SENTENCING — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (USAO - Texas, Northern), published as received.

SENTENCING – Gary Morris (AUSA David Jarvis)
Following a four-day sentencing hearing, 70-year-old Gary Ronald Morris, of McKinney, was sentenced on March 6 to 5 years in federal prison and ordered to pay more than $2.2 million in restitution for his role in an investor fraud scheme. Mr. Morris pleaded guilty to wire fraud in May 2018. In his plea papers, Mr. Morris admitted he devised a scheme to defraud investors by deceiving them about the true state of his business, Greystone Digital Technologies.  He admits he sent emails to investors falsely claiming that a third party was willing to invest millions in Greystone’s “cargo scanner” project; that he was working closely with Federal Express on the scanner project; and that other companies had partnered with him on the scanner project. At the conclusion of the hearing, a U.S. District Judge ordered Mr. Morris taken into custody immediately.

INDICTMENT – Charles Grant (AUSA Walt Junker) 
On March 7, a federal grand jury indicted Charles Edward Grant, of Dallas, on two counts of bank robbery. Mr. Grant, 23, allegedly robbed two Dallas banks, a Chase Bank and a Bank of America, in January 2019. He faces up to 20 years in prison on each count.

PLEA -- Louis Medford (AUSA John Boyle)
Louis Douglas Medford pleaded guilty on March 7 to firearm and drug charges. Mr. Medford – who was an already convicted felon at the time -- admits he fled the scene of a June 2017 traffic stop after Garland police officers noticed marijuana in his vehicle.  Search of the vehicle later revealed a 9 mm Glock under the driver’s seat. Less than a month later, Mr. Medfords admits, he was stopped again, this time with 486 grams of marijuana, a digital scale, and several small plastic bags. This week, he pleaded guilty to two counts of  possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance, one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and one count of felon in possession of a firearm. The Garland Police Departmet] investigated. 

INDICTMENT* – Bertha Garay (AUSA Danielle Jones)
On March 6, 2019, a federal grand jury indicted Bertha Garay, 46, for theft of government funds, false statement to the Social Security Administration and Representative Payee Fraud.  She was allegedly receiving SSA benefits on behalf of her minor daughter as her representative payee.  However, her minor daughter was not in her custody and Ms. Garay was not using the benefits on her daughter.  She mislead SSA by submitting signed paperwork stating that her daughter lived with her and she was using the benefits for the care of her daughter.  If convicted of this case, Ms. Garay could potentially be compelled to pay back over $82,000. The SSA Office of the Inspector General investigated the case. 

SENTENCING -- Tony Contreras (AUSA George Leal)
On March 4, 39-year old Tony Contreras, of Hutchins, Texas, was sentenced to more than 8 years behind bars for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. According to court documents reflect, in February 2016, he ordered two kilograms of cocaine and one kilogram of methamphetamine from a co-defendant, and complained about a previous kilogram of methamphetamine being wet.  The co-defendant told Contreras he would call Contreras when the methamphetamine was ready but that no cocaine was available. The case was investigated by the FBI and the Criminal Investigations Division of the Internal Revenue Service.

SENTENCING -- Jose Juan Ortiz-Pacheco (AUSA George Leal)
On March 4, 23- year-old Jose Juan Ortiz-Pacheco, of Michoacán, Mexico, was sentenced to more than 7 years in federal prison for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine by United States District Judge Sam A. Lindsay.  Court documents reflect that in  March 2017, Ortiz-Pacheco and his two co-defendants were arrested with three kilograms of cocaine at an apartment complex after they offered to sell it to another individual.  It was noted at sentencing the defendant is an undocumented alien and should not have been in the United States at the time of the offense. The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Lewisville Police Department. 

* An indictment is merely an accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. All criminal defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.