BOISE, Idaho – A large-scale Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation has resulted in the federal indictments of ten Magic Valley defendants on drug trafficking charges. An additional ten defendants have been charged in Idaho state courts for their actions connected to the conspiracy. “DEA stands with...

ALBANY, Ga. – Two Southwest Georgia residents with criminal pasts pleaded guilty to federal charges resulting from an armed drug trafficking investigation conducted by local, state and federal level law enforcement agencies. Justin Harris Vinson, 42, of Warwick, Georgia, pleaded guilty to one count of distribution of methamphetamine on Sept...

TACOMA, Wash. – Two men indicted in March 2023 as part of a drug distribution organization associated with an Aryan prison gang were sentenced in U.S. District Court in Tacoma for drug and gun crimes. Ronaldo McComb, 59, of Ridgefield, Washington, was sentenced to 13 years in prison. Isaac Cervantes...

SAVANNAH, GA: A physician who operates weight-loss clinics in the Savannah area has agreed to pay civil penalties and to accept increased oversight to resolve allegations that he violated the Controlled Substances Act. Dr. Donald Lyle Gates, who operates three Savannah-area Scale Solutions clinics, reached a settlement with the Southern...

NEW BERN, N.C. – Christian Ricardo Arce-Cazares, a 36-year-old resident of Las Vegas, Nevada, illegally present in the United States has been sentenced to 150 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and aiding and abetting the distribution of...

SEATTLE– A 46-year-old Pierce County man was sentenced last week in U.S. District Court in Seattle to seven years in prison for his repeated drug trafficking and firearms possession. Ryan James Townsend was indicted in November 2023, after two encounters with law enforcement. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge...

TACOMA, Wash. – The leader of a methamphetamine trafficking ring was sentenced Friday August 30, 2024, in U.S. District Court for federal felonies related to his drug trafficking. Jesus Venegas-Gatica, 37, of Lakewood, Washington was sentenced to 97 months. At the sentencing hearing Chief U.S. District Judge David G. Estudillo...

COLUMBIA, S.C. – James Brewer, 36, of Columbia was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to distribution of fentanyl. Evidence presented to the court showed that on April 22, 2022, Brewer and the victim, R.B., discussed the exchange of drugs and that Brewer sent R.B. a...

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – The leader of an extensive transnational drug trafficking organization was sentenced to 28 years in prison for running a conspiracy that trafficked vast amounts of dangerous drugs to Alaska. According to court documents, Miguel Baez Guevara, a.k.a. “Javi,” 41, a U.S. citizen who was living in Mexico...

BOISE, Idaho – Nathaniel Erik Walsh, 29, of Middleton, was sentenced to seven years in federal prison for distributing fentanyl that resulted in the death of an individual. According to court records, Walsh distributed six fentanyl pills to an individual on April 29, 2023. Walsh drove from Caldwell to Boise...