United States Drug Enforcement Administration

June 08 , 2017 Contact: Public Information Officer (215) 852-8740 PHILADELPHIA - Gary Tuggle, Special Agent-in-Charge of the DEA Philadelphia Field Division announced that 4,642 drug-related overdose deaths were reported by coroners and medical examiners in Pennsylvania for 2016. This number represents a 37 percent increase in overdose deaths from...

MOBILE, Ala. - Today, John Patrick Couch and Xiulu Ruan were sentenced to respectively 240 months and 252 months in federal prison for running a massive pill mill in Mobile, Alabama, announced DEA Special Agent-in-Charge Stephen G. Azzam and Acting United States Attorney Steve Butler of the Southern District of...

NEW ORLEANS, La. - A New Orleans man was sentenced today after previously pleading guilty to participating in a heroin distribution conspiracy in the lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans, announced Drug Enforcement (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Stephen G. Azzam and U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans. Corey Celestine, age...

BATON ROUGE, La. - Thursday marks the fifth and final sentencing in a series of federal prosecutions aimed at a drug trafficking ring which operated in the Gulf Coast states. Kendall Lewis, age 27, of Lecanto, Florida, appeared before a Chief U.S. District Judge and was sentenced to 90 months...

SHREVEPORT, La. - A Shreveport man was sentenced Tuesday to 240 months in prison for distributing more than 15 kilograms of methamphetamine in the Shreveport area, announced DEA Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge Brad L. Byerley and Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook. A U.S. District Judge sentenced Brett Luaces, 43...

MONTGOMERY, Ala. - On Tuesday May 9, 2017 Dr. Robert M. Ritchea, 54, of LaGrange, Georgia, was sentenced to serve 10 years in prison for operating a “pill mill” through his medical practice and for money laundering, announced DEA Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge Bret Hamilton and Acting United States Attorney A...

NEW ORLEANS - The U.S. Drug Enforcement (DEA) and more than 4,200 of its law enforcement and community partners collected more unused prescription drugs than at any of the 12 previous National Prescription Drug Take Back Day events. On Saturday, April 29, the event brought in 900,386 (450 tons) at...

WASHINGTON, D.C. and SILVER SPRINGS, Md. - The United States Drug Enforcement (DEA), DEA Educational Foundation and Discovery Education, the leading provider of digital content and professional development for K-12 classrooms, announced today the finalists of the inaugural Operation Prevention Video Challenge-a peer-to-peer platform for communicating messages about the dangers...

NEW ORLEANS - Yesterday a federal jury convicted Cornell Pendleton, age 51, of the Gentilly neighborhood in New Orleans for his role in laundering money on behalf of heroin dealers in the New Orleans area, announced DEA Special Agent-in-Charge Stephen G. Azzam and Acting U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans. Following...

May 02 , 2017 Contact: Public Information Officer (215) 852-8740 PHILADELPHIA - Special Agent-in-Charge Gary Tuggle of DEA’s Philadelphia Field Division announced today that 42,950.43 pounds of prescription drugs were collected across Pennsylvania and Delaware by DEA and its partner agencies during the National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day event this...