Dallas, TX - An Albuquerque mother who concealed a deadly dose of fentanyl inside her children’s luggage pleaded guilty yesterday to a federal drug crime. Magdalena Silva Banuelos, 47, was indicted in November 2022. She pleaded guilty Wednesday to distribution of fentanyl before U.S. District Judge Barbara M.G. Lynn. In...

OMAHA, Neb. – The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has launched a new campaign encouraging the public to Make Every Day Take Back Day by utilizing year-round collection sites to dispose of unneeded and unwanted medications. The DEA has registered a record 17,000 pharmacies nationwide, including 1,106 within the five...

OMAHA, Neb. – The five state Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Omaha Division marked an 83 percent increase in the number of fentanyl pills seized in 2023 and removed an estimated 2.9 million lethal doses of fentanyl both in pill and powder form, from Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota...

DALLAS, TX - Three defendants were sentenced today to a combined 35 years in federal prison for their roles in the drug conspiracy that claimed the lives of three teenagers in North Texas. Jason Xavier Villanueva, 23, Robert Alexander Gaitan, 20, and Rafael Soliz, Jr., 23, were indicted in a...

OMAHA, Neb. – Steven T. Bell was named Special Agent in Charge (SAC) of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Omaha Division and began his time as the fourth director of the five-state territory, overseeing 11 offices in Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota and eight counties along the...

OMAHA, NE – Communities across the nation safely disposed of old, unwanted and expired medications on October 28, at the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) 25th National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, with law enforcement partners collecting 599,897 pounds of unneeded medications at 4,675 sites nationwide. The DEA Omaha Division accounted...

OMAHA, NE – The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and its partners will host the 25th National Prescription Drug Take Back Day Saturday, October 28, at nearly 170 collection sites across the five state DEA Omaha Division. The public is invited to safely dispose of tablets, capsules, patches and other...

OMAHA, NE – The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Omaha Division is supporting Red Ribbon Week, the nation’s oldest and largest drug misuse prevention awareness program, by teaming with community partners to raise awareness to the consequences of drug experimentation, misuse and abuse. Beginning today, landmarks in Iowa, Minnesota and Nebraska...

MINNEAPOLIS – The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Omaha Division hosted its second annual Family Summit at the U.S. Attorneys Office in Minneapolis October 19, bringing together 27 families from Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota who lost loved ones to a fentanyl poisoning. DEA Omaha Division Special Agent...

Oklahoma City, OK – Yesterday, Marcus Lamar Richardson, 23, of Chickasha, was sentenced to serve 120 months in federal prison for distribution of fentanyl. On November 15, 2022, Richardson was charged by Superseding Information with distribution of fentanyl. According to public record, on or about December 30, 2021, Richardson distributed...