United States Drug Enforcement Administration

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - Daniel Sands was arrested and charged on Nov. 20, in a criminal complaint with engaging in conduct with the intent to retaliate against a witness who testified against his father in an official court proceeding in U.S. District Court. An initial appearance was held this afternoon before...

GREENEVILLE, Tenn. - Between Oct. 26 and Nov. 9, 2015, four more individuals involved in an extensive a-(alpha-pyrrolidinopentiophenone) distribution conspiracy centered in northeast Tennessee, southwest Virginia and western North Carolina, were sentenced to serve time in federal prison by the Honorable Pamela L. Reeves, U.S. District Court Judge. Melissa Carol...

STATESVILLE, N.C. - A federal jury sitting in Statesville delivered a guilty verdict against Eduardo Trejo-Munoz, a/k/a “Lalo,” 23, of Hickory, N.C., for trafficking high purity crystal methamphetamine worth over $5 million, announced Jill Westmoreland Rose, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Following a two-day trial which...

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Chief U.S. District Judge Frank D. Whitney sentenced Alberto Gasca, 31, of Los Angeles, California, to serve 128 months in prison and five years of supervised release on drug trafficking charges, announced Jill Westmoreland Rose, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Gasca pleaded guilty...

GREENEVILLE, Tenn. - Joshua Brandon Hinkle, 30, of Chuckey, Tenn., was sentenced on Oct. 20, 2015, by the Honorable R. Leon Jordan, U.S. District Court Judge, to serve 110 months in federal prison for his role in an extensive a-(alpha-pyrrolidinopentiophenone) distribution conspiracy centered in northeast Tennessee, southwest Virginia and western...

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - Heather Morgan, 28, of Maryville, Tenn., was sentenced to serve 18 months in federal prison by the Honorable Thomas A. Varlan, Chief U.S. District Judge on Oct. 13. Upon her release from prison, Morgan will serve a two year period of supervised release. Morgan pleaded guilty to...

GREENEVILLE, Tenn. - Daniel Martinez, Jr., 39, of Morristown, Tenn., was sentenced to serve 15 years in federal prison by the Honorable R. Leon Jordan, U.S. District Judge. Upon his release from prison, Martinez will serve a 10 year period of supervised release. Martinez pleaded guilty to a federal grand...

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - On Oct. 1, 2015, Faith Blake, 40, of Chattanooga, Tenn., was sentenced to serve 44 years in federal prison by the Honorable Curtis L. Collier, U.S. District Judge. Upon her release from prison, Blake will serve a three year period of supervised release. Additionally, she was ordered...

ROME, Ga. - James Earl Chapman, Jr., a doctor from Macon, Georgia, has been convicted after a two-week jury trial on 49 counts of drug trafficking for prescribing and dispensing controlled narcotics at a Cartersville, Georgia, “pill mill” pain clinic that served as a front for the mass distribution of...

ATLANTA - Edgar Valdez-Villarreal, a.k.a. “La Barbie,” and Carlos Montemayor Gonzalez, who are charged in the Northern District of Georgia with importing drugs and money laundering, are among 13 defendants extradited from Mexico this afternoon to face pending charges in the United States. Valdez and Montemayor are alleged to be...