EFTA00147473.pdf

From: "Bulletin Intelligence" <[email protected]> To: "[email protected]" <[email protected]> Subject: FBI Public Affairs News Briefing Tuesday, July 09, 2019 Date: Tue, 09 Jul 2019 10:29:33 +0000 Importan c Normal e: Mobile version and searchable archives available at fbi.bulletinintelligence.com. ; 1 "t B1News Briefing TO: THE DIRECTOR AND SENIOR STAFF DATE: TUESDAY, JULY 9, 2019 6:30 AM EDT TODAY'S TABLE OF CONTENTS LEADING THE NEWS • Barr: Democrats Want To Create A "Public Spectacle" With Mueller Subpoena. COUNTER-TERRORISM • Houston Man Pleads Guilty To Attempting To Join And Support ISIS. • Convicted Ohio Terrorist Granted Name Change. • Investigators Not Ruling Out Criminal Charges In Florida Explosion. • Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board Returns To Full Strength. • Opinion: Time Limit For Holding Guantanamo Prisoners Should Be Set. • Saudis Claim They Stopped Houthi Attack On Commercial Ship In Red Sea. COUNTER-INTELLIGENCE • ODNI, FBI, DHS Officials To Brief Congress On Election Security Wednesday. • ODNI Working To Modernize IT Infrastructure, Improve Data Sharing Among IC Agencies. • NSA Still Trying To Impose Data System Controls To Guard Against Abuse. • "Catch-Up" IC Authorization Bill Advancing In Congress, Addressing Various Issues. • Federal Data Strategy Forum Discusses Challenges To Attracting Data-Focused Talent. CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS • Media Coverage Of Epstein Charges Focuses On Earlier Plea Deal Brokered By Acosta. • Pathologist Testifies That Nebraska Woman's Body Showed Signs Of Struggle. • US Seeks Death Penalty For Man Convicted Of Murdering Chinese Scholar. • Two Arrested After Firing At Police On Nevada Reservation. • FBI Offers Reward For Information On "Inconvenient Crook" Wanted In Seven Robberies. • California Man Pleads Guilty To Stealing Lemur From Zoo. • FBI Offers Reward For Information On Escaped Mississippi Prison Inmates. • FBI Assisting In Probe Of Texas Police Officer Accused Of Sexual Misconduct. • St. Louis Police Officer Charged With Handcuffing, Berating Man Faces Trial. • Connecticut Man Who Impersonated Officer To Rob Victims Sentenced To Eight Years In Prison. • Rhode Island Man Pleads Guilty To Trafficking Guns, Fentanyl. • Pennsylvania Man Seeks To Overturn Sex Trafficking Convictions. • Oregon Professor Sentenced For Possessing Child Pornography. EFTA00147473 • US Charges Baltimore Drug Ring Member With Drug, Weapons Trafficking. FINANCIAL CRIME & CORPORATE SCANDALS • DC Council To Vote On Whether Evans Should Be Removed As Finance Committee Chair. • Attorneys For Philadelphia Union Official, Councilman Seek Dismissal Of Charges. • FBI: Texas State Employee Took Bribes For Fraudulent Trucker Licenses. • Federal Grand Jury Investigating GOP Fundraiser Broidy. • Defense Attorneys Want US To Disclose Identities Of Firms, Individuals In Case Against Florida Official. • Judge Refuses To Move Trial Against Rep. Hunter. • US Charges California Doctor With Defrauding Health Insurance Companies. • Ohio Man Pleads Guilty To Defrauding Kentucky Bank. CYBER DIVISION • Florida Approves New Round Of Election Security Grants. LABORATORY • DC Prosecutor Blamed Nonexistent Crime Lab Backlog For Delays. LAW ENFORCEMENT SERVICES • FBI Working To Protect Fans During MLB All-Star Game In Cleveland. • Detroit Surveillance Camera System Faces New Scrutiny From Residents. • Former Inmate Who Earned College Degree Via Second Chance Pell Profiled. • Families Of Sandy Hook Victims Fighting Back Against Conspiracy Theorists. • Virginia Senate Majority Leader Offers Gun Control Bill. • Maitra Predicts Backlash Unless Government Acts Against Antifa Violence. • Sixty-Six Shot, Six Fatally, In Chicago Over Four-Day Weekend. OTHER FBI NEWS • Critics Blast FBI, ICE Use Of State DMV Photos. • Federal Judges Say FBI Agent Gave False Testimony In South Dakota Rape Probe. • DO) IG To Review Decision Not To Move FBI Headquarters. • Boston SAC Bonavolenta Discusses Dedication To FBI. OTHER WASHINGTON NEWS • In White House Address, Trump Touts "America's Environmental Leadership." • Barr: Administration Has Found Legal Work-Around To Include Census Citizenship Question. • Pence Calls Concentration Camp Comparison "An Outrage." • UN Human Rights Chief Condemns Treatment Of Migrant Children At US Border. • Woman Taking Sanctuary In Chicago Church Lives In Fear Of Deportation. • Admiral Set To Take Top Navy Post Instead Retires Amid Ethics Probe. • New Law Allows New York To Hand Over Trump's Tax Returns To Congress. • DO) Seeks To Halt Suit Charging Trump With Profiting Off Presidency. • Trump Says He Plans To Hold July 4th Celebrations For "Foreseeable Future." • Trump Says Leaders "All Working Together" On California Earthquake Response. • Facing Likely Removal, Amash Resigns From House Oversight Committee. • Democrats Criticize Lack Of Blacks, Latinos Among Trump's Circuit Court Nominees. • New Book On Kavanaugh Confirmation Contrasts With Media's Depiction Of Blasey Ford. • White House Invites Project Veritas' O'Keefe To Social Media Summit. • Flash Floods Hit Washington Area During Monday Morning Rush Hour. INTERNATIONAL NEWS EFTA00147474 • Taliban, Afghan Representatives Agree To Framework For Talks. • Trump Says US "Will No Longer Deal" With UK Ambassador, Slams May's Handling Of Brexit. • Pence, Pompeo, Bolton Admonish Iran After Its Threat To Accelerate Nuclear Work. • State Department Announces New Human Rights Panel. • State Department Approves Taiwan Arms Sale. • Son Of Former South Korean Foreign Minister Defects To North. • NYTimes Analysis: West Bank Calm Rooted In Despair, Not Optimism. • NYTimes Analysis: New Greek PM Prevailed Despite Weakness Of Other Center-Right Parties. • Russia-Georgia Tensions Rise After Georgian TV Host's Anti-Putin "Rant." • Russian Official Says Submarine Crew Died Preventing "Catastrophe Of Global Proportions." • Duterte Defiant As UN Considers Investigation Of Violence In The Philippines. • "Militant Buddhism" Rising In Response To Conditions In Burma