Press Release

Bolivar, Missouri Woman Sentenced for Being a Felon in Possession of a Firearm

Tuesday, August 18, 2026

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Bolivar, Mo. woman was sentenced in federal court today for her illegal possession of a firearm.

Summer Gomes, 44, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Beth Phillips for her conviction of being a felon illegally in possession of a firearm. This defendant was charged as part of Operation Spring Cleaning, an initiative in March led by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Missouri, in coordination with law enforcement agencies across Southwest Missouri.

On June 5, 2025, Gomes was contacted by law enforcement during a traffic stop for an improper display of a license plate.  During that contact, Gomes consented to a search of the vehicle she drove.  During the search, officers found a Jimenez Arms .22 caliber semiautomatic firearm, hundreds of rounds of ammunition, and marijuana.  Gomes was sentenced to 24 months’ imprisonment with the Federal Bureau of Prisons, followed by three years of post-release supervision, and payment of a $100 Special Assessment as required by law.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Carney. It was investigated by the FBI and the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

Project Safe Neighborhoods

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

 Press Release

Springfield Man Sentenced to 24 Months for Threatening to Blow Up Schools and Kill California District Attorney’s Office Employee

Thursday, August 27, 2026

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Springfield, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court for threatening to kill a prominent member of the California District Attorney’s office and bomb area schools.

David William Platek, 43, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Megan Blair Benton, to two years in federal prison, followed by three years supervised release. Platek previously pleaded guilty to threatening interstate communication. 

In 2019, the San Luis Obispo (SLO) County, Calif. District Attorney’s Office charged Platek with identity theft. Eventually, those charges were dismissed. After the dismissal, Platek moved to Springfield, Mo., and blamed a member of the SLO District Attorney’s Office for his prosecution, his “self-exile” to Missouri, and his inability to find employment.

Platek sent his friend, who was living in another state, in excess of 125 pages of text messages. In the text messages, Platek threatened to blow up schools in SLO County, as well as threatened to kill a prominent member of the SLO District Attorney’s Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Randall D. Eggert. It was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Operation Take Back America

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.

 Press Release

Three Men Sentenced for Providing Material Support to Separatists in Cameroon

Wednesday, August 26, 2026

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Three individuals have been sentenced in federal court for their roles in a conspiracy to provide material support or resources to kill, kidnap, and maim persons and use weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) in a foreign country. The defendants conspired to provide funds and equipment to separatist fighters in Cameroon to allow them to construct and use IEDs against various targets in the Northwest Region of Cameroon. 

Francis Chenyi, Sr., 52, of Saint Paul, Minn. and Lah Nestor Langmi, 49, of Buffalo, N.Y., both citizens of Cameroon, were sentenced to 180 months each in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release.

Claude Ngenevu Chi, 43, of Kansas City, Mo., was sentenced to 63 months, followed by three years of supervised release.

Previously, Chenyi and Langmi, both of whom are U.S. citizens of Cameroonian origin, were found guilty after a federal jury trial of one count of a conspiracy to provide material support or resources intended to be used to carry out conspiracies to kill, kidnap, and maim persons in a foreign country and to use a WMD outside the United States. Chenyi and Langmi were also found guilty of one count of being involved in an international money laundering conspiracy that transferred funds from the United States to Cameroon to promote conspiracies to kill, kidnap, and maim and use WMDs abroad. Additionally, Chenyi was convicted of conspiring to provide material support and resources to use a WMD abroad.

Chi previously pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to provide material support and resources to use WMDs abroad.

According to court documents and evidence from trial, Langmi sent an audio message to separatist fighters requesting they kidnap a traditional leader in Cameroon. Following a battle with Cameroonian forces, separatists took the traditional leader along with the Catholic Cardinal Christian Tumi, who was traveling with the traditional leader, from their vehicles. Following the kidnapping, Chenyi, provided the interrogation questions to be asked of the traditional leader and the Cardinal and approved the transferring of funds through peer-to-peer transactions to the separatist fighters in Cameroon to further the kidnapping.

