East Boston Man Convicted for Multiple Bank Robberies

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Boston – An East Boston man was sentenced yesterday infederal court for multiple counts of armed bank robbery.
William DeVencinzi, 49, was sentenced by U.S. District JudgeDouglas P. Woodlock to 210 months in prison, to be followed by five years ofsupervised release and restitution. In July, DeVencinzi pleaded guilty to twocounts of armed bank robbery and two counts of attempted armed bank robbery.
DeVincenzi and his accomplice, Theodore Sawtelle, robbedEast Boston Savings Bank on Revere Beach Parkway in Everett and Bank of Americain Winthrop on March 3 and 4, 2011, respectively. In both robberies, he placeda pipe bomb on the teller's counter. DeVincenzi obtained $1,900 in cash fromthe Everett robbery and more than $3,000 in cash from the Winthrop robbery.
Following the two robberies, the FBI's Violent Crimes TaskForce developed a profile of the individuals suspected in the armed robberiesand local media published bank surveillance photos from the crimes. As aresult, the FBI received many tips and focused their attention on DeVincenzi,who was well known to the FBI having been previously convicted of armed bankrobberies and manslaughter in the 1980s.
Agents began surveillance on DeVincenzi. On March 8, 2011,DeVincenzi and Sawtelle were observed approaching the Bank of America on CanalStreet in Boston. DeVincenzi was observed changing into a blue N.Y. Yankeeswindbreaker and donning a pair of sunglasses and hat, and placing a pipe bombinto a green accordion-style folder as they approached Canal Street. Prior toentering the Bank of America, a uniformed Boston Police officer, unrelated tothe investigation appeared, and the pair abruptly turned around and left thearea.
The following morning, surveillance teams located DeVincenziand Sawtelle as they approached the Bank of America on Canal Street, and again,observed DeVincenzi changing into the N.Y. Yankees windbreaker, sunglasses andhat, and carrying the same accordion-style folder as they approached CanalStreet. The pair were arrested, and a six inch piece of pipe with an electronicmechanism was found inside the green accordion-style folder. The device wasdetermined to be rendered inert.
On September 25, 2012, Sawtelle was sentenced by JudgeWoodlock for his role in the two attempted bank robberies. Sawtelle wassentenced to 48 months in prison to be followed by five years of supervisedrelease.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz, Richard DesLauriers,Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation - Boston FieldDivision; Guy Thomas, Special Agent in Charge of the ATF - Boston FieldDivision; Commissioner Edward Davis, Boston Police Department; Colonel TimothyP. Alben, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police; Chief Terence M.Delehanty, Winthrop Police Department; and Chief Steven A. Mazzie, EverettPolice Department made the announcement today. The case was prosecuted byAssistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth G. Shine of Ortiz's Major Crime Unit.

Two "Fat City" Convenience Store Operators Plead Guilty to Arson

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NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – WAEL HAMMAD, age 37, and ALAAHAMMAD, age 30, both residents of Gretna, Louisiana, pleaded guilty today infederal court before U. S. District Judge Eldon E. Fallon to a two countindictment charging each with conspiracy to commit arson and arson for the firewhich occurred at Fat City Discount on December 14, 20111, announced U.S.Attorney Jim Letten.  The investigation revealed that the a fire which occurred atFat City Discount Market on December 14, 2011was intentionally set by WAELHAMMAD and ALAA HAMMAD who operated the business.
For each arson count each of the Hammads faces a maximumterm of twenty (20) years imprisonment, a fine of up to $250,000.00 and aminimum three (3) years of supervised release following any term ofimprisonment.
Judge Fallon ordered a pre-sentence investigation for thecourt, remanded each defendant back to jail and set their sentencing forJanuary 3, 2013.
The case was investigated by the ATF and the JeffersonParish Fire Investigator's Office.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U. S. AttorneyTony G. Sanders.

