BAKERSFIELD, CA -- US Attorney Benjamin Wagner has announced the 2013 winners of the Eastern District of California Law Enforcement awards. One of those was handed out Wednesday to a Bakersfield Police officer.
The winner of Fresno Division's Outstanding Investigator Award is Bakersfield Police Officer Paul Yoon for his service as the lead task force officer for the Central California Financial Crimes Task Force. Yoon is a motivated team-player. Since 2009, Yoon has been responsible for supervising other task force officers and developing his own federal cases. He has a vast knowledge of individuals, companies, and criminal conduct in Kern County.
U.S. Attorney Wagner stated: "Officer Yoon brought his 15 years' experience as a Bakersfield police officer to the task force. His willingness to share his detailed knowledge of the area and to go above and beyond to make sure that criminals are brought to justice has been a key component to the success of the task force."
Yoon's first major task force case was the "MTA" case that involved a fraudulent debt-collection ring. The main suspects in the case started their fraudulent business in Bakersfield but fled to Southern California once their scheme was discovered. Yoon regularly traveled to Los Angeles to conduct surveillance of the targets, living out of his vehicle for days at a time. More than $1 million in currency and other assets was seized. The three defendants in this case were sentenced to significant prison terms in 2012.
In addition to the MTA case, Yoon has investigated several businesses in Bakersfield involved in currency crimes, such as structuring and money laundering. Those cases have led to more than $1 million in seizures since 2012. He has also supervised other task force officers in preparing seizure warrants in other currency crime cases.
Other winners of the 2013 United States Attorney's Office-Eastern District of California Law Enforcement Awards are the Fresno Police Department for their work to address gang and gun violence, Elk Grove Police Department for their investigations into indoor marijuana grows, and Detective Scott Maldonado of the Sacramento Police Department for his work with the IRS Financial Crimes Task Force.
The winner of Fresno Division's Outstanding Investigator Award is Bakersfield Police Officer Paul Yoon for his service as the lead task force officer for the Central California Financial Crimes Task Force. Yoon is a motivated team-player. Since 2009, Yoon has been responsible for supervising other task force officers and developing his own federal cases. He has a vast knowledge of individuals, companies, and criminal conduct in Kern County.
U.S. Attorney Wagner stated: "Officer Yoon brought his 15 years' experience as a Bakersfield police officer to the task force. His willingness to share his detailed knowledge of the area and to go above and beyond to make sure that criminals are brought to justice has been a key component to the success of the task force."
Yoon's first major task force case was the "MTA" case that involved a fraudulent debt-collection ring. The main suspects in the case started their fraudulent business in Bakersfield but fled to Southern California once their scheme was discovered. Yoon regularly traveled to Los Angeles to conduct surveillance of the targets, living out of his vehicle for days at a time. More than $1 million in currency and other assets was seized. The three defendants in this case were sentenced to significant prison terms in 2012.
In addition to the MTA case, Yoon has investigated several businesses in Bakersfield involved in currency crimes, such as structuring and money laundering. Those cases have led to more than $1 million in seizures since 2012. He has also supervised other task force officers in preparing seizure warrants in other currency crime cases.
Other winners of the 2013 United States Attorney's Office-Eastern District of California Law Enforcement Awards are the Fresno Police Department for their work to address gang and gun violence, Elk Grove Police Department for their investigations into indoor marijuana grows, and Detective Scott Maldonado of the Sacramento Police Department for his work with the IRS Financial Crimes Task Force.