DEA Archived Press Releases

Press Releases before January 20, 2025
25 Results - Showing 1 to 10
PRESS RELEASE

Nurse Sentenced to Federal Prison for Illegal Prescription Scheme

TAMPA , F la. – U.S. District Judge Thomas P. Barber has sentenced Debora Ryder (56, New Port Richey) to three years in federal prison for drug conspiracy . Ryder entered a guilty plea on September 19, 2023. She has also agreed to forfeit her nursing licenses. According to court...
PRESS RELEASE

Passaic County Doctor Charged in Conspiracy to Distribute Opioids

NEWARK, N.J. – A Passaic County, New Jersey, doctor was charged with conspiring to distribute opioids without a legitimate medical reason, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) New Jersey Field Division Cheryl Ortiz and U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced. Lisa Ferraro, 65, of Hillsdale, New...
PRESS RELEASE

Jury Convicts Pain Clinic Doctor of Unlawful Drug Distribution, Money Laundering, and Filing a False Tax Return

TAMPA , F la. – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announced that a federal jury found Dr. Qing McGaha guilty of 14 counts of unlawful drug distribution, four (4) counts of money laundering, and one (1) count of filing a false tax return. McGaha faces a maximum penalty of...
PRESS RELEASE

Defendants Convicted and Sentenced in Long-Term Methamphetamine and Oxycodone Drug Trafficking Investigation in Bay County

PENSACOLA, Fla. – A federal judge sentenced the seventh defendant in a large-scale methamphetamine and oxycodone trafficking organization operating primarily in Bay County. The convictions and sentences were announced by Jason R. Coody United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida. “Our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners...
PRESS RELEASE

Pharmacist Admits Filling Counterfeit Prescriptions Selling Oxycodone and Codeine in Exchange for Cash

NEWARK, N.J. – Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Jersey Division Susan A. Gibson and U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey Philip R. Sellinger announced a pharmacist and pharmacy owner pleaded guilty today to violating the Controlled Substances Act by filling fraudulent and counterfeit...
PRESS RELEASE

Pain Clinic Doctor and Staff Member Charged with Unlawful Distribution of Opioids

TAMPA, Fla. – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announced the return of an indictment charging Dr. Qing McGaha (55, Tampa) with conspiracy to commit unlawful distribution of controlled substances and unlawful distribution of controlled substances for no legitimate medical purpose and outside the usual course of professional practice, as...
PRESS RELEASE

Naples Doctor Who Operated a Pill Mill Sentenced to Three Years in Federal Prison

FORT MYERS, Fla. – U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell today sentenced Gerald Michael Abraham, 76, of Naples, Florida. to three years in federal prison for dispensing controlled substances (oxycodone and amphetamine) for no legitimate medical purpose. The court also ordered Abraham to forfeit the following items to the United...
PRESS RELEASE

Virtua Health Inc. to Pay $150,000 to Settle Controlled Substances Act Allegations

NEWARK, N.J. – Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Jersey Division Susan A. Gibson and Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey Rachael A. Honig announced a nonprofit healthcare system that owns and operates a network of healthcare entities has agreed to pay $150,000...
PRESS RELEASE

Florida Man Pleads Guilty to Unlawfully Distributing Opioids at His Pain Management Clinic

MIAMI – A Florida man pleaded guilty yesterday to unlawfully distributing opioids at his pain management clinic in Miami, Florida. According to court documents, Habib Geagea Palacios, 40, of Miami, owned a cash-only pain management clinic in Miami, Florida named General Care Center, Inc. At General Care Center, Palacios paid...
PRESS RELEASE

Doctor admits soliciting sexual favors from patients in exchange for opioids

TRENTON, N.J. – Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Jersey Division, Susan A. Gibson, and U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey, Craig Carpenito, announced a New York doctor today admitted distributing opioids without a legitimate medical reason and soliciting sexual favors from patients in...