SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Quinten Giovanni Moody, aka Christano Rossi, 39, of Dublin, was sentenced today to seven years in prison for aggravated identity theft, obstruction of justice, and conspiracy to distribute marijuana, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
Moody committed felonies involving drugs and identity theft, then doubled down by obstructing justice, said U.S. Attorney Talbert. After making hundreds of thousands of dollars distributing marijuana across the country and fraudulently claiming unemployment insurance benefits during the coronavirus pandemic, he used phony court documents in a failed attempt to get the FBI to release property seized during the federal investigation.
According to court documents, between June 2017 and June 2022, Moody, co-defendant Myra Boleche Minks, 46, formerly of Roseville, and other co-conspirators generated hundreds of thousands of dollars by transporting marijuana from California to Georgia, Nevada, Texas, and other locations. Moody and others bought marijuana in California and then transported the marijuana to distributors in other states via couriers and baggage traveling on commercial airplanes and commercial shipping services.
Once the marijuana was sold, Moody and others caused the proceeds of the marijuana sales to be returned to them in California by using couriers to travel on commercial airline flights carrying cash, using shipping services to ship cash, and causing others at their direction to deposit cash into bank accounts.
Moody and others also committed unemployment insurance fraud during the COVID-19 pandemic. Beginning in August 2020, Moody, Minks, and co-defendant Jessica Tang, 49, of Sacramento, participated in a scheme to submit fraudulent claims of unemployment benefits through the California Employment Development Department (EDD). As part of this scheme, on Sept. 4, 2020, Moody used a Bank of America debit card in the name of an identity theft victim to make purchases at a Cartier store and Louis Vuitton store in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Moody sought to obstruct the investigation into his activities by using faked court documents. As part of the investigation, the United States applied for seizure warrants for a 1969 Chevrolet Camaro and a 1956 Chevrolet pickup that Moody purchased with the proceeds of his criminal activities. On April 15, 2022, personnel from the FBI seized the two vehicles in Georgia pursuant to the seizure warrants issued in the Eastern District of California. The vehicles were transported to the FBI’s Atlanta Field Office for storage.
On May 8, 2022, at approximately 9:30 p.m., a flatbed truck from towing company arrived at the FBI’s Atlanta field office. The tow truck driver informed FBI security personnel that he had been directed to retrieve the vehicles from FBI’s custody. The tow truck driver gave FBI security personnel documents, including a document purporting to be an order issued by the Honorable John K. Larkins III, U.S. Magistrate Judge for the Northern District of Georgia. The documents purported to order the U.S. Marshal and the FBI to release the vehicles. The documents, however, were fraudulent and had been created by Moody and Minks for the purpose of fraudulently obtaining custody of the two seized vehicles.
Related Federal Cases
- Quinten Giovanni Moody, Identity Theft, California 2023 · California
- Quinten Giovanni Moody, Nationwide Drug Trafficking, California 2022 · Oklahoma
- Amgen Inc, Pharmaceutical Misrepresentation, California 2024 · Oklahoma
- Michael J. Moore, Tax Fraud & Identity Theft, Nevada 2026 · Texas
- Amgen Pays $71M for Pushing Drugs Off-Label · Oklahoma
Key Facts
- State: California
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Fraud & Financial Crimes|Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
ðŸâ€Â’ Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →
MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS
US NewsUS NewsUS NewsUS News