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...

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...

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...

SEATTLE, Wash. - The Department of Justice and (a division of Albertson’s Companies, Inc.) have reached a civil settlement of allegations the company failed to timely report controlled substances that were missing from pharmacies. Safeway will pay the United States $3 million and implement a compliance agreement reached with the...

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. - Christopher Owens, a physician licensed to practice in California, was indicted on Tuesday with unlawfully prescribing oxycodone, announced U.S. Attorney Brian J. Stretch and DEA Special Agent-in-Charge John J. Martin. The indictment alleges that between September 2012 and June 2015, Owens, 50, now of Indianapolis, Indian...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - CVS Pharmacy Inc. has paid $5 million to resolve federal Controlled Substances (CSA) allegations that its pharmacies in the Eastern District of California failed to keep and maintain accurate records of Schedule II, III, IV, and V controlled substances, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert and Drug Enforcement...

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. - Jessica Scott, an employee of Covenant Aviation (CAS), a private company that contracts with the Transportation Security (TSA), was sentenced today to one year and a day in prison for her role in a conspiracy to defraud the federal government. The sentence was handed down by...