And Sri Lanka. • US Agency For Global Media Facing New Scandals. THE BIG PICTURE • Headlines From Today's Front Pages. WASHINGTON'S SCHEDULE • Today's Events In Washington. LEADING THE NEWS Barr: Democrats Want To Create A "Public Spectacle" With Mueller Subpoena. The AP (7/8, Baisamo) reports that Attorney General Barr in an interview said that Democrats are seeking to create a "public spectacle" by subpoenaing special counsel Robert Mueller to testify. Barr told the AP that the DOJ would back Mueller if he "doesn't want to subject himself" to congressional testimony. Barr also said his Department would block any effort by lawmakers to subpoena members of Mueller's team. The Washington Examiner (7/8, Dunleavy, 448K) quotes Barr as telling the AP, "I was disappointed to see him subpoenaed. I don't think that serves any purpose, dragging Bob Mueller up, if he, in fact, is going to stick to the report. ... It seems to me the only reason for doing that is to create some kind of public spectacle. And if Bob decides that he doesn't want to be subject to that, then Department of Justice would certainly back him." USA Today (7/8, Morin, 10.31M) reports that Barr told the AP, "I'm not sure what purpose is served by dragging him up there and trying to grill him. ... I don't think Mueller should be treated that way or subject himself to that, if he doesn't want to." The Washington Times (7/8, Mordock, 492K) reports that Mueller "is scheduled to testify before Congress on July 17, but said he won't stray from his 448-page report released earlier this year." CBS News (7/8, 3.68M) and Daily Caller (7/8, 716K) provide similar coverage on the story. The New York Times (7/8, Benner, 18.61M) says Barr's "assessment that the hearing will have little effect may play down the influence of Mr. Mueller's televised testimony on public opinion, given that relatively few Americans have read the 448-page report outlining the findings of his inquiry. Democrats hope that Mr. Mueller will paint a more vivid picture of presidential misconduct than the report's dense, legalistic language supplied." The Hill (7/8, Beavers, 2.98M) reports House Democrats "are eager to press Mueller on the 10 episodes of possible obstruction of justice by Trump as laid out in the report." Newsweek (7/8, Touchberry, 1.53M) reports House Democrats have said "an appearance by Mueller to simply read portions of his report aloud for viewers at home to see and hear on TV would be satisfactory, as they believe it would bring to light allegedly damning portions and would educate people." Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler has "said Mueller's testimony will have a 'profound impact' on whether the committee moves forward with an impeachment inquiry." Opening an official inquiry into whether Trump has committed impeachable offenses "is a EFTA00147475 contentious issue that's increasingly divided House Democrats." NBC News (7/8, 6.14M) reports Democrats "have criticized Barr, saying he acts more like the president's personal lawyer than the attorney general." Barr has "embraced Trump's political agenda, cast Mueller's report as a vindication for the president and launched an investigation into the origins of the probe - something Trump has repeatedly said should happen." Cleveland: Weissman Testimony Will Help Unravel Russia Witch Hunt. Margot Cleveland writes in The Federalist (7/8, Cleveland, 126K) that after Mueller testifies publicly, members of his staff, including top prosecutor Andrew Weissman, will be questioned privately by committee members. Cleveland argues House Democrats "sought Mueller's testimony, and that of his staff, for one reason only: to paint Trump as a criminal without the politically risky business of impeachment." But, "far from damaging Trump, Weissmann's closed-door testimony - if handled properly - will assist Republicans in unraveling the Russia-collusion-turned- obstruction witch hunt and inflict far greater damage on the Democrats." Report: Mueller Report Lacks Evidence To Substantiate Claim Of Russian Election Interference. The Federalist (7/8, Osburn, 126K) reports that a new report (7/5, Mate) from RealClearlnvestigations says Mueller's report lacks evidence to substantiate the claim that the Kremlin interfered in the 2016 election. While the report "does not conclude that the Mueller Report's central finding on Russian interference in the 2016 election is false," it "does expose how the report is missing important evidence to substantiate its core allegation." WTimes Analysis: Despite Press Claims, Kislyak Had Little Contact With Trump Campaign. The Washington Times (7/8, Scarborough, 492K) reports that media reports have said that Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak's "contacts in 2016 with Trump campaign allies...provided a possible window into a conspiracy by which a Kremlin-Republican cabal hacked computers and spewed propaganda against Hillary Clinton on social media." But Mueller's report "tells a far different story." Kislyak "had relatively few Trump contacts during the campaign" and "the contacts he did have were 'non-substantive,' the special counsel said in his 448-page report." White House Blocks Former McGahn Aide From Answering More Than 200 Questions From House Committee. The Washington Post (7/8, Bade, Helderman, Leonnig, 14.2M) reports White House lawyers have blocked Annie Donaldson, the former chief of staff to ex-White House counsel Donald McGahn, "from answering more than 200 questions about potential obstruction of justice by the president." Trump Administration lawyers "barred her from elaborating on her thinking at the time she captured several exchanges between Trump and her boss - including one note in which she scribbled concern that Trump's firing of James B. Comey as FBI director would trigger the end of his presidency." The development "underscores the difficulty Democrats have faced as they try to bring the Mueller report to life - challenges they hope will evaporate next week when Mueller testifies publicly about his findings for the