United States Drug Enforcement Administration

Pensacola, Florida – Scott Oranje, 52, of Mary Esther, Florida, has been sentenced to 12 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to possession with intent to distribute more than 40 grams of fentanyl, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida announced the sentence.

U.S. Attorney Heekin said: “I am proud that my office has delivered yet another successful prosecution in our fight to eliminate the operations of armed drug traffickers in this district.  President Donald J. Trump rightly designated fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction because of the devastation it can wreak, especially in the quantities possessed by this trafficker. Our citizens deserve to live in safe, drug-free communities, and my office will continue to aggressively prosecute these cases until we deliver on that promise.”

Court documents reflect that on November 10, 2025, law enforcement officers intercepted a package addressed to the defendant’s residence that contained over 300 grams of fentanyl. Law enforcement thereafter conducted a controlled delivery at the defendant’s residence, and the defendant took possession of the package and entered his condominium. Shortly thereafter, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant on the residence. The defendant did not answer the door requiring officers to breach the door, after which the defendant fled through the back patio with the fentanyl. The defendant was caught and taken into custody, and a subsequent search of his residence located a digital scale, various narcotics paraphernalia, owe sheets documenting transaction records, and multiple firearms. The defendant had previously been convicted of First-Degree Residential Robbery and sentenced to state prison in California on or about July 30, 2018, and was therefore legally prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition as a felon.

“This career criminal possessed enough potential deadly doses of fentanyl to decimate the population of a mid-sized city,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge Daniel Escobar, Tampa Field Division. “Our agents and law enforcement partners did a great job bringing this case to a successful conclusion.”

“The United States Postal Inspection Service is committed to ensuring that the mail system is not used to deliver fentanyl and other poisons into our communities,” said Bladismir Rojo, Inspector in Charge, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Miami Division. “The stiff sentence handed down in this case should serve as a warning to others that you will be prosecuted.”

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office, and the United States Postal Inspection Service. Assistant United States Attorneys Christopher C. Patterson and Thomas S.P. Geeker prosecuted the case. 

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.