DEA Archived Press Releases

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

Federal Jury Finds California Drug Supplier Guilty of Distribution in Relation to Fatal Fentanyl Overdose of Fairbanks Man

FAIRBANKS, Alaska – A federal jury convicted a California drug dealer late Friday for his connection to the fatal fentanyl overdose of a Fairbanks man. According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Junior Gafatasi Tulali, 48, was the original source of fentanyl pills that were sold to a...
PRESS RELEASE

Idaho Doctor Pays $96,000 to Settle Allegations That He Wrote Unlawful Prescriptions

POCATELLO – Dr. Gerald Knouf, a family medicine doctor formerly of Pocatello, Idaho, agreed to pay $96,000 to resolve allegations that he wrote unlawful prescriptions, prescribed dangerous combinations of drugs, and billed Medicare and Medicaid for services that were not performed, U.S. Attorney Josh Hurwit announced today. The settlement also...
PRESS RELEASE

Organized Drug Crime Ring Attempted to Flood Alaskan Villages with Fentanyl, 54 Indicted

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – The U.S Attorney’s Office for the District of Alaska announced today that 54 people have been charged through nine indictments in connection with a large-scale organized crime ring operating within the state of Alaska. U.S. Attorney S. Lane Tucker of the District of Alaska, Assistant Special Agent...
PRESS RELEASE

Federal Grand Jury Indicts Three Defendants for Trapper Creek Murders in Alaska

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – A federal grand jury in Alaska returned an indictment last week charging three defendants with crimes connected to the murders of two women in Trapper Creek this May. According to the indictment, Heraclio Sanchez-Rodriguez, 56, Tamara Denise Bren, 41, and Kevin Glenn Peterson II, 29, engaged in...
PRESS RELEASE

Federal Grand Jury Indicts 10 Defendants in Large Drug Trafficking Ring in Alaska

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – A federal grand jury returned a 16-count indictment charging 10 defendants with running a large-scale drug trafficking ring in Alaska. According to the indictment, Christina Reyna Quintana, 38, Angela Marie Jasper, 39, Amber Young, 28, Rochelle Monique Wood, 37, James Anthony Schwarz, 41, Elroy Daniel Bouchard, 58...
PRESS RELEASE

Ferry County Hospital District Agrees to Pay $15,000 Penalty and Implement Corrective Actions to Address Improper Opioid Dispensing Practices at Republic Pharmacy

SPOKANE, Wash.– The Ferry County Hospital District agreed to pay a $15,000 Controlled Substances Act penalty and to institute corrective actions in regards to opioid prescribing practices at Republic Drug Store, a pharmacy in Republic, Washington, that Ferry County Hospital District purchased in January 2021 and has continued to operate...
PRESS RELEASE

Former Alaska Advanced Nurse Practitioner Sentenced to 30 Years for Illegally Prescribing Millions of Opioids Causing Five Deaths

ANCHORAGE, ALASKA—Former Advanced Nurse Practitioner Jessica Joyce Spayd (52) was sentenced in U.S. District Court yesterday to 30 years (360 months) imprisonment for illegally prescribing and dispensing opioids outside the scope of legitimate medical practice that resulted in the deaths of five people between 2014 and 2019. United States District...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA, FBI, and Seattle Police Seize 2 RVs Packed with Meth and Fentanyl

SEATTLE – Three significant drug trafficking groups responsible for trafficking more than 1,000 pounds of methamphetamine and hundreds of thousands of fentanyl pills are facing federal charges tonight. Federal investigators and local law enforcement partners seized two RVs packed with meth and fake pills after they were driven from California...
PRESS RELEASE

Federal Jury Convicts Anchorage Man on Murder and Drug Charges

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – Following a three-week trial in U.S. District Court, a federal jury convicted an Anchorage man on charges of murder in furtherance of a continuing criminal enterprise, using a firearm to commit murder in a drug trafficking crime, drug conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy. According to court documents...
PRESS RELEASE

Richland Naturopath Agrees to Pay $70,096 for Improper Prescription of Controlled Substances

Richland, Wash. – Judith K. Caporiccio, N.D., a Richland-based naturopathic doctor, has agreed to pay $70,096 to resolve allegations under the Controlled Substances Act and the False Claims Act, which allege that she improperly prescribed controlled substances between July 2016 and July 2021. The Controlled Substances Act regulates certain drugs...