first time." Journalist Carl Bernstein Criticizes Media On Mueller Report Coverage. The Hill (7/8, Daugherty, 2.98M) reports Investigative journalist Carl Bernstein "said the media is focused on the fighting over the report instead of its actual contents." He said, "I think we've made a big mistake in the press about how we've covered the Mueller report. We've gotten totally wrapped up in the warfare in the Congress between Republicans and Democrats and is there obstruction of justice or is there not obstruction of justice." Bernstein added, "We are not making, in the press, the connections between what's going on in the country and Donald Trump, the president. We need to be covering the country as well and what people are talking about, thinking about, saying at the dinner table and connecting them to what is going on in Washington and in his campaign." Opinion: Evolution Of Judicial Thinking On Grand Jury Secrecy. In his sidebar column in the New York Times (7/8, 18.61M), Adam Liptak discusses the evolution of judicial thinking on unsealing grand jury testimony as Democrats press for a full copy of the Mueller report, including grand jury materials. Attorney Roman Martinez "said courts should not lose EFTA00147476 sight of the basic issue. The American people have a strong interest in understanding key events in our nation's history, including events that were the subject of grand jury proceedings. District judges should be allowed to release historically significant grand jury materials when the passage of time has eliminated the need for secrecy and the public interest supports disclosure. In those circumstances, there's no good reason to keep such materials hidden from the American people." Former Trump Associate Sater To Testify To House Intel Committee. Politico (7/8, Bertrand, 4.29M) reports Felix Sater, a former business associate of President Donald Trump who was the chief negotiator for the defunct Trump Tower Moscow project, "will testify before the House Intelligence Committee on Tuesday morning." Sater has testified "several times in the last year about issues related to the Trump Tower Moscow project, which has been a central focus of the Democrat-led committee's investigation into whether Trump is compromised by foreign actors." COUNTER-TERRORISM Houston Man Pleads Guilty To Attempting To Join And Support ISIS. The Washington Times (7/8, Mordock, 492K) reports in a brief item that Kaan Sercan Damlarkaya of Houston "pleaded guilty to attempting to provide material support to the Islamic State, the Justice Department announced on Monday." The DOJ said Damlarkaya sought to join ISIS "and educate supporters about the use of machetes and construction of homemade automatic weapons and explosive devices." The AP (7/8) reports that Damlarkaya "planned to travel overseas and shared information on making bombs and using machetes." Damlarkaya, 20, "pleaded guilty Monday to attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization." Damlarkaya, "who is a U.S. citizen, was arrested in December 2017 following an undercover FBI investigation," and "he remains in custody pending sentencing in Houston and faces up to 20 years in federal prison." The Fort Worth (TX) Star-Telegram (7/8, White, 406K) reports, "In early 2017, Damlarkaya began online communication with individuals he believed to be ISIS supporters, during which he expressed his desire to travel oversees to join the terrorist organization, U.S. attorneys said," and "were that not possible, he vowed to carry out an attack on non-Muslim Americans, saying it was his 'dream to be a martyr," but "at least some of the people he was communicating with were informants and undercover FBI agents." KXAN-TV Austin, TX (7/8, 495K) reports that federal prosecutors said "With the intention of joining ISIS overseas, he began having numerous online conversations with other ISIS supporters," in which "he described his desire to fight for ISIS in Syria or Afghanistan." US District Judge Andrew S. Hanen "accepted the plea Monday and has set sentencing for September 30, 2019." The FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force "conducted the investigation." KHOU-TV Houston (7/8, Delony, 207K) also reports. Convicted Ohio Terrorist Granted Name Change. WXIX-TV Cincinnati (7/8, Hager, 42K) reports from Fairton, New Jersey, "A Green Township man serving 30 years in a Fairton, New Jersey prison for plotting to attack the U.S. Capitol in support of the Islamic State group was granted a name change." According to WXIX-TV, "A Superior Court of New Jersey judge granted Christopher Lee Cornell, 25, a name change April 23, that went into effect May 23." Cornell "is now known as Raheel Mahrus Ubaydah." WXIX-TV adds, "Court documents say Cornell requested the change due to religious reasons." FBI agents "arrested him in January 2015 after he bought guns and ammunition which investigators say were to be used to attack a State of the Union address," and "he pleaded guilty in 2016 to three charges including attempted murder of U.S. officials and employees." Investigators Not Ruling Out Criminal Charges In Florida Explosion. EFTA00147477 The South Florida Sun Sentinel (7/8, Huriash, Baitinger, 545K) reports, "Investigators have not ruled out criminal charges in an explosion Saturday that obliterated one building, pummeled others and left 23 people hurt. `The scene is considered a criminal investigation until determined otherwise,' Fire Department spokesman Joel Gordon said Monday. `We are not focusing on any single cause at this time." The Sun Sentinel adds, "Fire officials have said a gas leak at a vacant pizza shop appears to be to blame, but they have declined to state a definite cause. The investigation could take weeks, they said." According to the Sun Sentinel, "Representatives from the state fire marshal's office are involved, along with the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the bomb squad and arson teams from the Broward Sheriff's Office." Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board Returns To Full Strength. Politico (7/8, Starks, 4.29M) reports the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board "is back to full strength and ready to contribute to national security debates again." The Senate unanimously confirmed three nominees to the board, "filling out its five-member roster for the first time in two years." Martin Matishak recently sat down Klein and panel member Edward Felten "to discuss the agenda for the intelligence watchdog - a bipartisan panel of executive branch advisers that reviews the government's intelligence and national security apparatus - as well as the looming debate over expiring portions of the 2015 USA Freedom Act and transparency in the US intelligence community." Opinion: Time Limit For Holding Guantanamo Prisoners Should Be Set. In an op-ed in the Orange CountyJCA) I gister (7/8, 546K), Chapman University Professor Tom Campbell writes that the lack of time limits on the holding of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay should be changed. He notes that "Congress stipulated no end-date to the Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) passed after 9/11." Campbell argues that Congress "should have set a date for the authorization to expire, and, with it, the power to hold terrorist prisoners-of- war. The date should have been far in the future, fifteen years, say, lest al-Qaida have an incentive to wait out US military action." He concludes that characterizing an end date for detention "as a reassertion of Congress' constitutional power to declare war, rather than a Guantanamo prisoner release, would improve its chances of passage, and diminish the need for the Supreme Court eventually to rule on the matter." Saudis Claim They Stopped Houthi Attack On Commercial Ship In Red Sea. Reuters (7/8, Kalin, El Yaakoubi) reports that a spokesman for the "Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen" claims they "foiled an attempted attack on an unidentified commercial ship in the southern Red Sea on Monday by the Iran-aligned Houthis, which the group denied." Colonel Turki al-Malki "said the Western-backed military alliance had destroyed an unmanned boat laden with explosives which the militants had used for the attack." However, "a Houthi military spokesman denied targeting commercial shipping in the area." COUNTER-INTELLIGENCE ODNI, FBI, DHS Officials To Brief Congress On Election Security Wednesday. Politico (7/8, Levine, 4.29M) reports that on Wednesday, officials from ODNI, the FBI and DHS will brief senators on election security, "according to a senior Senate aide." The briefing was requested by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer will be open to all briefings. The Hill (7/8, Carney, 2.98M) reports that the House is also expecting an "all members" briefing. The "back- to-back briefings come as Democrats have been pushing for months for Congress to pass new legislation ahead of the 2020 elections." EFTA00147478 ODNI Working To Modernize IT Infrastructure, Improve Data Sharing Among IC Agencies. Federal Computer Week (7/8, Johnson, 263K) reports the ODNI is pursuing long-term efforts to modernize the IC's IT infrastructure. A key objective is to improve the analysis and sharing of "the massive amounts of sensitive US government data among IC agencies. ODNI CIO John Sherman said in an interview that the IC already has "world class computational capability. He added, "Now we need to make sure that data is fully unlocked." He "said that getting a room full of spooks to let go of their preferred systems in favor of a more common platform designed for give their secrets away to others `takes a tremendous amount of trust building." To assist with this effort, ODNI brought in Nancy Morgan as its new ADNI for Information and Data this year, "specifically charging her with the job of marrying the intelligence community's data resources with its larger policy goals." NSA Still Trying To Impose Data System Controls To Guard Against Abuse. Government Executive (7/8, Clark, 57K) reports the NSA inspector general's office, in an unclassified version of its semiannual report released on Monday, found that NSA "is behind on implementing internal data system controls aimed at assuring compliance with the domestic privacy protections in the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act." The IG "found that NSA did not have a necessary system control. ... Until this system control is implemented, the agency will be at risk for performing queries that do not comply with its authority under Section 702." The report also "criticized NSA's data system security plans, which `are often inaccurate and/or incomplete." NextGov (7/8, Corrigan) reports auditors also found the agency "held onto some of that data for longer than the law permits and failed to implement protections against insider threats." The IG gave NSA's contingency management practices "a Level 1 rating, meaning there's no official plan for the NSA to follow if it falls victim to a cyberattack." The audit revealed that despite its data-driven mission, NSA "struggles with many of the same cybersecurity challenges that plague less clandestine federal agencies." Auditors also "said NSA has yet to implement multiple IG recommendations to defend against insider threats, such as putting in place two-person access controls for agency data centers and scanning removable devices for viruses." "Catch-Up" IC Authorization Bill Advancing In Congress, Addressing Various Issues. Government Executive (7/8, Clark, 57K) reports Congress is advancing "three-year catch up" legislation on the IC authorization bill that would address several issues, including enhanced protections for whistleblowers. The bills, which combine texts for fiscal 2018, 2019 and 2020, also seeks "to protect the government's technology supply chain by creating a task force within the ODNI and improving procurement to defend against intrusion." House Intelligence Committee Chairman Schiff (D-CA) said the House version "rejects the administration's misguided use of Overseas Contingency