News Articles

Over 1200 pounds of meth found hidden in shipment of lettuce, two suspects arrested

posted 5 days ago

Two suspects have been arrested on drug trafficking charges after over 555 kilograms of meth (1223.57 pounds) were found hidden in a shipment of lettuce. On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Justice announced the arrests of Gerardo Pineda-Gallegos and Jose Lopez-Ruiz, who are accused of conspiring to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. Read Article #Texas #Methamphetamine #Interdiction

DEA Operation Meltdown Shuts Down Hundreds of Illegal Online Pharmacies

posted 5 days ago

Today, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, with the cooperation of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, announced the seizure of more than 200 website domains tied to an India-based transnational criminal organization (TCO) working within the United States and allegedly responsible for at least six fatal and four non-fatal overdoses. The TCO tied to these illegal online pharmacies has been under investigation by DEA’s Rocky Mountain Field Division since 2022. Beginning on January 27, 2026, DEA field offices throughout the United States conducted multiple operations leading to the arrest of four individuals along with the ...

A Year of Impact: DEA Recognizes its Success in Combatting Drug Cartels and Saving Lives

posted 6 days ago

2025 was a year of historic achievements for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration highlighted by significant drug seizures, the capture of high-profile targets, and the confirmation of DEA Administrator Terrance C. Cole. Appointed by President Donald Trump on February 11, 2025 and sworn in on July 23, 2025 Administrator Cole became only the third Senate-confirmed DEA Special Agent to lead the agency. Administrator Cole is a career law enforcement officer who spent 22 years with DEA fighting the drug cartels and dismantling transnational criminal organizations. Upon his return to the agency, Administrator Cole’s priorities were clear: DEA’s renewed commitment ...

Four Georgia Men Sentenced for Drug Trafficking

posted 12 days ago

Four Columbus, Georgia, men have now been sentenced for their roles in a drug trafficking organization centered in Columbus. The prosecution stemmed from Operation Sweet Silence, a multi-agency investigation into drug trafficking in the Columbus area. The defendants were sentenced as follows: Undrae Hayes , also known as Skizite, 38, was sentenced to 96 months’ imprisonment after pleading guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine; Malik Williams , also known as YSN Bird, 27, was sentenced to 51 months’ imprisonment after pleading guilty to possession with intent to distribute cocaine; Dahvontay Richardson , 28, was sentenced to ...

Florida Laboratory Owner Pleads Guilty to $52M Medicare Fraud Scheme Involving Genetic Tests

posted 14 days ago

A Florida man pleaded guilty on Jan. 15 for his role in a scheme to defraud Medicare by submitting over $52 million in false and fraudulent claims for genetic testing that Medicare beneficiaries did not need and that were based on prescriptions purchased through illegal kickbacks and bribes. According to court documents, Sean Alterman, 38, of Lake Worth, Florida, owned and operated two laboratories, Live Beyond Medical MGMT, LLC and Dynix Diagnostics LLC, through which he purchased doctors’ orders for expensive genetic testing from patient recruiters. The patient recruiters ran deceptive telemarketing campaigns that targeted Medicare beneficiaries and persuaded ...

Florida Nursing Assistant Convicted in $11.4M Health Care Fraud Scheme Targeting Medicare Beneficiaries

posted 18 days ago

A federal jury in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, convicted a nursing assistant today for his role in an $11.4 million health care fraud and wire fraud conspiracy in which hundreds of Medicare beneficiaries were sent thousands of orthotic braces they did not need. “Defendant Chris Cruz blatantly lied to Medicare in order to steal over $11 million from hard-working taxpayers,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Today’s guilty verdict demonstrates that the Criminal Division remains committed to holding criminals accountable who steal from their fellow citizens to fuel their own greed.” “Nursing Assistant ...

Google banned ads for deadly pill-making machines. They were still posted for sale — until a reporter asked

posted 24 days ago

Last fall, the world’s richest and most popular search engine exhibited a moral compass of sorts when it banned advertisements for machines often used to make dangerous counterfeit pills. Read Article #PillPress

Large-Scale Counterfeit Pill Manufacturer Pleads Guilty

posted 25 days ago

Defendant Sought to Import Kilograms of Fentanyl Precursor Chemicals into the United States and Obtained $40,000 in Fraudulent PPP Loans BOSTON – A Cambridge, Massachusetts man has pleaded guilty in federal court in Boston in connection with an ongoing investigation of counterfeit pills containing fentanyl and methamphetamine. Over the course of the past four years, the defendant is alleged to have been responsible for the manufacturing of over 200 kilograms of counterfeit pills. Schuyler Oppenheimer, a/k/a “SK,” a/k/a “Michael Sylvain,” 35, of Cambridge pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine ...

"Shock" in Fentanyl Supply Leads to Dramatic Drop in Deaths

posted 26 days ago

Key points More than a million Americans have died from all drug overdoses since the opioid epidemic began in 1999. After years of annual increases in opioid overdose deaths, deaths have abruptly and sharply declined. The drop in opioid overdose deaths stems from a fentanyl supply shock—disruptions of illicit global supply. Synthetic drugs—fentanyl and methamphetamine, continue causing too many drug deaths and addictions. Read Article #Fentanyl #Overdoses #EmergingDrugTrends

Chicago Nurse Charged with Distributing Counterfeit Ozempic

posted 26 days ago

A registered nurse has been charged in federal court in Chicago with distributing counterfeit Ozempic. SHARON CHRISTINE SACKMAN distributed the counterfeit drugs to three individuals in Chicago in 2023, according to a criminal information filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. The drugs were labeled as the weight-loss medication Ozempic, but they were not manufactured by Ozempic’s manufacturer, Novo Nordisk, nor did they contain Ozempic’s active ingredient semaglutide, the information states. Sackman was a registered professional nurse but was not licensed by law to prescribe, administer, dispense, or sell Ozempic, the information ...

