SAN DIEGO - William Estuardo Lemus-Lara, aka “Humilde,” a high-level cartel boss from Guatemala, was sentenced in federal court today to 210 months in federal prison. According to public documents, Lemus-Lara was identified as the leader of a transcontinental criminal organization that moved multi-ton quantities of cocaine from South America...

SAN DIEGO - Kaylar Junior Tawan Beltranlap, a 21-year-old San Diego resident, was sentenced in federal court today to 156 months in prison for distributing counterfeit oxycodone pills laced with fentanyl that resulted in the death of 15-year-old Coronado High School sophomore Clark Jackson Salveron on May 12, 2021. Beltranlap...

SAN DIEGO - Alexander Michael Randise of Ocean Beach was sentenced today in federal court to 188 months in prison for distribution of fentanyl that resulted in the fatal overdose of 30-year-old Tyber Joseph Lustig. According to his plea agreement, Randise admitted providing four counterfeit M-30 pills laced with fentanyl...

SAN DIEGO - Terese L. White, a flight attendant residing in Dallas, Texas, has pleaded guilty in federal court to a drug-trafficking charge, admitting that she used her privileges as a flight attendant to bypass the more robust security screening process at San Diego International Airport in order to smuggle...

WASHINGTON – As 2022 comes to an end, the Drug Enforcement Administration is announcing the seizure of over 50.6 million fentanyl-laced, fake prescription pills and more than 10,000 pounds of fentanyl powder this calendar year. The DEA Laboratory estimates that these seizures represent more than 379 million potentially deadly doses...

SAN DIEGO - Dr. David J. Smith, a pain management physician, and his office manager, Julia Ann Oertle, are charged in a federal grand-jury indictment with perpetuating a long-running scheme to commit healthcare fraud and to manufacture and distribute adulterated fentanyl. Smith made his initial appearance today before U.S. Magistrate...

WASHINGTON -- Today, DEA served an Order to Show Cause on Truepill, a retail pharmacy that is alleged to have wrongfully filled thousands of prescriptions for stimulants used in the treatment of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Truepill was the pharmacy for telehealth companies, including Cerebral, that marketed ADHD treatments, including...

WASHINGTON – This week the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) hosted regional family summits across the country in support of those who have lost loved ones to fentanyl poisoning. This is the first undertaking of its kind for the DEA field divisions and builds off the momentum of this summer’s Inaugural...

SAN DIEGO - Drug dealer Saul Caro was sentenced in federal court today to 15 years in prison for providing the fentanyl that resulted in the overdose death of a 35-year-old business owner who lived in downtown San Diego. Caro pleaded guilty on June 1, 2022, admitting that he sold...

WASHINGTON – On Oct. 29, 2022, communities across the country demonstrated their continued support for DEA’s bi-annual National Prescription Drug Take Back Day by safely disposing of more than 647,000 pounds of unneeded medications at nearly 5,000 collection sites across the country. Since its inception in 2010, DEA’s National Prescription...