SAN DIEGO – OptumRx Inc., a prescription drug benefit provider, has agreed to pay $20 million to resolve allegations that it improperly filled certain opioid prescriptions in violation of the Controlled Substances Act. The settlement resolves an investigation initiated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) into whether, between April 2013...

LOS ANGELES – The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Los Angeles Field Division announced the sentencing of a large-scale fentanyl distributor operating within Ventura, California. Stephen Gregory Reid, 61, aka “Racer,” of Ventura, was sentenced to 188 months in federal prison. The DEA announcement, made last week, was the pinnacle point...

ALBUQUERQUE – A California man was sentenced to 151 months in federal prison for attempting to transport over 2 kilograms of heroin by train from Bernalillo County to North Carolina. There is no parole in the federal system. According to court documents, on February 26, 2021, Mario A. Serna was...

PORTLAND, Oregon.—The leader of an international drug trafficking organization operating in Lane County, Oregon, responsible for trafficking large quantities of methamphetamine, heroin, and cocaine into the state between 2018 and 2020, was sentenced to federal prison today. Victor Diaz-Ramirez, 33, was sentenced to 135 months in federal prison and five...

POCATELLO – U.S. Attorney Josh Hurwit announced the sentences for two separate East Idaho methamphetamine traffickers who will serve a collective 21.5 years in federal prison. Fredy Munoz-Morales, a/k/a Fredi Munoz-Morales, 36, a Mexican citizen and national, was sentenced to 12.5 years in federal prison for possession with intent to...

BOISE – Justin Pedersen, 43, of Kuna, was sentenced to 9 years in federal prison for distribution of methamphetamine in the Treasure Valley, U.S. Attorney Josh Hurwit announced today. According to court records, between November and December 2023, Pedersen distributed methamphetamine to another person on four separate occasions, totaling 309...

MIAMI– On June 10, Sudiata Stinson, 47, of Vero Beach, Fla., was sentenced to 188 months in prison for distributing a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of fentanyl, by U.S. District Judge Jose E. Martinez sitting in Miami. On February 7, Stinson pleaded guilty to an indictment charging...

ALBUQUERQUE – An Albuquerque man was convicted by a federal jury, after less than 30 minutes of deliberation, of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and possession of a firearm and ammunition by a felon. According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, between...

SEATTLE – Law enforcement teams from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Seattle Police Department and IRS Criminal Investigation executed 24 search or arrest warrants taking four people into custody who are allegedly connected to a drug trafficking conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. The drug conspirators have ties to...

San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan announced today that two individuals have been charged with murder in connection with the fentanyl overdose death of 31-year-old Connor Gerhart. Defendants Sheri Cavanaugh, 59, and her co-conspirator, Micah Seau, 31, are both charged with murder and conspiracy to commit a crime. The...