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department and the St. Joseph County Prosecutor’s Office who spent countless hours on this case,” Nessel said at the time of Allen’s plea acceptance. “No sentence will be enough to overcome the grief of the victim’s family, or the anguish suffered by the victims, but hopefully today’s plea will allow the healing process to begin.” [READ MORE]( Megan Viecelli, Fox 17 (June 2, 2023) Sturgis man sentenced for murder, mutilation, sexual assault Retrieved from: [Sturgis man sentenced for murder, mutilation, sexual assault](   DeWitt man charged with embezzlement, filing false tax returns in an alleged elder abuse scheme Peter Counseller, 56, of DeWitt, has been charged with one count of embezzlement by an agent in excess of $100,000, one count of embezzlement from a vulnerable adult in excess of $100,000, and two counts of filing false tax returns for an alleged elder abuse scheme. The 56-year-old man is alleged to have stolen tens of thousands across the years 2020 and 2021 from a 90-year-old legally blind woman. Counseller allegedly used her money to pay his mortgage, take vacations, and pay other personal expenses. Officials say he failed to report the income on his Michigan income tax returns. “Financial exploitation of vulnerable adults in our state is not only a serious crime with substantial felony penalties but also an assault on the wellbeing and security of elderly Michigan residents,” said Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel. “My office puts a high priority on defending Michigan’s seniors from being victimized by thieves and fraudsters, and we will continue to hold the perpetrators of elder abuse accountable.” [READ MORE]( Brandon Carr, WDIV (June 2, 2023) DeWitt man charged with embezzlement, filing false tax returns in an alleged elder abuse scheme Retrieved from: [DeWitt man charged with embezzlement, filing false tax returns in an alleged elder abuse scheme](   Michigan will be the ‘anti-Florida,’ state leaders say, kicking off Kalamazoo Pride Michigan is a place that is welcoming to everyone, Attorney General Dana Nessel said in Kalamazoo on Friday morning, kicking off the Kalamazoo Pride festival. Video courtesy of MLive “One of the things that I’m going to do this year – especially in light of the threats and the dangerous violent diatribes against the LGBTQ community – is, I’m going to do everything I can to be supportive, and that means hitting every pride (festival) in the state,” Nessel said. Nessel said she spent her career in courts, fighting for equal rights and protections for LGBTQ people before there were laws to protect them. Michigan recently expanded the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act to protect against discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity and expression. Hate crime law in Michigan could also expand to include sexual orientation and gender identity, and Nessel will testify before the Michigan Senate about it on Tuesday, June 6. Expanding the hate crime law is important because violent actions against LGBTQ people typically start as property crimes or minor assaults before escalating, Nessel said. If those more minor crimes are prosecuted, it can get people into anger management or substance abuse treatment or other helpful programs, she said. [READ MORE]( Marie Weidmayer, MLive (June 2, 2023) Michigan will be the ‘anti-Florida,’ state leaders say, kicking off Kalamazoo Pride Retrieved from: [Michigan will be the ‘anti-Florida,’ state leaders say, kicking off Kalamazoo Pride](   KEEP IN TOUCH WITH DANA: [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( [Web Site]( Any donor history information in this email reflects what we have on file for this specific email address. If you have donated with a different email address, with a check, or with a spouse – thank you so much. We have that on file and cannot thank you enough for your support. Paid for by Friends of Dana Nessel Friends of Dana Nessel P.O. Box 11141 Lansing, MI 48901 United States If you believe you received this message in error or wish to no longer receive email from us, please [unsubscribe](.