As part of a coordinated nationwide effort to fight COVID-19 fraud, the Southern District of Georgia has taken action against individuals who illegally obtained nearly $11 million in funds intended to help struggling small businesses during the global pandemic. One of those individuals is from Coffee County.
As announced by U.S. Attorney Jill E. Steinberg, and in conjunction with the Justice Department s nationwide effort, the Southern District of Georgia conducted more than 20 enforcement actions from May through July 2023, involving a total of $10.9 million in alleged COVID-19 relief fraud.
A South Georgia man who participated in a widespread drug-trafficking conspiracy and two former state prison guards who smuggled drugs behind bars are among the final defendants sentenced to federal prison as a major meth-distribution prosecution comes to a close.
An Iraqi national has been sentenced to federal prison after being convicted of attempting to smuggle guns through the Port of Savannah.
Nihad Al Jaberi, 43, of Clarkston, Ga., was sentenced to 94 months in prison after a U.S. District Court jury in February convicted him on charges of Smuggling, Failure to Notify a Common Carrier, and Submitting False or Misleading Export Information, said David H. Estes, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. U.S. District Court Judge R. Stan Baker also ordered that Al Jaberi be referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for deportation after completion of his prison term, and if not deported, Al Jaberi must serve three years of supervised release.