Operations funding as a budget gimmick to evade existing budget caps put in place on a bipartisan basis by Congress, and it authorizes in the base budget those programs the Administration has explicitly identified as `OCO for base." Senate Chairman Burr (R-NC) said the Senate version "is vital for countering the growing threats posed by hostile foreign actors, including Russia, China and Iran, and for strengthening our nation's election security." Federal Data Strategy Forum Discusses Challenges To Attracting Data-Focused Talent. Federal News Network (7/8, Heckman, 220) reports at an open forum sponsored by the Data Coalition and the Office of Management and Budget, stakeholders said building a workforce "that can keep pace with the scope of the data management problem and the rate of change in technology stands out as one of the most daunting challenges." Former CIA collection management officer Kathy Rondon "said improving data literacy and related skills for a broad EFTA00147479 swath of employees - from manager to rank-and-file employees - should serve as the `linchpin' of the federal data strategy going forward." She added, "Your most highly technical employees may, in fact, be data illiterate." CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS Media Coverage Of Epstein Charges Focuses On Earlier Plea Deal Brokered By Acosta. The AP (7/8, Sisak, Mustian) reports federal prosecutors on Monday charged Jeffrey Epstein "with abusing dozens of underage girls as young as 14." The move comes "a decade after they were accused of letting [him] off the hook." US Attorney Geoffrey Berman of New York "said that the non-prosecution agreement that spared Epstein from a heavy prison sentence a decade ago is binding only on federal prosecutors in Florida, where the deal was made, not on authorities in New York." Under that "once secret deal" that was "overseen by Alexander Acosta, who was the U.S. attorney in Miami at the time and is now Trump's labor secretary," Epstein "pleaded guilty to state charges of soliciting a minor for prostitution," and "served 13 months in jail," avoiding a possible life sentence. Tom Llamas said in the lead story for ABC World News TonightVi (7/8, lead story, 4:05, Muir, 565K) that the agreement "halted a federal grand jury investigation and gave Epstein and any potential co-conspirators immunity from federal charges in Florida." The Washington Post (7/8, Zapotosky, Merle, Barrett, 14.2M) says media outlets "have detailed in investigative reports how" Acosta "shelved a 53-page federal indictment that could have put Epstein behind bars for life in favor of the deal that allowed him to plead guilty only to state charges." The Daily Caller (7/8, 716K), in an article titled, "Labor Secretary Alex Acosta Brokered A 2008 Plea Deal With Pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, Faces Increased Calls To Resign," reports that the Miami Herald has revealed that Acosta "made a deal with Washington, D.C. attorney Jay Lefkowitz, his former colleague, at a breakfast meeting in October 2007," which "closed an FBI probe into whether there were more victims, granted immunity to `any potential co-conspirators,' kept the deal from the victims in violation of federal law, and gave Epstein a lenient sentence in state court." Stephanie Gosk reported in the lead story for NBC Nightly NewsVI (7/8, lead story, 3:40, Holt, 167K) that during his confirmation hearing, Acosta defended the plea agreement as "the best deal, given the evidence." The New York limes (7/8, Watkins, Gold, 18.61M) calls the decision by Geoffrey S. Berman, the US Attorney in Manhattan, to seek the indictment "an implicit rebuke to the decision by prosecutors in Miami in 2008" to enter the agreement with Epstein. In the lead story for the CBS Evening NewsVi (7/8, lead story, 2:55, Axelrod, 315K), CBS News legal analyst Rikki Klieman was shown saying, "I think there should be no doubt that Jeffrey Epstein, back in 2007 and 2008 in Miami, was a rich and powerful man with powerful friends who absolutely got away with being a predator of young girls." The Miami Herald (7/8, Smiley, Daugherty, 1.09M) says Acosta "is facing new calls for his ouster" in the wake of the new charges against Epstein, while the Washington Post (7/8, Rein, Kranish, Dawsey, 14.2M) says White House officials "are nervous that Democrats will encourage women allegedly abused by Epstein to testify publicly before Congress, drawing attention to Acosta's work on the plea deal, according to current and former administration officials." However, the Post cites "two White House officials" who said the President does not have immediate plans to fire Acosta. However, CNN national correspondent Miguel Marquuez said on CNN's Situation RoomVi (7/8, 714K), "One Administration official [said] this is a significant event, noting that there is already an internal review about Acosta's handling of the Epstein case underway." Politico (7/8, Kumar, Lippman, 4.29M) says White House officials are "closely watching" Acosta's involvement in the plea deal, "acutely aware that negative publicity could harm him beyond repair, according to four people familiar with the situation." EFTA00147480  Toluse Olorunnipa of the Washington Post said on CNN's The LeadVi (7/8, 698K) that while the President "seems to still show support" for Acosta, "when it comes to members of Congress and people who have the power investigate this and show some oversight, it does seem like Acosta will be on the hot seat." The New York Post (7/8, Brown, 4.57M) reports, "After arresting Jeffrey Epstein on sex trafficking charges, the feds on Monday urged other alleged victims to get in contact with an FBI hotline to share their experiences." According to the Post, "At a press conference, Manhattan US Attorney Geoffrey Berman pointed to a large photo of Epstein next to the number 1-800-CALL-FBI, while an FBI official implored people to get in touch. 