ST. LOUIS – A Columbia, Missouri man and a California man pleaded guilty in federal court today to marijuana trafficking that involved the death of another Columbia man, who was murdered during a home invasion. In addition, hundreds of pounds of marijuana and thousands of THC vaporizer cartridges in a...

CHICAGO – With families encouraged to stay at home due to the nationwide health crisis, the Drug Enforcement Administration is asking Americans to keep prescription medications safe and secure until they can properly dispose of them. The Secure Your Meds awareness campaign addresses a vital public safety and health issue...

WASHINGTON – Today, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Department of Justice announced action to further expand opportunities for scientific and medical research on marijuana in the United States. The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking provides details on the proposed process and was filed for public inspection today, March 20. The...

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A federal grand jury sitting in Charlotte has returned an indictment against Anthony Blane Byrnes, 19, of Huntersville, N.C., charging him with drug conspiracy and related drug charges for trafficking narcotics he purchased on the dark web, with coordination through Bitcoin ATMs, announced Andrew Murray, U.S. Attorney...

SEATTLE – A Bothell, Washington, man is charged in an eight-count complaint for operating an illegal money exchange business involving bitcoin. Kenneth Warren Rhule, 26, made his initial appearance on the criminal complaint in U.S. District Court in Seattle on March 10, 2020. Rhule is charged with conducting an unlicensed...

SIERRA VISTA, Ariz. – Attorney General Mark Brnovich announced a Cochise County superior court judge sentenced Timothy Henry, a Sierra Vista drug distributor, to 14 years in prison. Henry’s co-defendants, Jaime Rene Leza, Jennifer Sue Phillips, and Shalmarie Tulk, were all previously convicted and sentenced for their role assisting Henry...

FRESNO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment today against Yunquan Jiang, 48, a Chinese national residing in Fresno, charging him with cultivating and possessing with intent to distribute over 1,000 marijuana plants inside his residence, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott and Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent...

DENVER – United States Attorney Jason R. Dunn announced that Huanyu Yan, 54, and wife You Lan Xiang, 50, both of Aurora, Colo., were sentenced earlier this week for their role in a large-scale residential black market marijuana grow. Mr. Yan was sentenced to 36 months in federal prison, and...

LAREDO, TX – Two Laredo men have been ordered to federal prison after their involvement in a drug trafficking event, announced Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Steven S. Whipple and U.S. Attorney Ryan Patrick. Raul Gomez, 36, and Enrique Gonzalez, 39, pled guilty on August 6, 2019. Today...

CHEYENNE, Wyo. - Dr. David Ray Cesko, 66, of Rawlins, Wyoming, pleaded guilty on Feb. 26, 2020, in U.S. District Court in Cheyenne to multiple charges that, as a physician, he unlawfully distributed controlled substances, primarily opiates and benzodiazepines, to his patients. Cesko was charged by a Wyoming federal grand...