SAN FRANCISCO – Melvin Alexis Diaz Arteaga appeared in federal court to face an indictment charging him with conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and possessing fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine with the intent to distribute it, and Luis Almicar Erazo-Centeno also appeared to face the indictment’s charges against him of possession of...

SEATTLE – A Renton, Washington resident who continued to deal drugs and possess firearms after many of his coconspirators were arrested and charged federally, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to ten years in prison. Gerson Alberto Flores-Rivera, 28, pleaded guilty in May 2022 to distribution of...

ANCHORAGE– The Drug Enforcement Administration is participating in an advertising campaign launched by the Alaska High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) initiative. The Save a Life campaign is designed to help communities partner with law enforcement in the fight against drug trafficking and to help prevent drug overdoses in Alaska...

SEATTLE – A 50-year-old Washington State man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to seven years in prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, heroin, and fentanyl pills, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Preston Joseph Smith was arrested in December 2021 in Port Angeles, Washington on allegations he...

COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho--Dennen Trey George Fitterer-Usher, 24, of Spokane Valley, Washington, was sentenced this week to more than 14 years in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance and discharge of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. According to court records, in 2021, Fitterer-Usher met...

SEATTLE– A 26-year-old Kent, Washington man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 11 years in prison for his role as a drug trafficker and debt collector for a cartel-connected drug distribution ring, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Jorge Mondragon pleaded guilty in July 2022 to conspiracy...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Amandeep Multani, 34, of Roseville, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute cocaine, heroin, opium, and ketamine, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert and Drug Enforcement Administration Acting Special Agent in Charge Bob P. Beris announced. According to court documents, Multani...

Seattle – A 61-year-old Spanaway, Washington man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to eight years in prison for his key role in a large drug distribution ring, announced U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. Dwayne Douglas George was indicted in November 2021, along with 16 other defendants. George...

FRESNO, Calif. — Michael Erin Vandeventer, 23, of Sparks, Nevada, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to commit interference with commerce by robbery, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert and Drug Enforcement Administration Acting Special Agent in Charge Bob P. Beris announced. According to court documents, on April 19, 2020, Vandeventer and...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a superseding indictment Thursday that adds four counts of murder in aid of racketeering against defendants alleging that the four murders were committed in furtherance of criminal acts perpetrated by the California Aryan Brotherhood, a white supremacist prison gang, U.S. Attorney Phillip...