PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Thomas Zachary Breeding, 41, of Panama City, FL, was sentenced to a total of 77 months in prison after he pleaded guilty to retaliation against a federal informant, transmission of threatening communications in interstate commerce, and supervised release violations. The sentence was announced by John P. Heekin...

FAIRBANKS, Alaska – A Florida man was sentenced last week to 13 years in prison for leading a conspiracy to distribute controlled substances in Fairbanks. According to court documents, Willie Lewis Wilson Jr., 41, of Madison, Florida, conspired with others to operate a drug trafficking organization in Fairbanks. Wilson was...

SPOKANE, Wash. –Dr. Duncan Lahtinen, a licensed physician, has paid $120,000.00 in penalties to resolve allegations that he wrote prescriptions for controlled substances that lacked legitimate medical purposes or were outside the usual course of his professional practice. Between 2017 and 2025, Dr. Lahtinen issued over 1,400 prescriptions for controlled...

TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA – Willie Frank Hicks, 42, of Madison, Fla., has been sentenced to a 10-year term of imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. The sentence was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida. U.S. Attorney Heekin said: “Thanks to the...

SEATTLE- Three Seattle area men were sentenced in October 2025 to significant federal prison sentences due to their convictions for drug trafficking and firearms violations, announced U.S. Attorney Charles Neil Floyd. The longest sentence, ten years, was imposed on Anthony Raymond Dodd, 36, of Seattle. Dodd was convicted of possession...

PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Charlie N. Steans, 58, of Pensacola, Fla., and of Texas City, Texas, was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for conspiring to distribute large amounts of cocaine and methamphetamine between Texas and Escambia County, Florida. The sentence was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney...

SEATTLE– The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration is intensifying its fight against the deadly threat of synthetic opioids with the launch of Fentanyl Free America, a comprehensive enforcement initiative and public awareness campaign aimed at reducing both the supply and demand for fentanyl. This effort underscores DEA's unwavering commitment to protecting...

YAKIMA, Wash. – On November 14, 2025, a federal grand jury for the Eastern District of Washington returned an Indictment charging Anna Elperin, age 42, with 26 felony counts relating to prescriptions for controlled substances and Department of Transportation commercial driver’s licenses physical examinations Elperin wrote and performed at her...

PENSACOLA, FLA. – David Blackman III, 39, of Pensacola, Fla., was sentenced to 15 years in prison after previously pleading guilty to possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, and a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of fentanyl, cocaine, and cocaine base. The sentence...

MIAMI – A Mexican national made his initial appearance in federal court in Fort Lauderdale on Nov. 17 after law enforcement recovered more than 50,000 fentanyl pills concealed inside a child’s toy. According to the complaint affidavit, officers approached a vehicle driven by Guillermo Higuera German, 37. During a consensual...