United States Drug Enforcement Administration

An undercover investigation that began with a large cocaine sale resulted in the seizure of a gun and nearly 25 pounds of narcotics, including what appeared to be heroin/fentanyl and oxycodone pills, as well as methamphetamine. CARLOS TORRES and a second individual were arrested on Friday, July 12, 2024, and...

EL PASO, Texas – An El Paso man was sentenced in federal court to 15 years in prison for distribution of fentanyl, causing death. According to court documents, Michael Joseph Cuccaro, 22, sold counterfeit M-30 oxycodone pills containing fentanyl to a purchaser on Dec. 11, 2022. The purchaser consumed the...

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Seven defendants who are either southwest Missouri residents or Mexican nationals have been indicted by a federal grand jury for their roles in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. Wilbert Pacheco-Salazar, 36, a citizen of Mexico residing in Springfield, Mo., Frank Lee Chapman, 35, and Omar Rosales-Olmos, 51...

MIDLAND, Texas – A Midland man was sentenced in a federal court in Midland to 20 years in prison for his role in a fatal fentanyl trafficking conspiracy. According to court documents, William Jake Childers, 39, trafficked counterfeit M-30 Oxycodone pills containing fentanyl that led to the deaths of two...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Newtown, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for his role in conspiracies to distribute fentanyl in northwest Missouri and to wire the proceeds of drug trafficking to Mexico. Lucas Ryan Coltrain, 24, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Roseann A. Ketchmark to nine...

ORLANDO, Fla . – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announced that a federal jury has found Joel David Fonseca Flores (42, Orlando) guilty of conspiring to distribute fentanyl that resulted in death. He faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 20 years, up to life, in federal prison. His sentencing...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The owner of an Olathe, Kansas, business pleaded guilty in federal court today to her role in a money-laundering conspiracy to transfer the proceeds of heroin and methamphetamine trafficking to Mexico. A Kansas City, Mo., woman also pleaded guilty to her role in the drug-trafficking conspiracy...

EL PASO, Texas – Two El Paso women have been sentenced in a federal court in El Paso prison for their roles in the fentanyl poisoning death of a 19-year-old single mother. According to court documents, Kathy Lee Nicole Bradford, 32, coordinated the sale of M-30 pills to a woman...

EL PASO, Texas – A San Antonio man was sentenced in a federal court in El Paso to 132 months in prison for distributing fentanyl-laced pills through the mail, leading to the death of an El Paso woman. According to court documents, Brennan Dane Short, 49, sold counterfeit M-30 pills...

SAN DIEGO – OptumRx Inc., a prescription drug benefit provider, has agreed to pay $20 million to resolve allegations that it improperly filled certain opioid prescriptions in violation of the Controlled Substances Act. The settlement resolves an investigation initiated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) into whether, between April 2013...