DEA Archived Press Releases

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

Leaders of Colombian Drug Trafficking Organization Plead Guilty to Conspiring to Smuggle over 43,000 Kilos of Cocaine into the United States

TAMPA, FL – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces that Jorge Hernan Gonzalez-Ortiz, 50, of Colombia, and Carlos Andres Aldana-Gil, 43, also of Colombia, have pleaded guilty to conspiracy to import cocaine into the United States. Each faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison. A sentencing date...
PRESS RELEASE

U.S. Attorney's Office Secures Guilty Pleas in Albuquerque Fentanyl Case

ALBUQUERQUE – Two Albuquerque drug dealers pleaded guilty to federal charges after attempting to sell 30,000 fentanyl pills, containing approximately 3,200 grams of the drug, to an undercover law enforcement agent. According to court documents, on December 6, 2023, Miguel Antonio Ramirez, 23, and Isaiah Anthony Aragon, 24, conspired to...
PRESS RELEASE

Two Houston Men Sentenced to Federal Prison for Burglarizing Pharmacies in Southern Illinois, Missouri

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...
PRESS RELEASE

This Holiday Season Talk to Your Loved Ones About Fentanyl

SEATTLE- This holiday season, full of travel and family gatherings, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Seattle Division is urging communities across the Pacific Northwest to make the most of this time together by having conversations about the dangers of fentanyl. Fentanyl is the deadliest drug threat our nation has ever...
PRESS RELEASE

Antelope Valley Man Faces New Charge Alleging He Knowingly Sold Fentanyl to Second Victim Who Died

LOS ANGELES – A Palmdale man already facing one charge of distribution of fentanyl resulting in death has been charged by federal grand jury indictment with an additional count of distribution of fentanyl resulting in death related to the death of a Palmdale man in August, the Justice Department announced...
PRESS RELEASE

Nurse Pleads Guilty to Illegally Obtaining Fentanyl from Hospital

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...
PRESS RELEASE

Overdose Deaths Decline, Fentanyl Threat Looms

OMAHA, Neb. – Tis’ the season for holiday travel and family gatherings and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Omaha Division is encouraging communities across the Midwest to make the most of this time together by continuing conversations on the consequences of drug experimentation and dangers of fentanyl. For the first...
PRESS RELEASE

Mexican National Sentenced to 15 Years in Federal Prison on Drug Charges

BOISE – Efren Alexander Aviles-Pacheco, 29, of Culiacan, Sinaloa, Mexico, illegally living in Ontario, Oregon, was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, U.S. Attorney Josh Hurwit announced today. Senior U.S. District Court Judge B. Lynn Winmill also sentenced Aviles-Pacheco to serve 10...
PRESS RELEASE

Drug Trafficker Who Assisted Stepson with Trafficking Ring Tied to Aryan Prison Gangs Sentenced to Over Six Years in Prison

Tacoma – A 66-year-old Tacoma man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to 75 months in prison for his leadership role in a drug distribution ring tied to the white supremacist Aryan Family prison gang, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Ronnie Griffin is the stepfather of...
PRESS RELEASE

Court Orders North Carolina Pharmacy to Pay $500,000 Penalty and Enters Injunction to Prevent Filling Illegal Controlled Substance Prescriptions

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...