US attorney, special agents to hold conference about significant drug operation in California
U.S. Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey will join the Special Agents in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration and FBI at a presser to provide information about a significant law enforcement operation in San Francisco.
Animal tranquilizer mixed with opioids is an emerging threat to the U.S.
For the first time in U.S. history, the White House has declared a drug to be an emerging threat to the United States. The DEA says Xylazine, which is an animal tranquilizer is being used with the synthetic opioid fentanyl, and the results are deadly.
White House announces emerging drug threat, animal tranquillizer mixed with fentanyl
For the first time in U.S. history, the White House has declared a drug to be an emerging threat to the United States. The DEA says Xylazine, which is an animal tranquilizer, is being used with the synthetic opioid fentanyl, and the results are deadly.
I-TEAM: Arrest of former DEA task force officer has possible ties to the arrest of FHP trooper
The I-TEAM has been digging into the allegations against a former Nassau County Sergeant, who was also a DEA task force officer, and found possible ties to another drug investigation resulting in the arrest of a longtime Florida Highway Patrol trooper.
Monthslong Jacksonville Sheriffโs Office drug operation nets 15 trafficking arrests
โOperation Decrypted,โ a four-month investigation by the Jacksonville Sheriffโs Office and other partnering agencies, targeted a major drug trafficking organization in Jacksonville, and it resulted in arrests across the country, Sheriff T.K. Waters announced during a Wednesday afternoon news conference.
Jacksonville pharmacist, ex-pharmacy owner sentenced after pleading guilty in pill mill investigation: feds
A Jacksonville pharmacist and a former pharmacy owner were sentenced after they both pleaded guilty earlier this year to charges related to a federal pill mill investigation, the United States Attorneyโs Office for the Southern District of Georgia said Friday.
๐๐ฃ๐ฅDecoding emojis dealers are using to sell drugs to young people
Since the "One Pill Can Kill" campaign began, federal agents who gather intel on drug distribution have been working behind the scenes to decode emojis found in both social media and text communications between drug dealers and young people.
Georgia man accused of selling over 2 dozen guns, cocaine to undercover officer
A three-month investigation disrupted a Georgia-to-New York gun trafficking pipeline and resulted in the seizure of 25 guns, including five assault weapons, according to the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, which said the guns and a quantity of cocaine were sold to an undercover officer.
DEA using science to fight war on drugs
When people think of the Drug Enforcement Administration, they may envision undercover federal agents infiltrating major drug operations. They may also conjure up mental images of heavily armed federal law enforcement officers raiding a drug house in the United States or arresting a drug warlord abroad. But most people may not realize that behind the scenes, there is a scientific component of the DEA that is also on the frontlines when it comes to the war on drugs.
Operation Engage aims to prevent opioid overdoses
The Drug Enforcement Administration has now launched Operation Engage. DEAโs Miami Field Division Assistant Special Agent in Charge Jonathon White says Operation Engage will focus on preventing opioid overdoses. โSo, Operation Engage, the timing couldnโt be more critical.โDEA Special Agent Amy Roderick is currently coordinating Operation Engage. Operation Engage started in South Florida and will eventually make its way to the northeastern part of the state. And just days after the DEA rolled out Operation Engage, DEA Acting Administrator D. Christopher Evans on Tuesday announced the release of the 2020 National Drug Threat Assessment.
DEA: Beware of scammers impersonating agents
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. โ The Drug Enforcement Administration on Wednesday warned that scammers are pretending to be DEA agents in an attempt to steal money and personal information. The DEA released audio of a phone conversation between a scammer impersonating a DEA agent and a man. But the scammer learned during the call that an actual DEA agent was listening to the conversation. โSir, this is the DEA,โ a DEA special agent says. โTheyโre using trunk numbers or numbers disguised as other locations when theyโre making these phone calls,โ Dubet explained.
Mexican Navy helps DEA seize 2.5 tons of meth, 100,000 fentanyl pills
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. โ The Mexican Navy helped the Drug Enforcement Administration seize 2.5 tons of meth and 100,000 fentanyl pills that were on the way to the United States. โLetโs say if 10% of that went to Atlanta, which would be about 500 pounds, and then you take 1% of that shipment coming to Jacksonville, itโs 50 pounds of meth,โ Dubet said. โFifty pounds of meth to the Jacksonville area would supply not only Jacksonville but the surrounding counties for several weeks.โAdThat meth and fentanyl could lead to potentially fatal overdoses. โWhenever you have large amounts of money and people fighting for territory, thatโs where the violence comes out,โ Dubet said. If convicted, the two Mexican nationals face a mandatory minimum of 10 years in U.S. federal prison.
Feds: Florida officers protected cocaine shipment for cash
Miami-Dade County officers Roderick Flowers and Keith Edwards Jr. are charged federally with conspiracy to possess and distribute cocaine. Hernandez met several times with the DEA source, laundering more than $100,000 and investing in cocaine shipments, the DEA alleges. By September, the source told Hernandez he needed protection to move a shipment of cocaine between two spots in South Florida and asked if his officers would do it, records show. The DEA says Flowers met with the source at Hernandez's office in Sept. 9. The source met with another undercover agent, who gave him 10 kilograms of sham cocaine in a suitcase.
