BALTIMORE, Md., – Joel William Hammond, age 35, of Essex, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute at least 28 grams of cocaine base. The guilty plea was announced by Jarod Forget, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Washington Field Division; Jonathan...

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Paublo “Chandito” Rondon Quinones (30, Jacksonville) was sentenced to 10 years and 1 month in federal prison for conspiring to possess with the intent to distribute and to distribute five or more kilograms of cocaine. Quinones had pleaded guilty on January 24, 2019. As part of his...

Washington, D.C. – Jarod Forget, Special Agent in Charge (SAC) of the DEA Washington Division, is alerting all area residents to an increase in drug overdose deaths tied to counterfeit pills containing the powerful synthetic opioid, fentanyl. Manufactured by Mexican drug trafficking organizations, and marketed as a medication such as...

Baltimore, MD –Ronald Alexander, of Baltimore, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, heroin, and powder and crack cocaine. While participating in a narcotics conspiracy, Alexander was employed by “Safe Streets,” an organization working to reduce violence and crime in Baltimore through intervention. While he was engaged in the...

TAMPA, Fla –Jorge Ramirez (41, Clearwater, Fla.) was sentenced to 15 years and 8 months in prison for conspiring to distribute methamphetamine, heroin, and cocaine. Ramirez had pleaded guilty on August 25, 2020. According to information presented during Ramirez’s sentencing hearing, Ramirez was convicted in state court (Pasco County) for...

TAMPA. Fla. - Justin Case Lebarron (28, Pasco County) was sentenced to life imprisonment for conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and methamphetamine resulting in death, distribution of fentanyl and methamphetamine resulting in death, possession with the intent to distribute fentanyl, and maintaining a drug-involved premises. A federal jury had found Lebarron...

ABINGDON, Va. – A Miami, Florida man pleaded guilty last week to conspiring with a Bristol, Tennessee man to pay and receive kickbacks. According to court documents, Michael Olshavsky, 51, of Miami, Florida, and John Paul Linke, 57, of Bristol, Tenn., conspired to receive and pay kickbacks to encourage urine...

Baltimore, MD – U.S. District Judge George L. Russell, III, sentenced Robert Bascom, age 48, of Baltimore, Maryland to eight years in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute 100 grams of heroin. The sentence was announced...

HARRISONBURG, Va. – A Winchester woman pleaded guilty today to distributing acetyl fentanyl and fentanyl. According to court documents, Jennifer Lynn Heishman, 37, of Winchester, Virginia, contacted an individual on February 23, 2019, to arrange a purchase of heroin. Later that evening, Heishman paid $100 for two foil packets of...

Baltimore, MD – Pedro Avalos, age 33, of Sun Valley, California, pleaded guilty today to attempted possession with intent to distribute at least five kilograms of a substance containing cocaine. The guilty plea was announced by Jarod Forget, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Washington Division; Jonathan Lenzner, Acting...