United States v. Han

280 F. Supp. 3d 144
CourtDistrict Court, District of Columbia
DecidedDecember 1, 2017
DocketCriminal No. 2015-0142
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 280 F. Supp. 3d 144 (United States v. Han) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, District of Columbia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Han, 280 F. Supp. 3d 144 (D.D.C. 2017).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION

JAMES E. BOASBERG, United States District Judge

Defendant Michael Hah allegedly promised investors that his company Envión would usher in .a black gold rush-by turning plastic back into oil. According to the Government, although that concept never materialized, it did not stop Han from stringing along his financers, ultimately defrauding them out of nearly $40 million. With trial a couple of months away, Defendant now brings several Motions challenging the validity of the Indictment. Specifically, he asks the Court .to:.. (1) require the Government to provide a bill of particulars; (2) dismiss Counts 10 and 11 as lacking venue; (3) ■ dismiss Count 12 for first-degree fraud as duplicative of the wire-fraud charges (Counts 1 and 2); and (4) dismiss Count 3 for securities fraud as failing to state an offense. Finding no merit in any of these positions, the Court Will deny all of the Motions.

I. Background

On September 14, 2017, a grand jury returned a 12-count superseding Indictment against Defendant. In considering Han’s Motions at this" stage, the Court takes the facts as allegéd in the Indictment as true. See United States v. Ballestas, 795 F.3d 138, 149 (D.C. Cir. 2015). A very brief synopsis follows here, while facts pertinent to particular Motions are set forth in the corresponding Analysis sections below.

Beginning in early 2004 and continuing until at least November 2011, Han was Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, and President of science and technology companies Envión Inc, and Envión Industries, LLC. See Indictment, ¶ 1. During this time, Defendant resided in, and - Envión operated out of,,the District of Columbia, Virginia, and Florida. Id., ¶¶ 1, 2. Claiming that Envión owned a U.S. patent for a machine that could, turn plastic into oil— the“EZ Oil Generator” — Han solicited investments for thq company. Id., ¶ 2. Two investors ponied, up nearly $40 million to support Enyion’s mission and growth. Id., ¶ 14. Particularly relevant here is an, October 2010 investment of $20 million from Defendant’s main backer.. Id., ¶ 39. After they agreed on, the terms, Han instructed a bank to send the $20 million to his personal bank account. Id., ¶ 40. Approximately two months later, Defendant emailed the investor a promissory note for that sum. Id., ¶ 42.

Despite the nearly $40 million in total investments, Envión never actually owned the claimed patent nor had the capability to create or deliver oil generators. Id., ¶ 12. Instead, Han diverted the money for his personal benefit, including purchasing two multi-million-dollar pieces of real estate, using millions to pay off credit-card balances, and withdrawing hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash. Id., ¶¶ 29-30, 38, 41.

Based on this scheme, the Government charged Han with two counts of wire fraud, 18 U.S.C. § 1343; one count of .securities fraud, 15 U.S.C. §§ 78j(b), 78ff; six counts of engaging in unlawful monetary transactions, 18 U.S.C. § 1957; two counts of tax evasion, 26 U.S.C. § 7201; and one count of first-degree fraud, D.C. Code § 22-3221(a). A trial is set to take place in February 2018.

II. Legal Standard

Under Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 12, a defendant may, before trial, allege that án indictment is facially defective on the basis of duplicity, multiplicity, “lack of specificity, improper join-der, [or] failure to státé an offense.” In reviewing such a motion, the court is “limited to reviewing the face of the indictment and, more specifically, the language used to charge the crimes.” United States v. Sunia, 643 F.Supp.2d 51, 60 (D.D.C. 2009) (quoting United States v. Sharpe, 438 F.3d 1257, 1263 (11th Cir. 2006)) (emphasis in original); see United States v. Hitt, 249 F.3d 1010, 1015 (D.C. Cir. 2001). “[A]n indictment is sufficient if it, first, contains the elements of the offense charged and fairly informs a defendant of the charge against which he must defend, and, second, enables him to plead an acquittal or conviction in bar of future prosecutions for the same offense.” Hamling v. United States, 418 U.S. 87, 117, 94 S.Ct. 2887, 41 L.Ed.2d 590 (1974). The court presumes the allegations in the indictment are true and “may not dismiss an indictment ... on a determination of facts that should have been developed at trial.” United States v. Engle, 676 F.3d 405, 415 (4th Cir. 2012) (citation omitted).

III. Analysis

Han argues in his multiple Motions that the Indictment here is flawed for four reasons: (1) it does not contain sufficient detail to allow him to mount a defense; (2) D.C. is not the proper venue for the tax-evasion charges; (3) first-degree fraud under the D.C. Code is duplicative of the federal wire-fraud counts; and (4) Count 3 does not state an offense because the promissory notes were not “securities” under the Exchange Act. The Court considers each in turn.

A. Bill of Particulars

The Court can swiftly dispose of Defendant’s Motion for a Bill of Particulars. See ECF No. 39. While an indictment need only allege “the essential facts constituting the offense charged,” Fed. R. Crim. P. 7(c)(1), a defendant may request additional information through a bill of particulars “to ensure that the charges brought against [him] are stated with enough precision to allow, [him] to understand the charges, to prepare a defense, and perhaps also to be protected against retrial on the same charges.” United States v. Butler, 822 F.2d 1191, 1193 (D.C. Cir. 1987). Unlike a Rule 12 motion, the court may look beyond the indictment to determine, in its discretion, whether to direct the Government to file a bill of particulars. See id.; Fed. R. Crim. P. 7(f). “[I]f the indictment is sufficiently specific, or if the requested information is available in some other form, then a bill of particulars” is generally not justified. Butler, 822 F.2d at 1198. A defendant may not use a bill of particulars as a “discovery tool or a devise [sic] for allowing the defense to preview the government’s theories or evidence.” United States v. Ramirez, 54 F.Supp.2d 25, 29 (D.D.C. 1999).

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Bluebook (online)
280 F. Supp. 3d 144, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-han-dcd-2017.