Washington, D.C. – As part of a long-standing tradition, the DEA Washington Division will take the month of February to honor the contributions and history of our African American community. National African American History Month is a time to celebrate our rich diversity. It is also a time to reflect...

ROANOKE, Va. -- Ana Bella Sanchez-Rios, the former owner and operator of a Martinsville business used to launder more than $4.3 million in profits for an international drug cartel, was sentenced last week in U.S. District Court to 96 months in federal prison. Sanchez-Rios laundered the funds for the Jalisco...

Harrisonburg, Va. – Two of the five defendants charged as part of a conspiracy that trafficked heroin from Maryland to Virginia leading to at least one fatal and one non-fatal overdose were sentenced yesterday in U.S. District Court in Harrisonburg, Special Agent in Charge Jarod A. Forget of the Drug...

ALEXANDRIA, Va., – A Florida man pleaded guilty today to unlawfully distributing thousands of prescription opioid pills in exchange for over half a million dollars through the “dark web.” According to court documents, between 2012 and 2020, Daren James Reid, 35, of Fort Lauderdale, used the dark web to distribute...

EL PASO - Today in El Paso, federal authorities filed two criminal complaints charging five individuals for smuggling an estimated $5.4 million worth of marijuana and methamphetamine and 77 illegal aliens, announced U.S. Attorney Gregg N. Sofer, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent in Charge Erik P. Breitzke, Drug Enforcement...

ROANOKE, Va. – Bryan Wade Lewis, a former pharmacist at Home Choice Partners in Roanoke, was sentenced yesterday in U.S. District Court for tampering with a consumer product, hydromorphone, that affected interstate commerce. Jarod Forget, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA's Washington Division and Acting United States Attorney Daniel...

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – The mastermind behind an extensive drug trafficking ring entered a guilty plea this week, and four other defendants either entered pleas or were sentenced recently to substantial terms in prison for distributing large amounts of fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine in Newport News and North Carolina. “This...

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A Seabrook, New Hampshire man pleaded guilty today to his role in a nationwide conspiracy to distribute synthetic cannabinoids, commonly known as “spice” or “K2.” According to court documents, William Walsh, 56, operated two shops in Seabrook—“Up N Smoke” and “The Smoking Monkey”—from which he sold retail...

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – Three Colombian nationals pleaded guilty today to possessing with the intent to distribute nearly 1,500 kilograms of cocaine when they were interdicted in an unregistered vessel on the Pacific Ocean. According to court documents, on August 6, 2020, Eliovar Pineda, 45, Jenuar Angulo, 40, and Marcial...

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A Camp Springs, Maryland man was sentenced today to 140 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine, which led to the seizure of over $1 million in cash, approximately 45 kilograms of cocaine, over $240,000 worth of jewelry, four firearms, and...