Get rid of old, unused prescriptions on Saturday during National Drug Take Back Day
The goal is to educate the community on the risk of opioid misuse while providing a safe and anonymous way to dispose of left-over medications. The event will be held from 10:00 am โ 2:00 pm at the following locations:Memorial Hospital Medical Office Building โ 3627 University Blvd. S. Jacksonville, FL 32216Memorial Emergency Room Julington Creek โ42 Doctors Village Dr. Saint Johns, FL 32259Orange Park Medical Center Emergency Room โ 2001 Kingsley Avenue Orange Park, FL 32073Normandy Park ER โ 5773 Normandy Blvd. โMore than half of people who misuse opioid medications say they obtained them from someone they know," Dr. Fred Jenkins, Emergency Room Physician and Medical Director at Memorial Hospital said. โHCA Healthcare is committed to bringing frontline solutions to curb the tide of opioid misuse and addiction in the communities that we serve,โ Dr. Jenkins said.
DEA announces launch of initiative to reduce violent crime
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. โ Two weeks after Drug Enforcement Administration Acting Administrator Timothy Shea visited Florida and spent time talking with Jacksonville Sheriff Mike Williams about violent crime in the city, the DEA has announced the launch of Project Safeguard. Itโs a violent crime reduction initiative that allows the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and federal marshals to partner with local police to go after violent offenders -- especially since the DEA says many of the violent crimes in Jacksonville are linked to illegal narcotics trafficking. Police in 41 cities throughout Florida are taking part in Project Safeguard. Only time will tell if the initiative reduces violent crime throughout the state. Project Safeguard is being deployed in other areas of the country such as Los Angeles, New York and Chicago.
DEA head addresses drug-related violence during Jacksonville visit
DEA head addresses drug-related violence during Jacksonville visitPublished: October 7, 2020, 11:35 pmThe Drug Enforcement Agencyโs top cop who oversees all operations in both the U.S. and abroad was in Jacksonville to meet with Sheriff Mike Williams.
DEA chief warns of potential flood of drugs from Mexico
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. โ U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Acting Administrator Timothy Shea warned Tuesday that the eventual lifting of coronavirus restrictions could bring a flood of methamphetamine and other narcotics from Mexico into the United States. Shea met in Tallahassee with federal, state and local law-enforcement officials from North Florida and Attorney General Ashley Moody. But Shea expects that will change with development of a vaccine for the virus and the eventual lifting of restrictions. โVirtually all of the methamphetamine and much of the fentanyl in this country comes from Mexico,โ Shea said. โThese drugs are manufactured on an industrial scale in Mexico using precursor chemicals from China and then smuggled across the border and distributed to every state in the country.โ
Jacksonville sheriff: Vest saves life of officer shot
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. โ A police officer was shot Monday morning while assisting the Drug Enforcement Administration in serving a high-risk search warrant in a neighborhood off Moncrief Road, authorities said. The Jacksonville Sheriffโs Office SWAT team member was released from the hospital within hours and is recovering at home, Sheriff Mike Williams said. Williams said the veteran officer was hit several times, but the shots landed on his ballistics vest, and the officer managed to return fire. โWhen you ask for the SWAT team, youโre talking about a high-profile takedown," Jefferson said. The sheriff said SWAT officers spend 20-30% of their on-duty time training to prepare them for high-risk situations.
โOperation Bad Employeeโ cracks down on prescription drug ring
Rader was the 11th member of the drug distribution ring to be convicted and sentenced in federal court. After the prescription drugs left the pharmacy, according to investigators, they were then sold on the streets of both Duval and Nassau counties. Full Screen 1 / 5 Pharmacy surveillanceNassau County Sheriff Bill Leeper said when they joined โOperation Bad Employee,โ they learned that one of the recruiters for the drug distribution operation lived and operated out of Nassau County. Leeper went on to say โOperation Bad Employeeโ may have put a dent in the ongoing opioid problem in Nassau County. Although โOperation Bad Employeeโ began in 2016, it is still an ongoing investigation, which means there could be more arrests.
Guns, drugs, stolen property seized in federal raid on Westside
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. โ Guns, drugs and stolen property were all seized in a federal raid this week on Jacksonvilleโs Westside. The raid was part of a six-month sting that Drug Enforcement Administration agents dubbed โOperation Python,โ in which millions of dollarsโ worth of illegal drugs have been taken off the streets. At 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, DEA agents served a search warrant at the Westside home. Full Screen 1 / 13 Operation PythonTuesdayโs raid was part of the national DEA investigation called Operation Python. Though Operation Python officially ended Wednesday afternoon, Dubet told News4Jax that he believes Millerโs arrest will lead to identifying more suspects locally.
Meth trafficking, control an overwhelming problem, DEA says
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. โ The Drug Enforcement Agency recently released its 2019 National Drug Threat Assessment, which outlines threats posed by illegal drugs and drug traffickers. According to whatโs in the report, while there has been a 13% decline in opioid overdoses across the United States, methamphetamine trafficking and usage continues to be an overwhelming problem for law enforcement. DEA Special Agent in Charge Mike Dubet said the cartels are flooding Florida streets with crystal meth, especially Northeast Florida. According to the recent DEA threat assessment, Mexican drug cartels are mass producing major quantities of meth at alarming rates. READ: 2019 DEA National Drug Threat AssessmentAnd thereโs another trend thatโs been studied during the last three years.
Unwanted medication collection planned in Columbia County
Medicate: For some people, being physically active and leading a healthy life isn't enough to get down to the 120 mark. These people, possibly because they are genetically predisposed to high blood pressure, may need to take more bloodColumbia County residents who need to safely and properly dispose of unwanted, expired or unused medication will have a chance Oct. 26, thanks to the Sheriff's Office. Deputies will accept meds at two locations in the area, and they will be disposed of by the DEA. Each year the Sheriff's Office partners with the DEA, Youth Advocacy Partnership and Cheek and Scott to rid the community of these drugs. S Hwy 90 in Lake CityCopyright 2019 by WJXT News4Jax - All rights reserved.