DEA Archived Press Releases

Press Releases before January 20, 2025
714 Results - Showing 301 to 310
PRESS RELEASE

Norteno gang leader and drug trafficker sentenced to 20 years in federal prison

SPOKANE, Wash., - Joshua Isaac Stine, age 34, a resident of Ephrata, Washington, was sentenced today by Senior United States District Court Judge Wm. Fremming Nielsen to a 240 month term of imprisonment, to be followed by a 10 year term of court supervision after he is released from federal...
PRESS RELEASE

Mount Vernon, Washington, woman pleads guilty to conspiracy to distribute fentanyl-tainted pills

SEATTLE - A 22-year-old Mount Vernon, Washington, woman pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to conspiracy to distribute fentanyl. Rosaliana Lopez-Rodriguez sold counterfeit oxycodone pills tainted with fentanyl in Skagit and Whatcom Counties. The pills are connected to at least two overdoses, including the overdose death of...
PRESS RELEASE

Anchorage doctor sentenced for prescribing medically unnecessary opioids in health care fraud scheme

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Michael Don Robertson, 68, a former Anchorage psychiatrist, was sentenced on January 6, 2021, by U.S. District Court Judge Sharon L. Gleason to 12 months home confinement and five years of probation for conspiracy to commit controlled substance fraud and one count of health care fraud. Robertson...
PRESS RELEASE

Bartell Drug chain settles allegations it filled invalid prescriptions

SEATTLE - The U.S. Department of Justice and Bartell Drug Inc., today resolved allegations that, between July 2016 and August 2020, the pharmacy chain filled invalid prescriptions in violation of the Controlled Substances Act. Under the terms of the settlement, Bartell Drug will pay the government an $800,000 fine. Bartell...
PRESS RELEASE

Eleven indicted in wide-ranging conspiracy trafficking heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine in multi-state area

SEATTLE – Eleven people have been indicted by a grand jury sitting in the Western District of Washington for a multi-state drug trafficking conspiracy. One of those indicted is a rap artist from Snohomish County, Washington, who discussed his drug trafficking activity in a documentary video. All of those in...
PRESS RELEASE

Eight drug traffickers indicted for distributing heroin, methamphetamine, and fentanyl throughout the Puget Sound region

SEATTLE - Eight people who were charged in a wide-ranging drug investigation that resulted in the seizure of significant quantities of suspected fentanyl, heroin, and methamphetamine were arrested earlier today. All those arrested appeared in U.S. District Court in Seattle today. “The rising numbers of fentanyl overdoses is on the...
PRESS RELEASE

Felon arrested at Puyallup motel pleads guilty to drug and gun crimes

SEATTLE - A federal felon, arrested for violating his supervised release, faces new prison time following his guilty plea to drug and gun possession charges. Joshua Lobben, 32, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute and possession of a firearm...
PRESS RELEASE

Record collection in the Pacific Northwest of unwanted medications during National Prescription Drug Take Back Day

SEATTLE – DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take Back Day brought in nearly a million pounds of unused, expired, and unwanted medications across the country, the largest amount ever collected in the program’s ten years. Americans once again showed their dedication to remove prescription pills from their homes to prevent addiction...
PRESS RELEASE

35 defendants to include the ring leader charged in major take down of international drug trafficking organization based in Lane County

PORTLAND, Ore. - Members of a major international drug trafficking organization, including one of its ringleaders and sources of supply from Mexico, have been charged with distributing methamphetamine, heroin, and fentanyl into Oregon between 2018 and 2020. A federal grand jury in Eugene has returned a one-count indictment charging Victor...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA announces launch of Project Safeguard

SEATTLE - Drug Enforcement Administration Acting Administrator Timothy J. Shea today announced that the DEA will direct resources to help reduce violent crime in communities throughout the country. Under this initiative, called Project Safeguard, DEA will identify and prioritize ongoing drug trafficking investigations with a nexus to violent crime. “D...