The U.S. Department of Justice announced prison sentences for three members of a large-scale counterfeit fentanyl pill manufacturing and distribution ring based in Elmira, New York. The ringleader, Robert Ian Thatcher, received a 23-year prison sentence. Edward Barrett and Dusty Pemberton, both street level dealers, will spend seven and one-half and five and one-half years in prison respectively…
Two sheriffs in Montana issued public warnings after multiple people died in January because of counterfeit oxycodone pills made with fentanyl. This makes Montana the 30th state in which PSM has documented deaths caused by fake fentanyl pills
The Shasta County District Attorney’s Office in California filed eight felony counts against a local woman who allegedly lied about being a licensed nurse and injected her unsuspecting clients with liquid silicone and illegally-sourced Botox…
2019 has already been a busy year for fentanyl cases in Arizona. Thousands of counterfeit fentanyl pills have been seized, a woman selling pills out of a convenience store has been charged, a 15-year-old suffered a non-fatal overdose at school from what is thought to have been a counterfeit pill, and Customs and Border Protection seized 254 founds of fentanyl hidden in a shipment of cucumbers at the port of entry at Nogales…
In a statement from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D. discussed the agency’s continuing efforts to combat the spread of illicit opioids and to ensure the security of America’s drug supply chain. Included in their recent efforts, Commissioner Gottlieb noted that the agency has stepped up enforcement and interdiction work at International Mail Facilities and shut down websites illegally selling potentially dangerous, unapproved, and misbranded versions of opioid medications to U.S. citizens…
Thursday, January 17th, 2019 was a busy day for emergency services in Seattle, Washington due to seven overdoses. Public Health – Seattle & King County issued a public warning about a potentially bad batch of drugs laced with fentanyl – both illicit and counterfeit pills – having caused the overdoses…
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FBI Director Louis Freeh on the impact of importation on law enforcement (July 14, 2017)