Maryland Man Sentenced to More Than 5 Years in Federal Prison for Leading Scheme in Which Doctors Were Impersonated to Obtain Narcotics

posted 27 days ago

A Maryland man was sentenced today to 65 months in federal prison for leading a long-running scheme in which dozens of medical doctors’ personal information was stolen and then used to create fraudulent e-prescribing accounts, which his accomplices then used to issue thousands of fraudulent prescriptions of controlled substances. Benjamin Jamal Washington, 25, of Hyattsville, Maryland, was sentenced by United States District Judge Wesley L. Hsu. Washington pleaded guilty in September 2025 to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, one count of aggravated identity theft, and one count of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances. From ...

"Pink cocaine" is spreading in U.S. — and users don't know what's in it

posted 30 days ago

A drug marketed as "pink cocaine" is turning up more often in U.S. nightclubs and busts, alarming health officials because it's usually not cocaine at all. And no two batches are the same. Why it matters: The potent powder — part of a new wave of polydrugs — is a dangerous cocktail of drugs, commonly ketamine and ecstasy, sometimes mixed with methamphetamine or fentanyl. Read Article #Ketamine #Tusi-PinkCocaine

Oklahoma Medical Supply Company Owner Indicted for $30M Health Care Fraud Scheme

posted 01-08-2026

An indictment was unsealed in the Middle District of Florida today charging an Oklahoma chiropractor and medical supply company owner for his role in a conspiracy to submit fraudulent claims to multiple federal health care programs for orthotic braces and other durable medical equipment (DME), and for the theft of government funds intended to support health care providers during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the indictment, Mark Loftis, 38, of Cushing, Oklahoma, was the owner of a medical supply company called Back Pain Home Supplies LLC, which did business as EZ Medical Supply. As alleged, Loftis paid illegal kickbacks to marketers in exchange for the ...

Artificial intelligence begins prescribing medications in Utah

posted 01-06-2026

Pilot program will test how far patients and regulators are willing to trust AI in medicine. In a first for the U.S., Utah is letting artificial intelligence — not a doctor — renew certain medical prescriptions. No human involved. Read Article #Utah #NewTechnology #ArtificialIntelligence(AI)

Indiana troopers find $7 million worth of cocaine during tractor-trailer stop

posted 01-05-2026

Police in Indiana seized over 300 pounds of cocaine over the weekend during an inspection stop of a tractor-trailer on Interstate 70. Indiana State Police said in a news release they seized 309 pounds of cocaine during a traffic stop near the Cloverdale Exit Saturday afternoon. ISP said the truck was en route from Joplin, Missouri, to Richmond, Indiana. Read Full Article #Indiana #Cocaine #Interdiction

‘It’s made things worse for everyone’: Philadelphia grapples with rise of new street drug

posted 12-22-2025

Medetomidine has extreme and fast-acting withdrawal symptoms – and the detox centers that help patients are struggling with how best to cope Read Article #Pennsylvania #Medetomidine #EmergingDrugTrends

Doctor Indicted for Orchestrating $45M Botox Fraud Scheme Targeting Medicare

posted 12-18-2025

A federal grand jury in California returned a superseding indictment yesterday charging a doctor for allegedly submitting more than $45 million in false and fraudulent claims to Medicare for Botox injections and for obstructing a criminal investigation by allegedly submitting falsified medical records in response to a grand jury subpoena. According to court documents, Violetta Mailyan, 45, of Los Angeles County, owned and operated Healthy Way Medical Center (Healthy Way), which allegedly billed Medicare for Botox injections that were medically unnecessary and never provided, including for injections on dates when Mailyan was traveling internationally, on dates ...

Digital Health Company and Medical Practice Indicted in $100M Adderall Distribution Scheme

posted 12-17-2025

The Digital Health Company Was Also Charged with Health Care Fraud and Obstruction Conspiracies A federal grand jury in San Francisco returned an indictment yesterday charging a California company for its participation in a years-long scheme to illegally distribute Adderall over the internet, conspire to commit health care fraud in connection with the submission of false and fraudulent claims for reimbursement for Adderall and other stimulants, and conspire to obstruct justice. A Florida medical practice was also charged in connection with its alleged participation in the scheme to illegally distribute Adderall. “As alleged, Done Global used lies ...

More than $400K worth of fake pharmaceuticals seized at Cincinnati airport

posted 12-16-2025

Hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of fake and prohibited pharmaceuticals have been intercepted by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers in Cincinnati. CBP officials say officers working alongside the U.S. Food and Drug Administration seized nearly 400 shipments containing more than 8,500 pairs of undeclared or misdeclared contact lenses. Another 50 shipments included misbranded or illegal FDA-regulated drugs and medical devices, including GLP-1 weight loss medications, Botox, dermal fillers, skincare products, and other prohibited substances and powders. Read Article #Ohio #AdulteratedDrug #DrugSeizure #Counterfeit

DEA Laboratory Testing Identifies New Soft/Pliable Form of Fentanyl

posted 12-13-2025

The DEA Laboratory System recently identified a concerning new form of fentanyl that potentially poses a risk to public health and safety. This substance, found in various colors and textures, is soft and pliable, allowing it to be molded and shaped. Laboratory testing reveals that this form contains combinations of fentanyl, fentanyl-related substances, and other adulterants, with purity levels ranging from less than 1% to over 20%. Even at low concentrations, fentanyl is extremely potent and can be lethal. This newly identified form of fentanyl differs from traditional samples, which are typically powders or pills. Its unique texture and appearance may be ...