Brothers Sentenced to Lengthy Prison Terms for Drug and Gun Violations

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NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – ARTHUR HARRIS, age 21, and hisbrother ANDRE HARRIS, age 26, both residents of New Orleans, Louisiana, weresentenced today by U. S. District Judge Carl Barbier to lengthy terms infederal prison, announced U. S. Attorney Jim Letten.
ARTHUR HARRIS was sentenced to serve over forty (40) years(481 months) in federal prison. The breakdown of the sentence is as follows:Counts 1 - drug conspiracy, Count 2 - gun conspiracy, and Counts 3 and 5 -possession with the intent to distribute crack cocaine – 121 monthsincarceration. Count 4 - possession of a firearm in furtherance of his drugtrafficking activities – 60 consecutive months incarceration. Count 6 -possession of a firearm in furtherance of his drug trafficking activities,second offense – 300 consecutive months incarceration.
ANDRE HARRIS was sentenced to serve over fifteen (15) years(181 months) in federal prison. The breakdown of the sentence is as follows:Count 1 - drug conspiracy, Count 2 - gun conspiracy, and Count 5 - possessionwith the intent to distribute crack cocaine – 121 months incarceration Count 6- possession of a firearm in furtherance of his drug trafficking activities –60 consecutive months incarceration.
In addition to the term of imprisonment, Judge Barbierimposed three (3) years of supervisory release on each defendant following theterm of imprisonment, during which time each defendant will be under federalsupervision and risks an additional term of imprisonment should he violate anyterms of his supervised release.
The brothers were convicted in December 2011 after a jurytrial in federal court of participating in a conspiracy to distribute cocainebase ("crack"), a conspiracy to use firearms in furtherance of theirdrug trafficking crimes, and several other substantive counts of possessionwith the intent to distribute crack cocaine and the possession of firearms infurtherance of their drug trafficking offenses.
This case was investigated by Special Agents of the ATF, theUnited States Marshals Service and the New Orleans Police Department. Thismatter was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Sharan Lieberman andMaurice E. Landrieu, Jr .

ATF Offers $5,000 Reward for Information on Retail Gun Theft

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Investigators Seek Public's Help in Solving Crime,Recovering Stolen Guns
BUFORD, Ga. – Special Agent in Charge Scott Sweetow of theAtlanta Field Division, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives(ATF) today announced ATF is offering a reward of up to $5,000 for informationleading to the arrest and conviction of the persons responsible for the theftof firearms occurring at federal firearms licensee (FFL) Buck-N-Bass located at4901 Summer Oak Drive, Gwinnett County, Ga. on Sept. 14.
"The burglary and theft of firearms from an FFL is avery serious crime and a top priority for ATF," said Sweetow. "Havinginvestigated similar cases in the past, we know stolen firearms are used infurtherance of drug- and gang-related activities and are utilized by violentcriminals to perpetrate additional crimes."
During the early morning hours on Sept. 14, Buck-N-Bass, wasburglarized by unknown persons. The suspect(s) used a stolen pickup truck tosmash into the front door and wall of the business gaining entry. Numerousfirearms consisting of handguns and rifles were stolen. There's no furtherinformation or description of the suspect(s) or crime available at this time.
ATF and the Gwinnett Police Department are seeking thepublic's assistance in identifying those responsible. Anyone with informationis encouraged to call ATF at (404) 379-1152 or call the ATF Hotline at1-800-ATF-GUNS (800-283-4867). Callers can remain anonymous.
More information about ATF and its programs is available atwww.atf.gov.

