DEA Archived Press Releases

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

San Antonio Man Sentenced to 28 Years in Federal Prison for Armed Pharmacy Robberies

SAN ANTONIO – A San Antonio man was sentenced to 339 months in federal prison for three counts of pharmacy robbery and three counts of brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. According to court documents, from October to December 2020, Atseko Factor, 40, and...
PRESS RELEASE

Multiple Pharmaceutical Distributor Executives, Sales Representatives and Brokers Charged in Connection with Unlawful Sales of over 70M Opioid Pills

HOUSTON - Charges have been unsealed as part of a larger enforcement action related to the unlawful distribution of nearly 70 million opioid pills and over 30 million doses of other commonly abused prescription drugs to alleged Houston-area pill-mill pharmacies. Three Houston-area pharmacy operators were also charged for their role...
PRESS RELEASE

Chemical Importer to Pay $300,000 in Civil Penalties for Alleged Violations of the Controlled Substances Act

WACO, Texas – Shrieve Chemical Company, LLC, a Drug Enforcement Administration-registered importer and distributor of listed chemicals, has agreed to pay $300,000 in civil penalties to resolve allegations that it violated provisions of the Controlled Substances Act, 21 U.S.C. §§ 801 et seq. In December 2022, DEA diversion investigators conducted...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA Issues Letter to E-Commerce Companies on the Sale of Pill Presses Used to Make Fentanyl Pills

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration today issued a letter to e-commerce companies regarding the sale of pill presses. As regulated entities under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), e-commerce platforms are generally required to comply with CSA recordkeeping, identification, and reporting requirements on the distribution, importation, and exportation of...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA Announces Settlement with Morris & Dickson Co., LLC

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration announced today a settlement with pharmaceutical distributor Morris & Dickson Co., LLC for failing to maintain effective controls against diversion of controlled substances, including failure to report to DEA thousands of unusually large orders of oxycodone and hydrocodone. Morris & Dickson, which...
PRESS RELEASE

Former Physician is Sentenced to 30 Months after Conviction for Diverting Prescription Opioids

SAN ANTONIO – A former San Antonio doctor was sentenced in federal court yesterday to 30 months in prison for conspiring with others to dispense controlled substances without a legitimate medical purpose. According to court documents, Paul Silva, 48, admitted that he unlawfully and fraudulently issued more than 500 prescriptions...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA Encourages Communities to Make Every Day Take Back Day

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has launched a new campaign encouraging the public to make Every Day Take Back Day by utilizing year-round collection sites to dispose of unneeded and unwanted medications. For more than a decade, DEA has worked with state and local law enforcement partners to...
PRESS RELEASE

Clinic Office Manager Sentenced for Operating $1.2M Pill Mill Scheme

HOUSTON – A medical clinic office manager has been sentenced for operating a pill mill clinic that unlawfully distributed over 600,000 opioid pills, announced Special Agent in Charge Daniel C. Comeaux of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Houston Division and U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani. A federal jury convicted Andres...
PRESS RELEASE

Physician Sentenced for $1.2M Pill Mill Scheme

HOUSTON – A Texas doctor has been sentenced to seven years in prison for operating a pill mill clinic that unlawfully prescribed over 600,000 opioid pills in exchange for cash. A federal jury convicted Dr. Oscar Lightner, 73, Laredo, April 11 of unlawfully distributing and dispensing controlled substances and conspiracy...
PRESS RELEASE

Long-time Laredo Drug Dealer Heads to Prison for Selling “China White”

LAREDO, Texas – A 39-year-old man has been sentenced for possessing with the intent to distribute fentanyl, announced Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Daniel C. Comeaux, Houston Division and U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani. Jose Pedro Garcia pleaded guilty Aug. 8. U.S. District Judge Marina Garcia Marmolejo...