DEA Archived Press Releases

Press Releases before January 20, 2025
28 Results - Showing 21 to 28
PRESS RELEASE

Third Defendant Sentenced to Almost 19 Years in Fentanyl Overdose Death of Longtime Rugby Player

SAN DIEGO – Andrew Samuel Daniel Gossai was sentenced in federal court today to 226 months in prison for supplying the fentanyl that led to the fatal overdose of 45-year old Derrick Hotchkiss, a longtime rugby player for the San Diego Old Aztecs Rugby Football Club. Gossai, the last of...
PRESS RELEASE

San Diego Man Pleads Guilty in Fentanyl Overdose Death

SAN DIEGO – Tony Davis pleaded guilty in federal court today, admitting that he supplied fentanyl that led to the fatal overdose of Jacqueline Galvan, a 41-year-old San Diego woman, on October 24, 2018. According to his plea agreement, Davis agreed to sell more than 100 grams of what he...
PRESS RELEASE

Alleged Drug Cartel Leader Charged

SAN DIEGO –A federal grand jury indictment was unsealed in San Diego today against alleged Mexican drug cartel leader Jesus Gonzalez Penuelas in connection with suspected heroin and fentanyl trafficking. Penuelas was also the target of sanctions imposed today by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. The indictment, returned on...
PRESS RELEASE

Sinaloa Cartel Leader Convicted

SAN DIEGO – Sinaloa Cartel leader Ismael Zambada-Imperial, aka “Mayito Gordo,” pleaded guilty in federal court today to drug trafficking charges following his extradition to the Southern District of California in December 2019. He also agreed to forfeit $5 million in drug trafficking proceeds. Zambada-Imperial pleaded guilty to all charges...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA Launches Project Wave Breaker to Stop Flood of Deadly Fentanyl

SAN DIEGO – Today the Drug Enforcement Administration announced a new initiative, Project Wave Breaker, to disrupt the flow of deadly fentanyl into the United States. Project Wave Breaker will direct interdiction, enforcement, and outreach efforts to the San Diego Field Division (SDFD) to disrupt the flow of fentanyl in...
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 Man Sentenced to 188 Months in Fentanyl Overdose Death

SAN DIEGO – Jeffrey Alden Blair was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Anthony J. Battaglia to 188-months in prison for supplying the fentanyl that led to the fatal overdose of 45-year old Derrick Hotchkiss, a long-time rugby player for the San Diego Old Aztecs Rugby Football Club. Through his...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA San Diego Announces 20th Take Back Day

SAN DIEGO – With opioid overdose deaths increasing during the pandemic, the Drug Enforcement Administration announced its 20th Take Back Day scheduled for April 24. At its last Take Back Day in October, DEA collected a record-high amount of expired, unused prescription medications, with the public turning in close to...