ATF Offers $10,000 Reward for Information on Unsolved Homicide

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Investigators Seek Public's Help in Solving Murder
ROME, Ga. – On Jan. 9, 2010, masked gunmen entered thefamily home of Leapolde Cardenas, located in the 1900 block of Burnett FerryRoad in Rome, Ga. Cardenas was not present at the time of the intrusion but hiswife and juvenile children were in the house. The assailants took control ofCardenas' wife and children and held them captive inside the residence untilCardenas arrived.
The family was held in a bedroom while Mr. Cardenas wasforced at gunpoint to go to his wife's grocery store in the Rome area, known asCelia's Grocery. Mr. Cardenas was then forced to go into the store's office andempty the safe. He was then taken back to the residence where he was shot andkilled. The other family members did not suffer any physical harm.
"In any investigation involving a homicide, it isimportant to help families who have suffered the tragic loss of a loved onebring closure to their loss," said Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearmsand Explosives (ATF) Special Agent in Charge of the Atlanta Field DivisionScott Sweetow. "As ATF continues its mission as the violent crime bureau,we will see to it these criminals are removed from our streets so that our communitiesremain a safe place to live and prosper."
In the years since his tragic death, detectives with theFloyd County Police Department along with agents from the ATF and the FBI havecontinued to investigate Cardenas' murder. Unfortunately, the evidence gatheredhas led to few viable leads which prompted ATF to offer a $10,000 reward forinformation that leads to the arrest and prosecution of the responsibleindividual(s).
ATF, the FBI and the Floyd County Police Department areseeking the public's assistance in identifying those responsible. Anyone withinformation is encouraged to call ATF at (706) 614-1622 or call the ATF Hotlineat 1-800-ATF-GUNS (800-283-4867). Callers can remain anonymous.
More information about ATF and its programs is available atwww.atf.gov.

How To Replace "Class Participation" With "Professionalism" (Brilliant Idea!)

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Sometimes you go to a conference and come away energized - full of new thoughts and ideas.  And sometimes you go to a conference and are lucky to come away with just one new idea.  The American Association of University Professor's Annual Conference in DC a few weeks ago was more of the latter than the former for me -- but that one idea was a real doozy!

I had been paired serendipitously with Dr. Alice Armstrong, a computer science professor from Shippensberg University, on a pedagogy panel.  While I gave my presentation on "The 5 Myths Of Game-based Learning" (more on this later this week) to the, shall we say, "modest" crowd that had assembled for the 0830 start time, Alice really engaged both me and the crowd with her approach to instilling professional standards in her students (It all revolves around the chart below -- but more on that in a moment).

Alice (and her co-author, Dr. Carol Wellington) were facing a serious problem.  Their capstone class, like many capstone classes, asked their students to pursue an independent, long term project.   Despite their best efforts to keep these students in the game, they were still facing failure and incomplete rates that were (combined) hovering around 33%.

Their analysis of this problem indicated that the difficulties were not technical or knowledge based - the students had the skills to do the projects.  Instead, the problems were behavioral; sticking with a schedule, staying in touch with their technical mentors, meeting intermediate deadlines, etc.  Solving this problem seemed difficult if not impossible.

Now comes the brilliant part...

Their solution to the problem was to separate the course grade into two components.  The first part is your standard, old grading system based on how well the students did the various assignments.  Like any standard course grade, you start with a zero and then, as tests and assignments accumulate, your grade emerges as a function of the average of how well you did on those tests and assignments.

The second part is where they did something different and very, very cool.  The second half of the grade is a "professionalism" grade.  Students start with 100% and can only lose points for being "unprofessional." 

I will define "unprofessional" in a second but think for a moment just how clever this is.  In the first place, it does away with the nebulous "class participation" grade.  In the second place, it emphasizes something that faculty in applied professions, like law, medicine, engineering, architecture, computer science and intelligence, value dearly -- professionalism.  Third (and I love this one), it mimics the employer's opinion of an employee.

Think about it:  You just got hired by a company or agency.  You were selected to fill a slot over a bunch of other qualified applicants.  The assumption is that you are the best available candidate for that job.  Because you are new, you are going to be watched and because you are being watched you are going to have chances to disappoint - to make the boss wonder if he really did hire the best candidate - not just with respect to your knowledge but also with respect to your behavior.  It may not be particularly fair, but it is true.

