SAN DIEGO – An indictment unsealed today charges Carlos Paez Pereda, aka “Carlitos,” aka “Carlitos Rugrats,” alleged high-ranking lieutenant and leader of a violent wing of the Sinaloa Cartel called “Los Rugrats,” with Narcoterrorism and Material Support of Terrorism in connection with trafficking massive amounts of fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine...

CENTENNIAL, CO – The Drug Enforcement Administration's Rocky Mountain Field Division (RMFD) is issuing a warning after DEA's Southwest Laboratory identified illicit pills containing mixtures of both deadly fentanyl/carfentanil and fentanyl/heroin. The drugs were found in tablets after lab analyses of recent seizures in both Colorado and Utah. "With these...

KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A Kansas man was sentenced to 167 months in prison for his role in a transnational drug trafficking organization with ties to a Mexican cartel. The sentence follows a Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) investigation which has so far led to convictions of approximately a dozen...

HOUSTON – A 51-year-old Houston man has been sentenced for his role in an ongoing cocaine distribution scheme that spanned nearly a decade, announced Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Brian Leardo of the Houston Division and A cting U.S. Attorney John G.E. Marck. Leonel Mata Luna pleaded...

A 24-year-old Venezuelan national is set to make his initial appearance in Houston federal court for providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization and significant drug trafficking offenses. Jose Enrique Martinez Flores also known as “Chuqui,” 24, is alleged to be a high-ranking leader of the designated foreign terrorist...

LOS ANGELES – Eighteen defendants, including two people law enforcement believes are the main sources of fentanyl and methamphetamine in Los Angeles’s gang- and drug-infested MacArthur Park, have been arrested on a federal criminal complaint charging them with a federal drug trafficking offense, the Justice Department announced today. The complaint...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Jay Clayton, and Administrator of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”), Terrance C. Cole, announced today the unsealing of an indictment charging RUBEN ROCHA MOYA, ENRIQUE INZUNZA CAZAREZ, ENRIQUE DIAZ VEGA, DAMASO CASTRO ZAAVEDRA, MARCO ANTONIO ALMANZA...

NEW YORK - A fifth superseding indictment was filed yesterday in federal court in Brooklyn against Jobanis de Jesus Avila Villadiego, also known as “Chiquito” and “Chiquito Malo,” which added new charges of narcoterrorism conspiracy, conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization, and providing or attempting to...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A federal grand jury returned an eight-count indictment today against Jose Mendoza, 35, of Merced; Jessy Johnson, 34, of Turlock; and Alejandro Perez, 43, of Crows Landing, charging them with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and other drug trafficking offenses, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant and Drug Enforcement Administration...

LOS ANGELES –Marking a powerful start to 2026, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration dealt a significant blow to drug trafficking networks during Phase II of Operation Fentanyl Free America. Between January 12 and February 10, 2026, DEA seized more than 4.7 million fentanyl pills and nearly 2,396 pounds of fentanyl...