FRESNO, Calif. - Timothy Ortiz, aka Michael Fitton, 46, of Waukegan, Illinois, pled guilty today for his role in a large-scale smokeable synthetic cannabinoids trafficking organization that shipped misbranded synthetic drugs interstate from a processing lab in Millbrae, California, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. Smokeable synthetic cannabinoids, commonly known...

FRESNO, Calif. - Ramsey Jeries Farraj, 41, of Bakersfield, was sentenced today to 18 months in prison for conspiring with his former business partner, Majed Bashir “Mike” Akroush, 49, also of Bakersfield, to structure $4,204,965 obtained from the sale of smokeable synthetic drugs, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. Smokable...

SHREVEPORT, La. - Today, a federal jury found a Texas man guilty of conspiring to transport methamphetamine and cocaine, announced Drug Enforcement (DEA) Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge Brad L. Byerley and Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook. Erasmo Aviles Jr., 35, of Spring, Texas, was found guilty of one count...

FRESNO, Calif. - Two former deputies with the Kern County Sheriff’s Office were sentenced today for conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute marijuana, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill sentenced Logan August, 30, of Bakersfield, to three years’ probation, $16,200...

FRESNO, Calif. - A federal grand jury returned a three-count indictment today against Omar Felix-Corrales, 38, and Valeria Silvas Villarreal, 23, both of Mexico, charging them with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin, and Felix-Corrales alone with possession of a firearm in relation to a drug...

MONTGOMERY, Ala. - Twenty-six suspected drug traffickers with ties to East Alabama were arrested in a joint federal, state, and local narcotics investigation, announced Drug Enforcement (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Stephen G. Azzam and A. Clark Morris, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama. Thirteen suspects were...

WEST MEMPHIS, Ark. - Today, the simultaneous unsealing of 25 federal indictments charging 43 defendants in a major operation aimed at curbing drug trafficking and gun violence in West Memphis and Crittenden County. The indictments were returned by a federal grand jury on July 6, 2017 and July 11, 2017...

FRESNO, Calif. - Abudullah Almashwali, 31, a Yemeni national formerly residing in Brooklyn, New York, was sentenced today to six and a half years in prison for conspiracy to distribute and distribution of heroin and cocaine, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert and DEA Special Agent-in-Charge John J. Martin announced. According...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - The Justice Department today announced the seizure of the largest criminal marketplace on the internet, AlphaBay, which operated for over two years on the dark web and was used to sell deadly illegal drugs, stolen and fraudulent identification documents and access devices, counterfeit goods, malware and other...

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - A federal judge today sentenced a Birmingham, Alabama man to 20 years in prison for distributing fentanyl, a potent synthetic opioid painkiller, that caused the death of a 20-year-old Pelham woman, announced DEA Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge Bret Hamilton and Acting U.S. Attorney Robert O. Posey. A U.S...