United States Drug Enforcement Administration

SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – Dr. Jang Boo Chi, formerly a physician in Auburn, and his medical practice, Jang Boo Chi M.D. P.C., have agreed to pay the United States $135,000 in civil penalties for overprescribing opioids and other controlled substances in dangerous combinations. United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman, and...

SEATTLE – A 38-year-old Kent, Washington resident was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to ten years in prison for conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and methamphetamine, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Omar Vazquez-Limon was arrested in August 2020 in northern California as he transported kilos of...

RICHLAND, Wash. – On August 23, 2023, Chief United States District Judge Stanley A. Bastian sentenced Amado De La Mora Cardenas, age 35, to over 11 years in in federal prison after his guilty plea to possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of pure methamphetamine. De La...

AUSTIN, Texas – People’s Pharmacy Inc. has agreed to pay $200,000 in civil penalties to resolve allegations that it violated provisions of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). People’s Pharmacy Inc., doing business as Peoples Rx, operates five retail pharmacies and one compounding laboratory in the Austin area. During a routine...

POCATELLO – Ramon Morales Jr., 41, of Compton, California, was sentenced to 26 years in federal prison for importing and distributing methamphetamine in Eastern Idaho in exchange for firearms. According to court records, Morales was initially arrested by U.S. Customs and Border Patrol when he was caught attempting to smuggle...

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Eric Castañeda, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s El Paso Division, and Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, announced today that Rafael Columbie was sentenced to 10 years in prison. A federal jury convicted Columbie, 54, of...

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — California Attorney General Rob Bonta today announced the arrest of and filing of charges against Dr. Arash Padidar, a Santa Clara County doctor accused of illegally prescribing opioids to patients. The arrest and charges are the result of an investigation into an alleged two-years-long illegal prescription...

ALBANY, NEW YORK – Danielle Simonson, age 51, of Fort Ann, New York, pled guilty today to distributing controlled substances outside the course of professional practice and for no legitimate medical purpose. The announcement was made by United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman; Special Agent in Charge Frank A. Tarentino...

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A 23-year-old man has been ordered to federal prison following his conviction for possession with intent to distribute 210 grams of meth, announced Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Daniel C. Comeaux of the Houston Division and U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani. Jacob Soliz...

WASHINGTON – The Drug Enforcement Administration will host public listening sessions to receive comments from healthcare practitioners, experts, advocates, patients, and other members of the public to inform DEA’s regulations on prescribing controlled substances via telemedicine. The listening sessions will be held in person and livestreamed with remote participation available...