Talking about it is all fine and good, but how do you make it real in the classroom?  If you are like me, you have probably seen a number of potential flaws in this approach.  Here is once again where our friends at Shippensburg impress.  Look at the list below.  I am hard pressed to find much that is objectionable about it.  Lateness, missing appointments, etc.  Those are things we are probably counting off for anyway.
To get the final grade for each student, Alice and her colleagues multiply the content and professionalism scores.  Look at the chart near the top of this post again:  This effectively means that the best you can ever do is the lower of the two grades and that, quite often, your overall grade will be less than the average of your two grades.  Alice and her colleagues believe that this is the key innovation in this approach.

I have to disagree with that a bit.  I think the key innovation is not in the specifics but in the approach itself.  By focusing on professionalism as an attribute that you are expected to have and can only lose, Alice and her colleagues have changed its psychological value.  Loss aversion is a well understood effect and Alice reported that her students responded as any good psychologist would expect:  They hated to lose professionalism points!

Regardless why it works, it certainly seems to be working.  They cut their failure and incomplete rates in half.  They are so happy with the system that they are pushing in down their curriculum to their freshman classes (there they do give students the opportunity to earn points back, though).  One of the most important endorsements of the process actually came from outside the university:  The computer science department's industry advisory council loves it.

I am thinking about implementing some aspects of this system in my own classes.  While I think the Shippensburg system is pretty harsh, I can understand their reasoning.  I would not want half or more of my points tied up with issues like lateness and missing deadlines, though.  Frankly, those kinds of things have  rarely been a problem in any of my classes here at Mercyhurst. 

More important to me is the point of such a system:  To send a signal that professionalism matters and that it is something you are expected to have and can only lose.  Getting away from the more wishy-washy "class participation" grade and moving towards something that is both important and helps the students is a strong step in the right direction, in my opinion.

Top 5 Things Only Spies Used To Do (But Everyone Does Now)

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There has been a good bit of recent evidence that the gap between what spies do and what we all do is narrowing -- and the spies are clearly worried about it.

GEN David Petraeus, Director of the CIA, started the most recent round of hand-wringing back in March when he gave a speech at the In-Q-Tel CEO Summit:

"First, given the digital transparency I just mentioned, we have to rethink our notions of identity and secrecy...We must, for example, figure out how to protect the identity of our officers who increasingly have a digital footprint from birth, given that proud parents document the arrival and growth of their future CIA officer in all forms of social media that the world can access for decades to come."

Richard Fadden, the Director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), added his own thoughts in a speech only recently made public:

"In today's information universe of WikiLeaks, the Internet and social media, there are fewer and fewer meaningful secrets for the James Bonds of the world to steal," Fadden told a conference of the Canadian Association of Professional Intelligence Analysts in November 2011. "Suddenly the ability to make sense of information is as valued a skill as collecting it."

Next I ran across a speech given by Robert Grenier, a former case officer, chief of station and 27 year veteran of the clandestine service, given at a conference at the University of Delaware.  In it, he describes the moment he realized that the paradigm was shifting (and not in his favor):

"Grenier said he came to realize the practice of espionage would have to change when he received a standard form letter at a hotel overseas, while undercover, thanking him for visiting again.  When he realized electronic records now tracked where he had been for certain date ranges, he said he knew the practice of espionage was going to have to change.  “It was like the future in a flash that opened up before my eyes,” Grenier said."

(Note:  While I could not embed the video here, the entire one hour speech is well worth watching.  The part of particular relevance to this post begins around minute 8 in the video.   This is, by the way, fantastic stuff for use in an intelligence studies class).

Finally  (and what really got me thinking), one of my students made an off-handed comment regarding his own security practices.  I needed to send him a large attachment and I asked for his Gmail account. In response, he gave me his "good" address, explaining that he only used his other Gmail address as a "spam account", i.e. when he had to give a valid email address to a website he suspected was going to fill his in-box with spam.

That's when it hit me.  Not only is it getting harder to be a traditional spy, it is getting easier (far easier) to do the kinds of things that only spies used to do.  The gap is clearly closing from both ends.

