United States Drug Enforcement Administration

WASHINGTON - DEA Administrator Michele M. Leonhart and United States Attorney Preet Bharara of the Southern District of New York today announced that 21 citizens of the Dominican Republic have been charged with conspiring to impersonate United States law enforcement officers, extortion, and wire fraud. Beginning two weeks ago, authorities...

SAN JOSE, Calif. - Juan Figueroa Garcia was sentenced today to 10 years in prison for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute methamphetamine, announced United States Attorney Melinda Haag and Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Jay Fitzpatrick. Garcia pleaded guilty on Feb. 12, 2014...

FRESNO, Calif. - Victor Anthony Nottoli, 51, of Hillsborough, Calif., pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and one count of causing at least 24 tons of misbranded smokable synthetic (SSC) to be introduced into interstate commerce. Four defendants arrested last week for manufacturing...

WASHINGTON - Americansnationwide showed their support for the United States Drug Enforcement Administration’(DEA’s) National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day program by dropping off more prescription pills than ever this past Saturday. After seven previous Take Back Days spread over almost four years, 780,158 - ( 390 - tons) of pills were...

FRESNO, Calif. - Mark Jeff Zeldes, 52, of Broomfield, Colo., appeared in federal court today in Fresno to face charges contained in an indictment of cultivating and distributing marijuana. According to court documents, between June 1, 2009 and March 9, 2010, Zeldes was responsible for a large-scale marijuana cultivation and...

SAN FRANCISCO - Central Valley and Northern California citizens showed their support for the Drug Enforcement Administration’(DEA’s) National Prescription Drug Take Back Day program by dropping off more prescription pills than ever during the April 26, 2014 event. Federal, state, and local law enforcement partners collected more than 40,854 -...

WASHINGTON - The Drug Enforcement (DEA), Customs and Border (CBP), Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security (HSI), Federal Bureau of (FBI), Internal Revenue (IRS) and other federal, state, and local partners announced the culmination of Project Synergy Phase II, an ongoing effort targeting every level of the dangerous global synthetic...

FRESNO, Calif. - Douglas Jason Way, of Evanston, Ill.; Timothy Ortiz, 43, of Waukegan, Ill.; and Natalie Middleton, 28, of Clovis, Calif., have been arrested as part of a nationwide law enforcement effort to combat the threat of synthetic drugs. The arrests were announced by United States Attorney Benjamin B...

FRESNO, Calif. - A three-month multi-agency law enforcement operation, “Operation Red Eye,” culminated today with the arrest of several methamphetamine traffickers and the search of more than 30 locations. According to court documents, six individuals are being charged federally with conspiring to distribute methamphetamine and other controlled substances: Luis Tejeda-Hurtado...

FRESNO, Calif. - Leopoldo “Polo” Rodriguez, 42, resident of Bakersfield, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute, marijuana. According to court documents, Rodriguez and his fellow conspirators planned to send large quantities of marijuana from Bakersfield to Memphis, Tennessee. On August 26, 2013...