WASHINGTON – The Trump Administration has announced the appointment of Derek S. Maltz as Acting Administrator of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. Maltz replaces Anne Milgram who departed the agency last week. Maltz is a passionate, dedicated, career special agent who served 28 years at DEA before retiring in 2014...

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration is announcing three new rules to make permanent some temporary telemedicine flexibilities established during the COVID-19 public health emergency while also establishing new patient protections. In developing these rules, DEA has focused on the patient to ensure telemedicine is accessible for medical care...

ALBANY, Ga. –A Southwest Georgia resident with a lengthy criminal history who distributed kilograms of fentanyl and other deadly drugs while in possession of firearms and ammunition was sentenced to serve 40 years in federal prison for his crimes. Larry Roger Sparks, Jr., 46, of Albany, was sentenced to serve...

FLORENCE, S.C. — A federal grand jury in Florence returned a four-count indictment against Jawan Rayel White, 37; Derrell Sherald, 38; Amon Rasheem Rutledge, 34; Alexis Nicole Loscar, 30; and Christian Vargas, 21, for conspiracy to distribute and distribution of methamphetamine and fentanyl. The indictment alleges that White, while incarcerated...

RALEIGH, N.C. – Talvin Lamar Brandon, 29, was sentenced to 96 months in prison for armed drug trafficking after hitting an officer’s patrol car as he was fleeing from a traffic stop. On September 3, 2024, Brandon pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 500...

RALEIGH, N.C. – A New Bern man was sentenced to 40 years in prison for trafficking and distributing methamphetamine and fentanyl for a large-scale drug trafficking operation in Craven County. On August 8, 2024, a Raleigh jury found Lucio Camargo Garcia guilty of the charges. “Garcia took advantage of Craven...

RALEIGH, N.C. – Michael Lynn Russell, a 62-year-old resident of Fuquay-Varina, has been sentenced to 120 months in prison after being arrested twice for trafficking methamphetamine. Russell pled guilty on October 8, 2024. “This sentencing reflects the commitment of the Fuquay-Varina Police Department to protecting our community from the devastating...

COLUMBUS, Ga. – A Columbus resident with prior state convictions including aggravated assault and illegally possessing a firearm was sentenced to serve more than 14 years in a federal prison this week resulting from an investigation that began in 2019. Quntay Thomas, 40, was sentenced to serve 175 months in...

SAVANNAH, GA: A Chatham County man identified as a leader in a drug trafficking network has been sentenced to nearly 15 years in prison. Kenyona Pinckney, 33, of Savannah, was sentenced to 178 months in prison after pleading guilty to Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute and to Distribute...

WASHINGTON – Operation OD Justice is a DEA initiative born out of a critical need to investigate drug poisoning and overdose deaths across the U.S. The initiative, launched in 2021 by DEA’s Los Angeles and San Diego Field Divisions, offers training, resources, and poisoning response coordinators to assist State and...