'Today I'm asking everyone to take a good look at this man. If you have been victimized in any way or if you are somebody who has any additional information about his alleged illegal behavior, we want to hear from you,' said William Sweeney Jr., the assistant director in charge of the FBI's New York Field Office. 'Whatever age you are now, whatever age you were then, no matter where or when the incident or incidents took place. The number to call is 1-800-CALL-FBI." A New York Times (7/8, 18.61M) editorial says "the Epstein saga looks like another example of how justice is not, in fact, blind - of how it tilts toward the powerful at the expense of the vulnerable." The Times argues that "Acosta and his former team members" should not "be allowed to wave off the tough or awkward questions that are likely to arise going forward." Reuters (7/8, Pierson) says Epstein "once had friends including U.S. President Donald Trump and former president Bill Clinton," and points out that Trump "praised" him in a 2002 New York magazine interview. At the time, Trump said, "I've known Jeff for fifteen years. Terrific guy. ... He's a lot of fun to be with. It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side. No doubt about it - Jeffrey enjoys his social life." The Washington Post (7/8, Fahrenthold, Reinhard, Kindy, 14.2M) says that in 2002, "being friendly with (Epstein] was something to boast about. And Donald Trump did." But, now he "is no longer a friend anyone would want to claim. And now, Trump doesn't." Trump Organization attorney Alan Garten "has said Trump had 'no relationship' with Epstein." Nonetheless, the Post says there is "clear evidence that the two men - both members of the same highflying societies in Manhattan and Palm Beach - socialized together in the past." Another report from The Daily Caller (7/8, News, 716K) says Bradley Edwards, a lawyer who represented Epstein's victims, "stated in court documents that Trump had barred Epstein" from Mar-A-Lago "because Epstein sexually assaulted an underage girl at the club." The DC says neither the President nor Mar-A- Lago have confirmed that Epstein was banned. The Washington Times (7/8, Morton, 492K) reports Clinton said in a statement Monday that he knows nothing about the charges facing Epstein. Clinton said in the statement that he "knows nothing" about the "terrible crimes" linked to Epstein. Brietbart: Establishment Media Trying To Link Trump, Epstein. Breitbart (7/8, Caplan, 673K) says the "establishment media" is trying to link Trump to Epstein "without any evidence connecting him to the underage sex trafficking case against the billionaire hedge fund manager." After word of Epstein's arrest this weekend broke, "a handful of news figures and outlets posted social media posts and stories painting a picture that the wealthy investor's arrest was bad news for President Trump - with one editor even going as far to suggest he could be directly implicated in the case." Davis Defends Clinton In Wake Of Epstein Indictments. Breitbart (7/8, Bleau, 673K) reports that Lanny Davis "is going to bat for former President Bill Clinton," in the wake of the indictments against Epstein. Breitbart says "some speculate that Democrats have been hesitant to grab on to the story due to the connections between Epstein and left-wing fan favorites, like Bill Clinton." After the Washington Examiner's Jay Caruso tweeted, "It's not all that hard to figure out why Democrats have treaded lightly. There's this pretty famous Democrat who flew on the tolita Express' 26 times with Epstein," Davis tweeted, "Classic fact- free innuendo. Back to McCarthy era. But worse." EFTA00147481 Pathologist Testifies That Nebraska Woman's Body Showed Signs Of Struggle. The Omaha (NE) World-Herald (7/8, Hammel, 641K) reports from Wilber, Nebraska, "Jurors saw and heard on Monday the grisly details of how Sydney Loofe's body was cut into pieces as the first-degree murder trial of Aubrey Trail entered its fourth week." According to the World-Herald, "Loofe's body was cut into 14 pieces, likely by two or three different instruments, according to separate testimony by two forensic experts," and "her body showed signs that she struggled at the time of her death, one said." Dr. Michelle Elieff, "a forensic pathologist from Omaha, said that her examination of Loofe's body showed signs that she had been restrained at her wrists, had a torn earlobe and was bruised at the back of her head and inner thigh," but "could those signs of struggle also have been consistent with `rough, consensual sex'? asked one of Trail's court-appointed attorneys, Joe Murray. `Yes; responded Elieff." The AP (7/8) reports, "FBI Agent Mike Maseth also testified Monday that Aubrey Trail's girlfriend, Bailey Boswell, told another person on Tinder that she would be busy for a couple days on the day Sidney Loofe was killed." KLKN-TV Lincoln, NE (7/8, 1K) also reports on its website. US Seeks Death Penalty For Man Convicted Of Murdering Chinese Scholar. Reuters (7/8, Chiarito) reports from Peoria, Illinois that federal prosecutors "argued on Monday that an Illinois man who raped and murdered a Chinese graduate student two years ago should be executed, and called on her heartbroken fiance and friends to tell the jury about the victim's kind, optimistic nature." According to Reuters, "A federal jury in Peoria, Illinois found Brendt Christensen, 29, guilty last month of the abduction and murder of Yingying Zhang, a 26-year- old student at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign," and "the jury is now in the penalty phase of the trial. `This was not an ordinary crime,' James Nelson, a prosecutor in the U.S. Department of Justice's capital case division, told the jury. `It was cold, cruel and calculated.' Christensen's attorneys "have asked the jury to spare his life, saying he had long struggled with substance abuse and mental illness and had a family history of both." The Chicago Tribune (7/8, Munks, 2.65M) also reports. Two Arrested After Firing At Police On Nevada Reservation. KOLO-TV Reno, NV (7/8, 39K) reports from the Fort McDermitt Indian Reservation in Nevada, "A man and a teenage boy have been arrested for several charges