U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Washington

Fruit Juice Manufacturing Company and its Former President Plead Guilty to Food Safety Crimes “Bliesner and her company, Valley Processing, produced juice in filthy and unsafe conditions, mis-labeled that product, and then sold it to the National School Lunch Program that serves low-income school children,” said U.S. Attorney Vanessa Waldref for the Eastern District of Washington. “School children deserve safe and nutritious food. Nothing is more important that the health and safety of our children. I commend the excellent work by investigators with the Food and Drug Administration and prosecutors in my office who uncovered and stopped this conduct and are protecting our public health.” Details: https://lnkd.in/g62YfxzE

United States Attorney Vanessa Waldref announced that a jury returned a verdict in the trial of Tony J. Bolen, age 43, and Casey Allen Greer, age 47. Bolen and Greer were found guilty of charges related to producing and distributing child sexual abuse material. This case was investigated jointly by Homeland Security Investigations, the Washington State Patrol, and Spokane Police Department, as part of the WA Internet Crimes Against Children Taskforce. Read more: https://lnkd.in/ggQWGUX9

United States Attorney Vanessa Waldref announced Shannon Ray Ault, age 38, of Spokane Valley, Washington, was sentenced to 10 years in prison on drug distribution charges. Read more: https://lnkd.in/gpmgrVvA

Vanessa Waldref, the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, announced today that Pavel Ivanovich Turlak, and his Spokane-based trucking companies; PT Express, LLC, Spokane Truck Service, LLC, and Pauls Trans, LLC pleaded guilty to conspiring to illegally violate Clean Air Act emissions controls and to fraudulently obtaining hundreds of thousands of dollars in COVID-19 relief funding. Details: https://lnkd.in/g7q6QwZf

Assistant United States Attorney Laurel Holland Named Homeland Security Investigations Prosecutor of the Year for Eastern Washington “Assistant United States Attorney Laurel Holland is tireless in her pursuit of justice on behalf of the young and most vulnerable among us. She approaches each case with compassion for the victim and is dedicated to holding offenders accountable,” stated U.S. Attorney Vanessa Waldref. “Her skill expands beyond her advocacy. AUSA Holland spends considerable time training and mentoring law enforcement and prosecutors. I am proud to count AUSA Holland as a member of our office and offer my sincere congratulations for this well-deserved honor.” Read more: https://lnkd.in/dFbQtzsp

The Justice Department announced today an agreement with Ellensburg School District to resolve the department’s investigation into allegations that students were harassed and discriminated against based on sex, race, color and national origin. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/g-ihUVfA Vanessa Waldref

United States Attorney Vanessa Waldref announced that a jury returned a verdict in the trial of Trevor J. Lunney. Lunney was found guilty of making threats to kill his lawyer, his prosecutor, and members of the public. Read more: https://lnkd.in/gwxyuBRA

U.S. Attorney Vanessa Waldref announced Michael Joseph McElhiney was sentenced to 41 months in federal prison in connection to cryptocurrency scheme where he defrauded investors of hundreds of thousands of dollars. This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Spokane Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dan Fruchter. Read more: https://lnkd.in/gAA2tZTD

🌟 NOW HIRING 🌟 The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Washington is recruiting exceptional applicants to fill ONE vacancy for a Special Assistant United States Attorney (SAUSA) City of Spokane. The selected SAUSA will work in the United States Attorney's Office and City of Spokane Prosecutors Office in Spokane. This position will be assigned a variety of narcotics and other drug related criminal cases. The attorney will be embedded full time within the U.S. Attorney’s Office. 💻 Read more: https://lnkd.in/g9SyyJ3X

United States Attorney Vanessa Waldref announced that Tyler Keith Andrews was sentenced to more than 16 years in federal prison for a scheme to obtain more than $16 million in COVID-19 relief funds. This case was investigated by the Eastern District of Washington COVID-19 Fraud Strike Force, the FBI, the U.S. Small Business Administration, and Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA). Read more: https://lnkd.in/gr6eBYuH