DEA Archived Press Releases

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

Member of Southwest Baltimore “NFL” Gang Pleads Guilty to a Federal Racketeering, Distributing Large Quantities of Drugs, Two Murders and an Attempted Murder

Greenbelt, Md., – Bobby Cannon, a/k/a Freaky, age 24 of Baltimore, pleaded guilty today to participating in a violent racketeering conspiracy, specifically, the NFL Criminal Enterprise, including committing two murders. The term "NFL" stands for Normandy, Franklin, and Loudon, which are three adjacent streets that run through the Edmondson Village...
PRESS RELEASE

UT Southwestern to Pay $4.5 Million to Resolve Alleged Controlled Substance Act Violations That Permitted Drug Diversion by Staff

Dallas - The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center has agreed to pay $4.5 million to resolve allegations that its violations of the Controlled Substances Act allowed hospital staff to divert fentanyl and other dangerous drugs from the hospital, announced DEA Dallas Special Agent in Charge, Eduardo A. Chávez. The...
PRESS RELEASE

Hanover Man Pleads Guilty to Distribution of Fentanyl, Cocaine, and Other Drugs Shipped Through the Mail from California to Maryland

Baltimore, Md., – Dwight Antonio Pitts, age 47, of Hanover, Maryland, pleaded guilty on November 19, 2021, to charges related to his participation in a drug distribution conspiracy involving large amounts of fentanyl, cocaine, and other drugs, shipped through the U.S. Mail from California to Maryland. The guilty plea was...
PRESS RELEASE

Post Falls Doctor Pays $110,000 for Overprescribing Opioids

COEUR D’ALENE – Dr. Eric Benson, an internist practicing medicine in Post Falls, Idaho, agreed to pay $110,000 to resolve allegations that he unlawfully prescribed opioids and other controlled substances to patients between 2014-2021. The settlement, which was based in part on Dr. Benson’s ability to pay, also restricts the...
PRESS RELEASE

Doctor Convicted of Illegally Prescribing Opioids to Patients

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Physician Edmund Kemprud, 78, of Dublin, was convicted today of 14 counts of illegally prescribing opioids and other controlled substances patients, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. According to evidence presented at trial, Kemprud was a physician licensed to practice medicine in California and worked in...
PRESS RELEASE

Federal Consent Decree Permanently Bans Baltimore-Based Physician Assistant from Prescribing Opioids and Controlled Substances

Baltimore, Md., – U.S. District Judge Deborah L. Boardman has approved a consent decree that permanently enjoins Elizabeth J. Allen, a Baltimore-based physician assistant, from prescribing opioids and other controlled substances, resolving the United States’ civil allegations that Allen violated the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) in illegally prescribing opioids. Under...
PRESS RELEASE

Drug Dealer Pleads Guilty to Heroin Distribution and Admits That Heroin He Distributed Resulted in a Fatal Overdose

Greenbelt, Md., – Edwin Kerry Smith, age 43, of Silver Spring, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance and admitted that heroin he distributed to one victim resulted in the victim’s fatal overdose. The guilty plea was announced by Jarod Forget, Special Agent in...
PRESS RELEASE

Administrator Anne Milgram Remarks on the Overdose Epidemic

Thank you and good morning. Thank you to ONDCP and to all the federal partners with whom we have been working on this important issue. This is a critical moment in our country. DEA’s mission is to keep American communities safe and healthy and we are in the midst of...
PRESS RELEASE

Pharmacist Found Guilty of Illegally Dispensing and Distributing Controlled Substances

ATLANTA - Thomas Ukoshovbera A. Gbenedio has been convicted by a federal jury of illegally dispensing and distributing controlled substances from his pharmacy. “Removing and ultimately eliminating healthcare providers who unlawfully dispense pharmaceutical products for non-medical reasons is an important part of DEA’s mission,” said Special Agent in Charge of...
PRESS RELEASE

Ringleader and Members of Multi-State Anabolic Steroid Trafficking Network Sentenced

NORFOLK, Va. – Today, a Richmond man was the sixth and final defendant to be sentenced for his role in a multi-state anabolic steroid conspiracy that operated across the country. According to court documents, Clyde Edward Peele, 46, is one of six members of a trafficking network, led by Michael...