stemming from an incident Friday night." According to KOLO-TV, "The Humboldt County Sheriff's Office says about 9:45 p.m. July 5, 2019, deputies were helping the Bureau of Indian Affairs Police Department find people accused of a battery at the Red Mountain Travel Center, on the Ft. McDermitt Indian Reservation in Northern Humboldt County." KOLO-TV adds, "HCSO says preliminary information indicates BIA Police and HCSO Deputies found the suspect vehicle and three suspects in a field at the end of Abel Road on the reservation. Investigators say the suspects, who were armed with two rifles, fired at officers." The FBI "is conducting the criminal investigation and a use-of- force investigation, and a separate investigation into the deputy's use of force will be coordinated by the Humboldt County Sheriff's Office." FBI Offers Reward For Information On "Inconvenient Crook" Wanted In Seven Robberies. The Springfield (MA) Republican (7/8, Hanson, 395K) reports, "The FBI is asking for the public's help to track down a suspect accused in at least seven robberies, telling the clerk in one incident that he had `child support to pay; officials said." According to the Republican, "A reward of up to $10,000 is being offered for information that leads to the arrest of the suspect, who has been dubbed the `Inconvenient Crook; the FBI said." The Republican adds, "The suspect is accused of at least seven commercial robberies and two attempted commercial robberies at gas stations and convenience stores around Greater Boston area from August through March, the FBI wrote in a statement released Monday." EFTA00147482 California Man Pleads Guilty To Stealing Lemur From Zoo. The New York Daily News (7/8, Dillon, 2.52M) reports, "A Southern California man admitted Monday he broke into the Santa Ana Zoo and stole North America's oldest-living ring-tailed lemur in captivity to keep the endangered animal as a pet." Aquinas Kasbar, 19, "pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count of unlawfully taking an endangered species and is due for sentencing Oct. 28, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California said." According to the Daily News, Kasbar, of Newport Beach, California, "admitted in his plea agreement that he broke into the Santa Ana Zoo on July 27, 2018, after it had closed for the day and used bolt cutters to slice through the enclosures for the lemurs and capuchin monkeys, court documents state," and "he then stole" the lemur. The case "was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the Newport Beach Police Department and the Santa Ana Police Department." FBI Offers Reward For Information On Escaped Mississippi Prison Inmates. WREG-TV Memphis, TN (7/8, 144K) reports from Jackson, Mississippi, "Authorities are offering a $12,500 reward for information leading to the arrests of two armed and dangerous escaped inmates." WREG-TV adds, "According to the Mississippi Department of Corrections, Jonathan Blankenship and Christopher Benson High were discovered missing early Friday, July 5, from the Central Mississippi Correctional Facility in Pearl." Blakenship "was serving five years for aggravated assault on a police officer and conspiracy to commit a crime out of Alcorn County," and High "was sentenced to 12 years for burglary larceny in Carroll County." According to WREG-TV, "The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Mississippi Crime Stoppers have contributed funds to the reward." WZDX-TV Huntsville, AL (7/8) also reports. FBI Assisting In Probe Of Texas Police Officer Accused Of Sexual Misconduct. The Mission (TX Progress Times (7/8, Hendricks) reports, "The Progreso Police Department fired an officer last week amid a sexual assault investigation." According to the Progress Times, "Progreso police Chief Alberto Rodriguez said he fired police Officer Matthew Sepulveda last week." Sepulveda "is accused of inappropriate sexual contact with a person in custody." The Hidalgo County Sheriff's Office "is investigating the incident with assistance from the FBI. `The Hidalgo County Sheriff's Office is the lead agency, so I will need to refer you to them but I can confirm the FBI was assisting,' an FBI spokeswoman said in a statement." St. Louis Police Officer Charged With Handcuffing, Berating Man Faces Trial. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch (7/8, Patrick, 685K) reports, "A St. Louis police officer accused of handcuffing and threatening a man who got into an argument with the officer's girlfriend is scheduled to go to trial in federal court Monday." Kenneth A. Grooms "was charged in February with a misdemeanor civil rights violation for depriving the man of his constitutional rights against unreasonable seizure." According to the Post-Dispatch, "The incident occurred on May 5, 2018, charges say," and "there was little other information in charging documents," but "a person with knowledge of the investigation told the Post-Dispatch that Grooms handcuffed the man and drove him around in his car while berating him over the argument with Grooms' girlfriend," and "he later told an FBI agent, `Hey, this is my family, this is personal to me ...,' the filings say." Connecticut Man Who Impersonated Officer To Rob Victims Sentenced To Eight Years In Prison. The Norwich (fl -) Bulletin (7/8, Barry, 42K) reports from New London, Connecticut, "A man accused of pretending to be a police officer so he could rob men who hired his fiancee as a prostitute was sentenced on Monday to eight years in prison." Jerome Taylor, 28, of New London, "said at his sentencing in New London Superior Court that he regrets what he did and wished that his victims were in court so he could apologize to them." According to the Bulletin, EFTA00147483 "Norwich police arrested Taylor and his fiancee, Ashley Harnois, 26, of Woonsocket, R.I., as well as three other women in October 2017 as part of an FBI-led nationwide prostitution sting named Operation Cross Country XI." Taylor "was charged with third-degree promoting prostitution and resisting arrest in that case." Rhode Island