United States Drug Enforcement Administration

TAMPA , Fla. – U.S. District Judges Thomas Barber and Virginia Covington sentenced Marvin “MJ” Mitchell (36, St. Petersburg) to 15 years in federal prison, Christopher Hughes (44, Clearwater) to 8 years in federal prison, and Emma Leifer (26, Clearwater) to 6 years and 6 months in federal prison for...

ORLANDO, Fla . – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announced that a federal jury has found Juan Carlos Garcia (39, Apopka) guilty of conspiracy and possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute it. Garcia faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for...

FORT MYERS, F l a . – U.S. District Judge Thomas P. Barber sentenced Shauntavus Berklin (34, Fort Myers) to 15 years in federal prison for possessing firearms as a convicted felon and distributing fentanyl. The court also ordered Berklin to forfeit the firearms he illegally had possessed. Berklin had...

TAMPA, Fla. – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announced that Hector Enrique Veliz Villeda (30, Hialeah) pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. Veliz Villeda faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years, and up to life, in federal prison. A sentencing date has...

TAMPA, Fla. – U.S. District Judge Mary S. Scriven sentenced Virginia Garcia Moreta (35, Tampa) and Hector Rodriguez Mendez (47, Tampa) to 70 and 63 months in federal prison, respectively, for conspiring to commit money laundering. As part of their sentences, the court also entered an order of forfeiture in...

NEW YORK CITY – The Drug Enforcement Administration will host its 23rd National Prescription Drug Take Back Day on Saturday, October 29, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. This event offers anonymous disposal of unneeded medications at more than 4,000 local drop-off locations nationwide. For more than a decade, DEA’s...

NEW YORK CITY. – Bridget G. Brennan, New York City’s Special Narcotics Prosecutor, today announced the prison sentence of Terry Barbour in connection with the possession of more than 18 kilograms of narcotics, including fentanyl and heroin, and seven semi-automatic guns. Barbour previously pleaded guilty in Manhattan Supreme Court to...

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – James Mack, 39, of Syracuse, New York, was convicted today following a four-day jury trial for possession with intent to distribute cocaine and cocaine base, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, announced United...

NEW YORK CITY – Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that Marc Laruelle pled guilty to one count of distributing Oxycodone, among other narcotics, without a legitimate medical purpose while acting outside the usual course of professional practice. Laruelle pled guilty before...

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – With the sentencing of the last of 16 defendants, federal prosecutors concluded prosecution of a large-scale methamphetamine trafficking organization operating primarily within Franklin and Gulf Counties. The convictions and sentences were announced by Jason R. Coody, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida. “Cooperative and...