DEA Archived Press Releases

Press Releases before January 20, 2025
1013 Results - Showing 511 to 520
PRESS RELEASE

Doctor charged for prescribing narcotics to non-patients and ordered detained until trial

SAVANNAH, Ga. – A physician with clinics in Pooler, Ga., and Braselton, Ga., has been indicted for illegally prescribing drugs to non-patients and ordered held in custody pending trial in federal court. Dr. Johnny Di Blasi , 46, of Braselton, Ga., is named in a nine-count indictment for conspiracy to...
PRESS RELEASE

Opioid prosecutors continue to be focus of Southern District task force

SAVANNAH, Ga. – Three people, including two medical professionals, are among defendants recently prosecuted in federal court as part of continued efforts to crack down on opioid abuse. Lisa Marie Douthit, 42, a pharmacy technician at a Walgreen’s in Bryan County, was sentenced to three months in prison by U.S...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA warns of alarming increase of scam calls

El PASO, Texas – The Drug Enforcement Administration urges its DEA-registered practitioners and members of the public to be cautious of telephone calls from criminals posing as DEA or other law enforcement personnel threatening arrest and prosecution for supposed violations of federal drug laws or involvement in drug-trafficking activities. DEA...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA El Paso Division Safety Bulletin

DEA’s El Paso Division, which covers West Texas and New Mexico, is issuing this safety bulletin to remind the public not to purchase pills or medications from street dealers. Recently DEA El Paso learned that certain pills, which are being sold on the street and have similar markings to legitimate...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA showcases the dangers of drug addiction through travelling museum exhibit

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – DEA Acting Administrator Uttam Dhillon today unveiled the Drug Enforcement Administration’s 5,500 square foot Drugs: Costs and Consequences travelling exhibit in Albuquerque with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, where it will be housed for the next several months. The...
PRESS RELEASE

Man from Mexico pleads guilty to federal heroin trafficking charge

Albuquerque, N.M. – Francisco Gallegos-Avena, 37, of Guaymas Sonoro, Mexico, pleaded guilty in federal court yesterday to possession with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin. In his plea agreement, Gallegos-Avena admitted he transported approximately 722 grams of heroin in his luggage while traveling through Albuquerque on May...
PRESS RELEASE

Multi-agency investigation dismantles major drug trafficking organization in southeastern New Mexico

LAS CRUCES, N.M. – Ten people are facing federal drug trafficking charges in New Mexico following an 11-month investigation led by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Lea County Drug Task Force. Teams of federal, state, county and local law enforcement officers conducted a major law enforcement operation on Thursday...
PRESS RELEASE

Defendants in major Statesboro drug trafficking investigation enter guilty pleas

STATESBORO, Ga. - A Mexican national and 17 other Statesboro-area residents indicted in a sweeping two-year, multi-agency investigation have pled guilty to a multitude of charges, and now face sentences of up to life in prison. The joint federal, state and local investigation began in 2015 after citizens complained about...
PRESS RELEASE

Federal judge sentences Charlotte man to nine years in prison for drug trafficking and money laundering conspiracy

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Chief U.S. District Judge Frank D. Whitney sentenced today Shi Yun Zhou, 27, of Charlotte, to 108 months in prison and four years of supervised release on drug trafficking conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy charges, announced Andrew Murray, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina...
PRESS RELEASE

Affiliates of notorious white supremacist street gang plead guilty to federal charges

SAVANNAH, Ga. - Sixteen of the defendants indicted on drug trafficking and firearms charges as part of Operation Vanilla Gorilla have pled guilty in federal court, including the lead defendant in the gang. Operation Vanilla Gorilla targeted the notorious Ghost Face Gangsters, a violent criminal street gang largely operated from...