Former DOJ Contractor Charged with Mail Fraud in Theft of Cell Phones Valued at $1.3 Million

WASHINGTON - Javan King, 42, of Laurel, Maryland, has been charged with stealing thousands of government cell phones when he worked for the Department of Justice, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

According to the criminal Information, which was filed on Tuesday and appeared on the Court's docket today, between approximately 2021 and 2025 while he worked as an information technology contractor for the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division, King defrauded DOJ out of more than $1.3 million by successfully requesting that DOJ order thousands of mobile devices that the Department did not need.

After phones were shipped to King at DOJ, he sold them to phone reselling businesses. In total, those businesses paid him more than $1.3 million for the phones. The Information, which charges King with one count of mail fraud, further alleges that the Department of Justice suffered an actual loss of over $1.3 million because of fees that it paid AT&T for the unnecessary phone lines and phones.

This case is being investigated by the Department of Justice's Office of Inspector General. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kondi Kleinman.

An Information is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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