MONGOMERY, Ala. - Dr. Robert M. Ritchea, 54, of LaGrange, Georgia, pled guilty to conspiring to unlawfully distribute a controlled substance through operating a “pill mill” and money laundering scheme, announced Drug Enforcement Administration Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge Bret Hamilton and United States Attorney George L. Beck, Jr. A “pill mill”...

MOBILE, Ala. - The Drug Enforcement Administration’(DEA’s) national touring exhibit, Drugs: Costs and Consequences, has arrived in Mobile, Alabama. The exhibit, developed by the DEA and the DEA Educational Foundation, opens on February 3, 2017, at the Gulf Coast Exploreum Science Center. In this interactive exploration of the effects of...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Yan Ebyam, 39, of Missoula, Montana, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez to six years in prison for two separate conspiracies to grow and distribute marijuana, Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge John J. Martin and U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert joined...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Nathan Hoffman, 56, of Los Angeles, pleaded guilty today to manufacturing marijuana as part of a larger conspiracy to distribute marijuana throughout California, Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge John J. Martin and U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. As part of his plea agreement, Hoffman...

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Three defendants were sentenced to federal prison last week for drug trafficking, announced Drug Enforcement (DEA) Assistant Special Agent in Charge Matthew Barden and Kenneth Elser, United States Attorney for the Western District of Arkansas. Santiago (aka Chuco), age 47, of Commerce, Oklahoma, was sentenced to 151...

FRESNO, Calif. - Chaudhry Ahmad Farooq, 24, of Brooklyn, New York, pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiring to distribute heroin, Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge John J. Martin and U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. According to court documents, from approximately November 2015 through August 2016...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - McKesson Corporation, one of the nation’s largest distributors of pharmaceutical drugs, agreed to pay a record $150 million civil penalty for alleged violations of the Controlled Substances (CSA). The settlement resolves allegations that McKesson failed to design and implement an effective system to detect and report “suspicious...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Costco Wholesale will pay $11.75 million to settle allegations that its pharmacies violated the Controlled Substances (CSA) when they improperly filled prescriptions for controlled substances. The settlement resolves allegations that Costco pharmacies filled prescriptions that were incomplete, lacked valid DEA registration numbers or were for substances beyond...

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Paul Goston, age 40 of Little Rock, Arkansas, was sentenced today to 41 months in federal prison and three years of supervised release on one count of Felon in Possession of a Firearm announced Drug Enforcement (DEA) Assistant Special Agent in Charge Matthew Bardan and Kenneth Elser...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Hung C. Nguyen, 40, of Moorpark, pleaded guilty today to manufacturing marijuana as part of a larger conspiracy to distribute marijuana throughout California, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert and Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge John J. Martin announced. According to court documents, Nguyen conducted a...