Man Pleads Guilty To Trafficking Guns, Fentanyl. The Providence (RI) Journal (7/8, 259K) reports, "A Providence man on Monday pleaded guilty to trafficking fentanyl and firearms, according to the office of U.S. Attorney Aaron L. Weisman." Jean Sajous, 28, "admitted that between May 24 and June 20, 2018, he made multiple sales of fentanyl, and twice sold a firearm to a confidential source assisting the FBI." The Journal adds, "Appearing before U.S. District Court Chief Judge William E. Smith, Sajous admitted selling 5.34 grams of fentanyl, as well as a .25-caliber pistol and a 9mm pistol to the source." The drugs and firearms "were immediately seized by the FBI, according to Weisman's office." Pennsylvania Man Seeks To Overturn Sex Trafficking Convictions. The Harrisburg (EA) Patriot-News (7/8, Miller, 427K) reports, "A Harrisburg man and his attorney are waging a two-front battle to overturn federal sex trafficking and drug convictions that could send him to prison for decades." Miguel "Midnight" Arnold, 32, "commenced that campaign after a jury convicted him during a trial in U.S. Middle District Court late last month." Arnold "was among five people charged with running a `significant' prostitution and drug ring that originated in Harrisburg and operated from the fall of 2015 until August 2016, U.S. Attorney David Freed said Monday." Federal prosecutors "argued at trial that more than 20 women and girls, including a 14-year-old, were exploited by the ring." Oregon Professor Sentenced For Possessing Child Pornography. The Oregonian (7/8, Green, 1M) reports, "A former Portland State University chemistry professor who had been named Oregon's `Scientist of the Year' was sentenced Monday to 2 12 / years in prison for possessing child pornography." Niles Edward Lehman, 57, "uploaded videos and photos of child pornography to his blog — which was available for public viewing - on the social networking website Tumblr, investigators said," and "Tumblr tipped off the FBI to the posted images and that led to Lehman's arrest, said Deputy District Attorney Bumjoon Park." Lehman "was charged with viewing and sharing 35 illicit images of children from fall 2017 to fall 2018, although authorities said he had hundreds on his iPhone and other electronic devices of children ages 3 to 12." US Charges Baltimore Drug Ring Member With Drug, Weapons Trafficking. The Baltimore Sun (7/8, Prudente, 1.33M) reports, "Federal prosecutors on Monday provided a glimpse at the inner workings of an alleged Baltimore drug ring, detailing a feud that left a 16- year-old dead, a bystander shot and a 23-year-old behind bars on a slew of drug and gun charges." In a Baltimore federal courtroom, "prosecutors told a judge that Justin Antoine murdered teenager Jordan Deshields, shooting him twice in the head on a basketball court in Southwest Baltimore." The Sun adds, "The young victim's crew sought revenge and months later opened fire on Antoine in the streets, prosecutors said. `This is a defendant who poses an extreme risk to the community,' Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew DellaBetta told the judge." Magistrate Judge Beth Gesner "agreed and ordered the 23-year-old Antoine locked up until trial on federal drug trafficking and firearms charges." Maryland US Attorney Robert Hur "praised the FBI wiretap investigation that led to the indictment." FINANCIAL CRIME & CORPOPATE SCANDALS DC Council To Vote On Whether Evans Should Be Removed As Finance Committee Chair. EFTA00147484 The Washington Post (7/8, Thompson, Jamison, Stark, 14.2M) reports that the Washington, DC City Council "is scheduled to vote" today on whether Council member Jack Evans "should be removed as chairman of the Committee on Finance and Revenue and whether to hire an outside law firm to investigate him." Evans, "a fixture of city politics since his 1991 election and an ally to the business community for decades, has been under scrutiny for his private consulting work for several prominent companies with interests before the D.C. government." The Post notes that "since the fall, a federal grand jury has issued several subpoenas to governmental bodies seeking documents about Evans and his clients." The FBI "recently searched his home, and Evans resigned from the Metro board last month after The Post reported that an investigation had found evidence that he committed ethics violations at the transit agency, where he had served as chairman." Attorneys For Philadelphia Union Official, Councilman Seek Dismissal Of Charges. The Philadelphia Tribune (7/8, Mitchell, 118K) reports, "Lawyers for John Dougherty, business manager of Local 98 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, and City Councilman Bobby Henon asked a judge Monday to dismiss multiple charges from a 116-count federal indictment against the two." According to the Tribune, "Dougherty's attorney Henry Hockeimer Jr. and Henon's attorney Brian J. McMonagle argued that the approximately $70,000 salary and Eagles football game tickets the union gave Henon for his work for the union in 2015 and 2016 represented a conflict of interest, and not criminality on either part of the two men." The indictment "included various charges, including conspiracy to embezzle labor union funds, falsification of labor union financial records, and making false statements to the FBI." FBI: Texas State Employee Took Bribes For Fraudulent Trucker Licenses. The San Antonio Express-News (7/8, Contreras, 762K) reports, "Authorities have uncovered a scheme in which a San Antonio-area state employee took bribes to issue more than 200 commercial driver's licenses to people who didn't take the required test." According to the Express-News, "The employee of the Texas Department of Public Safety commercial driver's license division is believed to have taken tens of thousands of dollars in bribes to fraudulently issue 215 commercial driver's licenses between January 2017 and June of this year, according to the FBI." Authorities "would not release the name of the employee nor the specific DPS office loc