ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Jessica D. Aber, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, announced that over the course of the past year, EDVA’s litigative efforts have resulted in the forfeiture of at least 164 illegally owned, possessed, used, or obtained firearms. Firearms that are criminally forfeited are removed...

SAN DIEGO - Dr. David J. Smith, a pain management physician, and his office manager, Julia Ann Oertle, are charged in a federal grand-jury indictment with perpetuating a long-running scheme to commit healthcare fraud and to manufacture and distribute adulterated fentanyl. Smith made his initial appearance today before U.S. Magistrate...

BROOKLYN, N.Y. – Late yesterday, in federal court in Central Islip, an 18-count indictment was returned charging Dr. Roya Jafari-Hassad with illegal distribution of oxycodone and witness tampering. Hassad was arrested this morning and is scheduled to be arraigned this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Steven L. Tiscione. Breon...

MANHATTAN – Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr., today announced the indictments of nine individuals, including Tribeca physician Dr. Noel Smith, for charges including conspiring to distribute tens of thousands of prescription pills, including opioids and other controlled substances, in Manhattan and Staten Island. The defendants allegedly operated a...

WASHINGTON – Two members of the Aryan Circle were sentenced this week for crimes they committed as part of their roles in the white supremacy prison gang. William Glenn Chunn, aka Big Head, 40, of Conroe, Texas, was sentenced yesterday to life imprisonment for Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO)...

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – A federal jury in Gainesville convicted Edwin Giovanny Mendoza-Verdugo, 20, of Sinaloa, Mexico, on one count of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, further finding Mendoza-Verdugo responsible for 40-400 grams of fentanyl, and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense. The...

BOSTON – Northeast Hospital Corporation (Northeast), part of Beth Israel Lahey Health, has agreed to pay $1.9 million in civil penalties to resolve allegations that Northeast violated the Controlled Substance Act (the CSA) by failing to keep accurate records of controlled substances, including opioids. The CSA requires accurate inventorying and...

MIAMI — Anton Peck, 29, of Boca Raton, Fla., has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Donald M. Middlebrooks to 16 years in prison for conspiring to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances. Peck previously pled guilty to one count of conspiring to possess with intent to distribute fentanyl...

TAMPA, Fla . – Ubertino Zavala-Perez (59, Plant City, Florida) was sentenced to more than 12 years in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. Zavala-Perez pleaded guilty on August 31, 2022. According to court documents, Zavala-Perez conspired with individuals in Mexico and others to distribute and import methamphetamine from...

TAMPA, Fla. – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announced that a federal jury has found Jy’quale Samari Grable (20, Tampa) guilty of conspiracy, robbery, and first-degree premediated murder. Grable faces a mandatory minimum sentence of life in federal prison. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for Feb. 16, 2022. Jy’quale...