Chenyi was involved in ransom payments by individuals outside of Cameroon for the release of family members taken in Cameroon and communicated with Langmi about these payments. Multiple instances occurred in which co-conspirators, including Langmi, requested funds to purchase IEDs or components of IEDs for construction and use in Cameroon that were approved and funded by Chenyi. Chenyi also coordinated with individuals in Cameroon to ensure separatist fighters he supported obtained training on IED use. The defendants corresponded with co-conspirators in Cameroon to coordinate development, payment for, and logistical support toward IED use upon targets in Cameroon.

Around Dec. 3, 2020, Chenyi was requested to provide funds for construction of multiple IEDs to be used in connection with efforts to enforce a lockdown of an area before an upcoming election. Chenyi, along with Chi, agreed to provide funds for the IEDs’ construction and Chenyi coordinated the transfer of funds from the United States through peer-to-peer transactions to the separatist fighters in Cameroon.

Langmi coordinated with, and provided funds to, an unindicted co-conspirator to develop IEDs and rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) in Cameroon and kept Chenyi apprised of the IED and RPG development.  Langmi also attempted to coordinate attacks near the 2021 African Cup of Nations soccer tournament hosted in Cameroon, as well as various cities throughout the Northwest Region in the spring of 2022.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sean T. Foley and Joseph M. Marquez for the Western District of Missouri, with the assistance of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation-Kansas City Field Office.

DEPORTED: ICE Deports Child Abusers, Kidnappers, and Robbers

 News Release:

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY Office of Public Affairs

DEPORTED: ICE Deports Child Abusers, Kidnappers, and Robbers The Trump Administration will never apologize for deporting illegal aliens WASHINGTON – The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released the following statement after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deported more illegal aliens last week, including those convicted of such crimes as child endangerment, kidnapping, and robbery. “Last week, the hard-working men and women of ICE deported more illegal aliens from our country, including child abusers, kidnappers, and robbers,” said DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin. “With so many illegal aliens deported from our country under President Trump’s leadership, it’s no wonder that crime rates have fallen to historic lows. The Trump Administration will never apologize for deporting illegal aliens and putting American citizens first.” The illegal aliens deported last week include:   Heriton Aredes, an illegal alien from Brazil, deported on August 26. His criminal history includes convictions for assault and battery, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, operating recklessly, and use of motor vehicle without authority, and an arrest for motor vehicle homicide by negligent operation. He illegally entered the United States at an unknown date and location. After a Department of Justice (DOJ) Immigration Judge issued Aredes a final order of removal on June 16, 2008, he was deported on October 14, 2008. He then illegally re-entered the United States – a felony – at an unknown date and location. Juan Hortencio Palacios-Gomez, an illegal alien from Honduras, deported on August 24. His criminal history includes convictions for felony domestic abuse – child endangerment, cruelty to juveniles, domestic abuse – battery by strangulation, and simple kidnapping, and arrests for possession of Schedule II narcotics, reckless operation of a vehicle, simple battery, theft of a motor vehicle, resisting an officer, and speeding. He illegally entered the United States at an unknown date and location. After a DOJ Immigration Judge issued Palacios-Gomez a final order of removal on February 16, 2024, he was deported on March 21, 2024. He then illegally re-entered the country – a felony – at an unknown date and location. Joel Garcia-Lopez, an illegal alien from Mexico, deported on August 24. His criminal history includes convictions for battery against a public safety official and public intoxication, and arrests for operating vehicle while intoxicated. He illegally entered the United States at an unknown date and location. A DOJ Immigration Judge issued Garcia-Lopez a final order of removal on August 7, 2026. Razi A. Butt, an illegal alien from Pakistan, deported on August 26. His criminal history includes convictions for robbery, unauthorized use of a vehicle, and disorderly conduct. He was lawfully admitted to the United States in January 2000, and illegally remained in the United States after his authorized period expired in January 2001. A DOJ Immigration Judge issued Butt a final order of removal on December 17, 2013. Jacsaint Florvil, an illegal alien from Haiti, deported on August 27. His criminal history includes a conviction for domestic violence. He illegally entered the United States through Arizona in November 2021, and was arrested by the U.S. Border Patrol. He was then RELEASED into the country by the Biden Administration. A DOJ Immigration Judge issued Florvil a final order of removal on May 11, 2026.

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