SAVANNAH, Ga. – Three people, including two medical professionals, are among defendants recently prosecuted in federal court as part of continued efforts to crack down on opioid abuse. Lisa Marie Douthit, 42, a pharmacy technician at a Walgreen’s in Bryan County, was sentenced to three months in prison by U.S...

SAVANNAH, Ga. – A physician with clinics in Pooler, Ga., and Braselton, Ga., has been indicted for illegally prescribing drugs to non-patients and ordered held in custody pending trial in federal court. Dr. Johnny Di Blasi , 46, of Braselton, Ga., is named in a nine-count indictment for conspiracy to...

WASHINGTON – The Drug Enforcement Administration urges its DEA-registered practitioners and members of the public to be cautious of telephone calls from criminals posing as DEA or other law enforcement personnel threatening arrest and prosecution for supposed violations of federal drug laws or involvement in drug-trafficking activities. DEA continues to...

WASHINGTON – The Drug Enforcement Administration today announced the launch of an enhanced system to help more than 1,500 registered drug manufacturers and distributors nationwide more effectively identify potential illicit drug diversion and combat the opioid epidemic. On Oct. 24, 2018, President Trump signed into law the “Substance Use–Disorder Prevention...

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – DEA Acting Administrator Uttam Dhillon today unveiled the Drug Enforcement Administration’s 5,500 square foot Drugs: Costs and Consequences travelling exhibit in Albuquerque with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, where it will be housed for the next several months. The...

NEW YORK - Christopher Tersigni, Special Agent in Charge of the United States Drug Enforcement Administration Special Operations Division and Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today the extradition of Haji Abdul Satar Abdul Manaf, aka “Haji Abdul Sattar Barakzai,” for...

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Chief U.S. District Judge Frank D. Whitney sentenced today Shi Yun Zhou, 27, of Charlotte, to 108 months in prison and four years of supervised release on drug trafficking conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy charges, announced Andrew Murray, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina...

STATESBORO, Ga. - A Mexican national and 17 other Statesboro-area residents indicted in a sweeping two-year, multi-agency investigation have pled guilty to a multitude of charges, and now face sentences of up to life in prison. The joint federal, state and local investigation began in 2015 after citizens complained about...

FLORENCE, S.C. - United States Attorney Sherri A. Lydon announced today that James Latron Sumter, aka “T”, 35, of Myrtle Beach has pled guilty in federal court to conspiring to distribute a quantity of cocaine and heroin, the use of which resulted in serious bodily injury or death. This charge...

SAVANNAH, Ga. - Sixteen of the defendants indicted on drug trafficking and firearms charges as part of Operation Vanilla Gorilla have pled guilty in federal court, including the lead defendant in the gang. Operation Vanilla Gorilla targeted the notorious Ghost Face Gangsters, a violent criminal street gang largely operated from...