From Tip-off to Takedown: Inside the Multi-agency Bust of a Fentanyl Trafficking Ring

There’s a reason fentanyl is a Schedule II controlled substance: a tiny amount — even a small dose the size of a pencil tip — can be lethal.

Source: Drug Enforcement Administration

Source: Drug Enforcement Administration

Imagine how many fatalities 3.3 kg of fentanyl can claim: the tip of a pencil times the weight of a half gallon of milk.

That’s how much fentanyl our special agents and their law enforcement partners initially found a street gang in Orlando, FL, was moving through the U.S. Mail.

“Illegal drugs present a significant threat to the nation, with deadly fentanyl and new and more dangerous drugs like nitazenes fueling the opioid epidemic. The USPS OIG remains committed to stop those who would transport or traffic them using the U.S. Mail.”

– Tammy Hull,
Inspector General, U.S. Postal Service

The OIG opened its case after a tip came in from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which was investigating a known money launderer and likely head of the drug trafficking organization.

DEA special agents had spotted him meeting with a man donning a Postal Service uniform, who turned out to be an employee at a mail processing plant in Orlando.

Most narcotics investigations are strengthened by inter-agency collaboration and this was no different: the OIG partnered with the DEA, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, IRS Criminal Investigation, the Orlando and Kissimmee Police Departments, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Aided by K-9 officers, investigators first intercepted the 3.3 kg package containing about 27,500 fentanyl pills. The “fenta-pills” were made to look like pharmaceuticals and were on their way from Puerto Rico to one of the suspects’ homes.

Investigators executed a search warrant on a parcel, which revealed narcotics concealed inside an electric grill. Source: DEA.

Investigators executed a search warrant on a parcel, which revealed narcotics concealed inside an electric grill. Source: DEA.

The mail handler and others were also spotted selling and distributing drugs in the plant’s parking lot, right under USPS’s nose.

Investigators arrested the ringleader, the mail handler, and two others, charging all four in a multi-count indictment. A month later, investigators arrested more suspects and executed search warrants that led to the seizure of more fentanyl and also cocaine, methamphetamine, firearms, and a kilogram brick press.

Drugs, guns, and narcotics paraphernalia seized at takedown. Source: DEA.

Drugs, guns, and narcotics paraphernalia seized at takedown. Source: DEA.

A later search warrant on various addresses led to the seizures of at least 12,000 fentanyl pills, firearms, cash, jewelry, and several luxury and sports vehicles worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Cars, motorcycles, and all-terrain vehicles seized at takedown. Source: DEA.

Cars, motorcycles, and all-terrain vehicles seized at takedown. Source: DEA.

Five of the suspects pleaded guilty, including the mail handler, who was sentenced to almost six years in federal prison and ordered to forfeit two vehicles, which were traceable proceeds of the offense. The ringleader was sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment and two other suspects were sentenced to a combined 10 and a half years in prison.

This case was part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach.

Source: U.S. Department of Justice

Source: U.S. Department of Justice

Help keep America and its postal employees safe — if you suspect or know of drug trafficking involving Postal Service employees or contractors, please report it to our Hotline.

For further reading:

Department of Justice (via uspsoig.gov), Orlando U.S. Postal Employee Sentenced In “Fenta-Pill” Conspiracy