DEA Archived Press Releases

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

Alleged Drug Trafficker Wilder Emilio Sanchez Farfan Extradited from Colombia

SAN DIEG O - Wilder Emilio Sanchez Farfan, aka Gato, an Ecuadorian national and alleged drug trafficker, made his first appearance in federal court today following his extradition to the United States from Colombia yesterday. At the hearing, Sanchez Farfan entered a not guilty plea. U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara L...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA Gears Up for National Prescription Drug Take Back Day

SAN DIEGO - 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, to include 23 drop-off locations in San...
PRESS RELEASE

National Prescription Drug Take Back Day Results in DEA and Partners Collecting Hundreds of Thousands of Pounds

SAN DIEGO – On April 30, 2022, communities across the country demonstrated their support for DEA’s annual National Prescription Drug Take Back Day by dropping off more than 720,000 pounds of unneeded medications at 5,144 collection sites. Since 2010, DEA, along with its law enforcement partners, has collected nearly 16...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA Holds 22nd National Prescription Drug Take Back Day to Prevent Addiction and Reduce Overdose Deaths

SAN DIEGO– The Drug Enforcement Administration will host its 22nd National Prescription Drug Take Back Day this Saturday, April 30 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. This bi-annual event offers free, anonymous disposal of unneeded medications at more than 4,000 local drop-off locations nationwide. “Disposing of unneeded medications can help...
PRESS RELEASE

Guatemalan National is Extradited on International Cocaine Trafficking and Maritime Smuggling Charges

SAN DIEGO – Suspected drug trafficker Rafael Orlando Ramirez Barillas, a Guatemalan national who was extradited to the United States from Guatemala on Thursday, February 10, 2022 to face international cocaine trafficking and maritime smuggling charges in the Southern District of California, appeared in federal court today and was ordered...
PRESS RELEASE

Alleged Drug Trafficker Extradited from Ecuador

SAN DIEGO – Brayan Alberto Rodriguez-Alcala, an alleged Sinaloa Cartel drug trafficker, was extradited to the United States from Ecuador today. On October 19, 2021, a federal grand jury sitting in the Southern District of California returned an indictment charging Rodriguez-Alcala with participating in a long-running worldwide conspiracy to traffic...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take Back Day Brings in nearly 745,000 Pounds of Unneeded Medications, Continues Fight against Opioid Epidemic

SAN DIEGO - The Drug Enforcement Administration, along with its law enforcement partners, has removed close to 745,000 pounds of unneeded prescriptions from medicine cabinets across the country as part of DEA’s ongoing commitment to turn the tide against the U.S. opioid epidemic. Following last month’s 21st National Prescription Drug...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA to hold 20th National Prescription Drug Take Back Day

SAN DIEGO – With opioid overdose deaths increasing during the pandemic, the Drug Enforcement Administration is holding its 20th Take Back Day this Saturday, April 24th. DEA has collected over 6,800 tons of prescription drugs over the 10-year span of Take Back Day, and during DEA’s October 2020 Take Back...
PRESS RELEASE

San Diego and Imperial County residents turn in large amounts of unwanted medications on National Prescription Drug Take Back Day

SAN DIEGO – DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take Back Day brought in nearly a million pounds of unused, expired, and unwanted medications across the country, the largest amount ever collected in the program’s ten years. Americans once again showed their dedication to remove prescription pills from their homes to prevent...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA and partners collect thousands of pounds of unwanted medications and vaping products during the 18th National Prescription Drug Take Back Day

SAN DIEGO – Americans nationwide have once again shown their strong support for DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take Back Day by dropping off nearly 883,000 pounds of medications during the October 2019 Take Back event. DEA, along with its law enforcement partners, has now collected nearly 12.7 million pounds of...