New York Paralegal Blog

A major victory for international justice! Hugo Armando Carvajal Barrios, the former director of Venezuela's military intelligence, has pleaded guilty to serious charges, including narco-terrorism and drug trafficking. This marks a significant step in holding accountable those who exploit their power for criminal gain and intentionally harm other nations. Carvajal Barrios, 65, was a high-ranking official in Venezuela, serving as the director of the Direccion de Inteligencia Militar (DIM), Venezuela's military intelligence agency, between 2004-2011 and again in 2013. However, instead of protecting his country, he allegedly used his position to lead and manage the "Cartel de Los Soles" (Cartel of the Suns). What is the "Cartel de Los Soles"? The "Cartel of the Suns" is a Venezuelan organization allegedly comprised of high-ranking members of the Venezuelan armed forces who are involved in international drug trafficking. The name comes from...

WASHINGTON—Khalid Ali-M Aldawsari, 20, a citizen of Saudi Arabia and resident of Lubbock, Texas, was arrested late yesterday by FBI agents in Texas on a federal charge of attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction in connection with his alleged purchase of chemicals and equipment necessary to make an improvised explosive device (IED) and his research of potential U.S. targets. The arrest and the criminal complaint, which was unsealed in the Northern District of Texas, were announced by David Kris, Assistant Attorney General for National Security; James T. Jacks, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas; and Robert E. Casey Jr., Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Dallas Field Division.

David B. Fein, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ALAN D. ZALESKI, 49, of Berlin, Connecticut, was sentenced today by Senior United States District Judge Ellen Bree Burns in New Haven to 101 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for illegally possessing machine guns and numerous other unregistered weapons, including a sawed-off shotgun, silencers, grenades, and improvised explosive devices (IEDs). On March 27, 2009, a jury found ZALESKI guilty of 28 counts related to the illegal possession of those firearms. “This defendant possessed an arsenal of illegal weapons, the size and scope of which Connecticut law enforcement has rarely, if ever, encountered,” stated U.S. Attorney Fein. “I want to commend the FBI, ATF, Connecticut State Police, and the police departments that investigated this matter, as well as an alert citizen who first notified law enforcement authorities to this potentially dangerous situation.”