With all this exposition in mind, here is my list of the Top 5 Things Only Spies Used To Do (But Everyone Does Now) -- Don't hesitate to leave your own additions in the comments:

#5 -- Have a cover story.  That is precisely what my student was doing with his spam account.  In fact, most people I know have multiple email accounts for various aspects of their lives.  This is just the beginning, though.  How many of us use different social media platforms for different purposes?  Take a look at someone you are friends with on Facebook and are connected to on LinkedIn and I'll bet you can spot all the essential elements of a cover story.  Need more proof?  Watch the video below:


The only reason we think this ad is funny is because we intuitively understand the idea of "cover" and we understand the consequences of having that cover blown.

#4 -- Shake a tail.   It used to be that spies had to be in their Aston Martins running from burly East Germans to qualify as someone in the process of "shaking a tail."  Today we are mostly busy running from government and corporate algorithms that are trying to understand our every action and divine our every need, but the concept is the same.  Whether you are doing simple stuff like using a search engine like DuckDuckGo that doesn't track you or engaging "porn mode" on your Firefox or Chrome browser, or more sophisticated stuff like enabling the popular cookie manager, NoScript, or even more sophisticated stuff like using Tor or some other proxy server service to mask your internet habits, we are using increasingly sophisticated tools to help us navigate the internet without being followed.

#3 -- Use passwords and encrypt data.  Did you buy anything over the internet in the last week or so?  Chances are good you used a password and encrypted your data (or, if you didn't, don't be surprised when you wind up buying a dining room set for someone in Minsk).  Passwords used to be reserved for sturdy doors in dingy alleyways, for safe houses or for entering friendly lines.  Now they are so common that we need password management software to keep up with them all.  Need more examples? Ever use an HTTPS site?  Your business make you use a Virtual Private Network?  The list is endless.

#2 -- Have an agent network.  Sure, that's not what we call them, but that is what they are:  LinkedIn, Yelp, Foursquare and the best agent network of all -- Twitter.  An agent network is a group of humans who we have vetted and recruited to help us get the information we want.   How is that truly different from making a connection on LinkedIn or following someone on Twitter?  We "target" (identify people who might be useful to us in some way), "vet" their credentials (look at their profiles, websites, Google them), "recruit" them (Easy-peasy!  Just hit "follow"...), and then, once the trust relationship has been established, "task" them as assets ("Please RT!" or "Can you introduce me?" or "Contact me via DM").  Feel like a spy now (or just a little bit dirtier)?

#1 -- Use satellites.  Back in 2000, I went to work at the US Embassy in The Hague.  I worked on a daily basis with the prosecutors at the International Criminal Tribunal For the Former Yugoslavia.  That collaboration, while not always easy, bore results like the ones that led US Judge Patricia Wald to say, "I found most astounding in the Srebrenica case the satellite aerial image photography furnished by the U.S. military intelligence  (Ed. Note:  See example) which pinpointed to the minute movements on the ground of men and transports in remote Eastern Bosnian locations. These photographs not only assisted the prosecution in locating the mass grave sites over hundreds of miles of terrain, they were also introduced to validate its witnesses’ accounts of where thousands of civilians were detained and eventually killed."  It is hard to believe that only 12 years ago this was state of the art stuff.

Today, from Google Earth to the Satellite Sentinel Project, overhead imagery combined with hyper-detailed maps are everywhere.  And that is just the start.  We use satellites to make our phone calls, to get our television, and to guide our cars, boats and trucks.  We use satellites to track our progress when we work out and to track our packages in transit.  Most of us carry capabilities in our cell phones, enabled by satellites, that were not even dreamed of by the most sophisticated of international spies a mere decade ago.

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If this is today, what will the future bring?  Will we all be writing our own versions of Stuxnet and Flame?  Or, more likely, will we be using drones to scout the perfect campsite?  Feel free to speculate in the comments!