LOS ANGELES – A Sylmar man pleaded guilty this afternoon to two federal drug trafficking offenses, one of which stemmed from a 2020 transaction in which he sold bogus oxycodone pills laced with fentanyl that caused a U.S. Marine stationed at Camp Pendleton to suffer a fatal overdose. Gustavo Jaciel...

SAN FRANCISCO – Jose Alvarado appeared in United States District Court today to face federal charges for the distribution of fentanyl and methamphetamine in San Francisco’s Tenderloin District, announced United States Attorney Stephanie M. Hinds and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Wade R. Shannon. According to allegations...

FRESNO, Calif. — U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert and Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent in Charge Tatum King announced the results of an investigation into fentanyl-related overdoses in the Fresno area, which resulted in charges against of a total of 18 drug traffickers, charging them with trafficking fentanyl powder, fentanyl...

FRESNO, Calif. — Adrian Rodriguez Cardenas, 21, of Bakersfield, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert and Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Wade R. Shannon announced. On Feb. 4, 2022, co-defendant Keisean Rockmore, 27, of Bakersfield, pleaded guilty to possession with the...

FRESNO, Calif. —Renato Aguilera, 30, of Porterville, California, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to distribute fentanyl and methamphetamine, Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Wade R. Shannon and U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. According to court documents, between Jan. 1, 2020, and Dec. 3, 2020, Aguilera conspired with...

FRESNO, Calif. — Keisean Rockmore, 27, of Bakersfield, California, pleaded guilty today to possession with the intent to distribute fentanyl, Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Wade R. Shannon and U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced. According to court documents, on Jan. 19, 2021, Rockmore drove co-defendant Adrian Rodriguez...

EL CAJON, Calif. -- On December 2, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Narcotic Task Force and El Cajon Police Department executed a state search warrant at a warehouse located at 1478 Fayette Street in El Cajon. Investigators uncovered an active and sophisticated hexane hash oil extraction laboratory operation. Additional DEA personnel...

LOS ANGELES —Today, law enforcement investigators served nine arrest warrants in multiple locations throughout Los Angeles and Riverside Counties. In March of 2020, the DEA launched Operation Crystal Shield to focus efforts on main U.S. methamphetamine trafficking transportation hubs. DEA identified eight major methamphetamine transportation hubs where Operation Crystal Shield...

LOS ANGELES —The culmination of a three-month investigation resulted in a Santa Barbara methamphetamine distributor being sentenced on November 8, 2021 to 180 months in federal prison for narcotics violations. Cesar Castillo-Pena, 35, of San Bernardino, California, was sentenced by United States District Judge R. Gary Klausner. On July 28...

SAN DIEGO - Angel Dominguez Ramirez Jr. of Tamaulipas, Mexico, pleaded guilty in federal court today to drug and money laundering charges, admitting that he was the leader of a trafficking organization that transported ton-quantities of cocaine from South America to Mexico and into the United States. According to court...