Md. man sentenced for unruly house parties awaits fate on terrorism charges – WTOP News
A Montgomery County Circuit Court judge sentenced a man Thursday to six months in jail and five years probation on charges of disturbing the peace in connection with a series of house parties he hosted — but that may be the least of his legal worries.
Eric Tataw’s sentence will be suspended, as the 39-year-old remains in federal custody on bank fraud and terrorism charges related to accusations he tried to funnel money to a Cameroonian separatist organization.
Tataw was also accused of raping an attendee of one of the pool parties hosted at his Gaithersburg, Maryland, home, but the charge was later dismissed.
Three witnesses testified Thursday at his sentencing hearing, with one saying the parties turned their lives into a “living hell” and that they feared for their lives when they were happening.
Neighbor Jung Lee said he and his fellow neighbors witnessed people using the bathroom on residents’ yards, fireworks being shot off and hired armed guards trying to get people to pay to park on their own street.
Tataw remains held at the Chesapeake Federal Detention Center in Baltimore. His federal charges stem from accusations he tried to funnel money to a Cameroonian separatist organization called the Cameroonian Diaspora, worked to provide support to armed separatist groups and sent threats to harm or kidnap Cameroonian civilians.
According to court documents, armed separatist groups in Cameroon’s northwest and southwest regions are fighting to create a new country called “Ambazonia.” The groups have attacked both military and civilian targets to pressure the government to allow the regions to secede. The fighters are often referred to as the “Amba Boys.”
The indictment states Tataw helped provide money, weapons and personnel to the Amba Boys in Cameroon starting in 2018. He also allegedly encouraged attacks on civilians, including murder, kidnapping and mutilation. Court documents say Tataw referred to the practice of cutting off people’s limbs as “Garriing,” calling himself the “Garri Master,” according to a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement news release.
In April, Tataw pleaded guilty to bank fraud for obtaining multiple fraudulent COVID-19 relief loans for his company, National Telegraph LLC. He also admitted trying to obstruct justice by giving fake documents to a grand jury witness and instructing her to present them to the grand jury. Tataw made false statements and submitted fake documents on his loan applications, inflating National Telegraph’s payroll, revenue and number of employees. He fraudulently obtained $163,302 in PPP funds, most of which he used for personal expenses, and sought an additional $150,000 EIDL loan. In total, he intended to fraudulently obtain about $313,302, according to a U.S. Department of Justice news release.
Tataw is awaiting sentencing on the bank fraud guilty plea and has yet to stand trial on the federal terrorism charges.
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