United States Drug Enforcement Administration

NEWPORT NEWS, Va., – The ringleader behind an extensive drug trafficking ring was sentenced today to 33 years in prison for distributing large amounts of fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine in Newport News and North Carolina. According to court documents, Ramiro Ramirez-Barreto, 44, from the Mexican State of Morelos, operated a...

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Keith A. Penn, 41, of Tallahassee, Florida, was sentenced on July 8, to 20 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to drug trafficking and firearm charges. “Today’s sentencing highlights the importance of the relationship between our law enforcement partners,” said DEA Miami Field Division Acting Special...

TYLER, TX – A Kaufman County man was sentenced to federal prison for drug trafficking violations, announced today by Eduardo A. Chavez, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Dallas Field Division. Cory Joe Phillips, 39, City of Terrell, pleaded guilty on March 8, 2021, to possession with intent to...

DES MOINES, Iowa – An Ottumwa, Iowa man was sentenced to 19 years in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person in violation of federal law...

BALTIMORE, Md., – Joel William Hammond, age 35, of Essex, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute at least 28 grams of cocaine base. The guilty plea was announced by Jarod Forget, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Washington Field Division; Jonathan...

DALLAS – A Honduran man was sentenced to federal prison for drug trafficking violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced DEA Special Agent in Charge Eduardo A. Chávez. Oscar Ruiz Colon, 41, pleaded guilty on Feb. 4, 2021, to conspiracy to manufacture and distribute cocaine knowing it would be...

SAN DIEGO – An indictment was unsealed today in federal court charging 60 members of a San Diego-based international methamphetamine distribution network tied to the Sinaloa Cartel with drug trafficking, money laundering and firearms offenses. During the last month, hundreds of federal, state, and local law enforcement agents and officers...

NEWARK, N.J. – Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Jersey Division Susan A. Gibson, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Toby C. Taylor, Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police Colonel Patrick J. Callahan, Acting Union County Prosecutor...

Baltimore, MD –Ronald Alexander, of Baltimore, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, heroin, and powder and crack cocaine. While participating in a narcotics conspiracy, Alexander was employed by “Safe Streets,” an organization working to reduce violence and crime in Baltimore through intervention. While he was engaged in the...

ST. LOUIS – Richard Lawrence Davis, 38, of St. Louis, Missouri, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute cocaine, possession with intent to distribute cocaine and fentanyl, and being a felon in possession of a firearm. In September 2019, investigators identified Davis as a distributor of narcotics, including cocaine and...