DEA Archived Press Releases

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

24 People Indicted for Cross-County Marijuana Distribution and Money Laundering Conspiracies, Firearms Offenses, and Other Crimes

ALBANY, NEW YORK – Twenty-four defendants have been charged with marijuana distribution, money laundering, firearms, and related offenses in an indictment returned last month. The announcement was made by United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman; John B. DeVito, Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Division of the...
PRESS RELEASE

Queens Man Convicted of Laundering Bitcoin and Operating Unlicensed Money Transmitting Business

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK – Earlier today, a federal jury in Brooklyn convicted Mustafa Goklu, also known as “Mustangy,” of money laundering and operating an unlicensed money transmitting business as part of a scheme to launder the purported Bitcoin proceeds of drug trafficking. The verdict followed a four-day trial before United...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA Recognizes National Fentanyl Prevention and Awareness Day

NEW YORK CITY – On Sunday, August 21, the Drug Enforcement Administration will recognize National Fentanyl Prevention and Awareness Day by joining the many voices dedicated to educating the public on the serious dangers of fentanyl poisoning from fake pills and other illicit drugs. DEA supports the efforts of several...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA Launches New Initiative to Combat Drug-Related Violence and Overdoses in Communities across America

NEW YORK – The Drug Enforcement Administration announced a new initiative, Operation Overdrive, aimed at combatting the rising rates of drug-related violent crime and overdose deaths plaguing American communities. Last fall, DEA initiated a data-driven approach using national crime statistics and CDC data to identify hot spots of drug-related violence...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA Issues Public Safety Alert on Sharp Increase in Fake Prescription Pills Containing Fentanyl and Meth

NEW YORK – Today, the Drug Enforcement Administration issued a Public Safety Alert warning Americans of the alarming increase in the lethality and availability of fake prescription pills containing fentanyl and methamphetamine. DEA’s Public Safety Alert, the first in six years, seeks to raise public awareness of a significant nationwide...
PRESS RELEASE

Colombian Narcotrafficker Sentenced for Distributing Over 30,000 Kilos of Cocaine in the U.S.

BROOKLYN, NY - Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, Carlos Gentil Ordonez Martinez was sentenced to 210 months’ imprisonment by United States District Judge Edward R. Korman for conspiracy to internationally distribute cocaine. As part of the sentence, the Court entered a forfeiture money judgment of $10 million. Ordonez...
PRESS RELEASE

Seven Defendants Charged for Laundering Over $28 Million for DTO

NEW YORK - Ray Donovan, Special Agent in Charge of the New York Division of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, and Audrey Strauss, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced charges today against seven individuals involved in laundering tens of millions of dollars for drug...
PRESS RELEASE

Rochester Man Sentenced for Selling Cocaine and Laundering the Proceeds

ROCHESTER, N.Y. – U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. and U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Ray Donovan, New York Division announced today that Edwin Calderon, 39, of Rochester, NY, who was convicted of conspiring to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, 500 grams or more...
PRESS RELEASE

Staten Island man sentenced to nine years’ imprisonment for international arms trafficking and money laundering

BROOKLYN, N.Y. – Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, Albert Veliu was sentenced by United States District Judge Kiyo A. Matsumoto to nine years’ imprisonment for his role in a money laundering scheme that resulted in the defendant’s purchase and sale of an anti-tank rocket launcher and AK-47s rifles...
PRESS RELEASE

Seven individuals arrested for allegedly operating an advance fee loan scheme

HAUPPAUGE, N.Y. – Seven people were arrested in connection with an alleged advance fee loan scheme that affected more than 35 identified victims across the country. The arrests are the result of a more than year-long investigation conducted by the District Attorney’s Office, Federal Bureau of Investigations, U.S. Drug Enforcement...