United States Drug Enforcement Administration

OAKLAND, Calif. – Jose Luis Garcia, the co-owner of Envios Express, a money transmitting business in Oakland, was sentenced this week to 12 months in federal prison. The Honorable Haywood S. Gilliam, Jr., United States District Judge, handed down the sentence on Jan. 15, 2025. Garcia, 57, of Oakland, was...

BENTON, Ill. – A district court judge sentenced two Houston, Texas, men to federal prison for burglarizing pharmacies of controlled substances in Casey, Illinois, and Poplar Bluff, Missouri. McKindley V. Allen, 32, and DaLeon J. Fontennet, 28, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit burglary involving controlled substances, conspiracy to distribute...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Ronald Yandell, 62, of Pinole, and William Sylvester, 56, of Norco, were each sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller to two consecutive life terms in prison for murder in aid of racketeering and various other RICO-related crimes, Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – An Osage Beach, Mo., nurse pleaded guilty in federal court today to illegally obtaining fentanyl from a hospital for his own use. Charles Welch Jr., 65, waived his right to a grand jury and pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Roseann A. Ketchmark to a federal...

PHOENIX, Ariz. – Yvette Porras-Ochoa, 42, of Wittmann, was sentenced last week by United States District Judge Steven P. Logan to 180 months in prison. Porras-Ochoa pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute 50 grams or more of Cocaine, Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Prescription...

BOSTON – A Lebanese man has been sentenced for his for his participation in a money laundering conspiracy. Andres Rached Farah, 55, a Lebanese citizen who resided in Colombia, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns to 52 months in prison. In August 2024, Farah pleaded guilty...

WASHINGTON – A federal court ordered an Elkin, North Carolina, pharmacy to pay a $500,000 penalty and enjoined the pharmacy and its pharmacists from dispensing controlled substances, including opioids, without taking steps to help ensure the drugs will not be abused or diverted. The consent decree resolves a complaint filed...

FRESNO, Calif. — Ifeanyi Vincent Ntukogu, 49, of Fresno, was sentenced today to seven years and three months in prison for illegally distributing oxycodone and hydrocodone. Ntukogu was a pharmacist in Madera who dispensed more than 450,000 oxycodone and hydrocodone pills based on fraudulent prescriptions, all in exchange for cash...

BOSTON – A member of a nationwide drug trafficking ring was sentenced on Oct. 25, 2024, in federal court in Boston for drug trafficking and money laundering. During the investigation, over 160 pounds of pure methamphetamine, as well as an AK-47, a Glock with no serial number, two loaded Smith...

BOSTON – A Boston area man has pleaded guilty to his role in Cameron Street, a violent Boston gang. Jose Afonseca, 32, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to participate in a racketeering enterprise, conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine and dealing in firearms without a license. U.S...