PITTSBURGH –  In July 2018, the Department of Justice announced the launch of Operation Synthetic Opioid Surge (S.O.S), a program aimed at reducing the supply of synthetic opioids in 10 high impact areas, including the Western District of Pennsylvania, and identifying wholesale distribution networks and international and domestic suppliers.

Under Operation SOS, the United States Attorneys in 10 districts with some of the highest drug overdose death rates in the country each designated an area where they would focus on prosecuting every readily available case involving fentanyl, fentanyl analogues, and other synthetic opioids, regardless of the drug quantity.

"The Justice Department’s commitment to fighting the opioids epidemic is stronger than ever, and we are using every tool in our arsenal to disrupt the supply of these drugs on our streets," said Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey A. Rosen. "Operation SOS has had a significant positive impact on the communities where it is being employed. The Department will continue to build on these successes and work to stop the drug traffickers who so callously wreck lives."

"Under SOS, we have targeted the most significant and prolific synthetic opioid traffickers who are dealing the most harmful drugs that are killing our neighbors," said U.S. Attorney Brady. "By taking both the drugs and the traffickers off the streets, we are saving lives. That vital work continues."

The Western District of Pennsylvania has prosecuted 98 SOS cases thus far in FY 2020.

• Particularly noteworthy among them is the prosecution of Lynell Guyton. A federal jury in January convicted Guyton of conspiracy to distribute 100 grams or more of cyclopropyl fentanyl and other charges, including firearms and money laundering violations. Guyton, who had been receiving shipments of fentanyl analogues from China, is both a Career Offender and an Armed Career Criminal. The case gained media attention when, during the execution of a search warrant in connection with the charges, the conspirators tipped over a table, sending cyclopropyl fentanyl into the air, sickening 18 Pittsburgh SWAT team members on the scene.

• Last autumn, we charged two people following eight drug overdoses in Pittsburgh and West Mifflin. According to the indictment and a criminal complaint filed in the case, on September 22, 2019, Peter Rene Sanchez Montalvo distributed fentanyl and acetyl fentanyl at a party in an apartment located on Tunnel Boulevard on Pittsburgh’s South Side. The indictment alleges that the distribution resulted in the deaths of R.M., J.P., and J.S., as well as serious bodily injury to F.M., G.G., and P.R. A separate, but related, indictment and criminal complaint alleges that on September 23, 2019, Derek Omar Smith possessed with intent to distribute fentanyl and acetyl fentanyl. At 3:15 a.m., West Mifflin Police were dispatched to a suspected overdose on Bowes Avenue in West Mifflin. Upon arrival they located two individuals who had overdosed, and who medics were able to revive with naloxone.

• The charges in Tyric Allen, et al. arose out of an FBI OCDETF wiretap investigation, which targeted a violent street gang, known as the Shot Boyz, in Pittsburgh. Twenty-six targets (21 from Allegheny County and five from Westmoreland County) were indicted on charges of selling large quantities of fentanyl in the City of Pittsburgh, surrounding neighborhoods, and in Latrobe, PA.

• Finally, last week a criminal complaint was filed charging Yarelis Mary Garcia Corretjer, of Philadelphia, PA, and Reyelin Manuel Abreu Vasquez, of the Dominican Republic, with possessing approximately 400 bricks of suspected fentanyl during a traffic stop by Pennsylvania State Police troopers.

Nationally, since 2018, Operation SOS has resulted in approximately 750 defendants being charged in federal court, with 384 of those defendants charged thus far in FY 20. Most importantly, the districts participating in the program have seen a decline in opioid overdoses. From 2017 to 2019, most SOS counties reported a decline of 14% to 24%. One notable success was in the Western District of Pennsylvania, where the opioid overdose rates declined by nearly 45%.

The nine other participating SOS districts and some of their successes are listed below:

• The Eastern District of California has reported 60 active Operation S.O.S. investigations. Recently, the USAO charged one sentence-enhanced "death resulting" prosecution. In February 2020, another investigation resulted in the seizure of over 20,000 fentanyl-laced counterfeit oxycodone pills.

• The Eastern District of Kentucky reported that an SOS investigation led to a residential search warrant and seizure of more than 1,300 grams of fentanyl, more than 500 grams of methamphetamine, $15,000 cash, two firearms, and paraphernalia used to traffic narcotics including a device for pressing fentanyl into a brick-like shape

• The District of Maine reported a July 2020 arrest of a defendant on charges of distributing counterfeit fentanyl pills marked as Percocet, in connection with a fatal fentanyl overdose that occurred in May 2020. In addition, a Maine man was sentenced in February 2020 to five years in prison for two counts of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, in connection with an incident where the defendant was found in possession of fentanyl less than 24 hours after he was released on a state summons for possession of fentanyl.

• The District of New Hampshire reported the October 2019 arrest of a man on a warrant for distributing fentanyl. Manchester Police Detectives executed a search warrant on a local drug-house, where they located approximately 850 grams of methamphetamine and 56 grams of fentanyl, several assault-style rifles, a handgun, ammunition, scales, safes, cash, and cellphones.

• The Northern District of Ohio reported a 10-defendant wire case involving a drug trafficking organization (DTO) operating out of Elyria and Sandusky, Ohio. The DTO purchased kilogram quantities of cocaine and oxycodone pills. Co-conspirators would later cook the cocaine and sell it as crack to local dealers in Elyria. During the conspiracy, agents seized approximately ½ kilo of cocaine, 100 grams of crack, oxycodone pills, and five firearms.

• The Southern District of Ohio reported the arrest of an individual who had previously served a nine-year state prison sentence for drug trafficking. On October 22, 2019, after law enforcement observed activity consistent with drug transactions, including the delivery of what appeared to be a kilogram of narcotics by a courier, members of the FBI Safe Streets Task Force executed a search warrant at a residence in Dayton, Ohio, where they located three firearms, 1,205 grams of methamphetamine, 1,716 grams of fentanyl, 305 grams of heroin, drug processing equipment, and 12 cellular telephones. One of the recovered cellular telephones contained photographs of multiple kilograms of fentanyl and communications with a narcotics supplier. Through subsequent investigation, law enforcement recovered an additional 19.5 kilograms of fentanyl/carfentanil.

• The Eastern District of Tennessee reported multiple cases arising out of a single investigation involving a drug trafficking organization responsible for trafficking heroin and fentanyl from Michigan to various communities in the Eastern District of Tennessee. 29 defendants have been indicted on various charges, including drug trafficking conspiracy, overdose death enhancements, money-laundering conspiracy, and various firearms offenses. More than 5.5 kilograms of heroin and/or fentanyl and 11 firearms were seized during the investigation.

• The Northern District of West Virginia reported a July 21, 2020, forty-four count indictment against 12 defendants. During the nearly yearlong investigation, law enforcement officers seized more than 280 grams of cocaine base and more than 40 grams of fentanyl from one of the defendant’s residences in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. Throughout the investigation, officers seized more than 280 grams of fentanyl, acetyl fentanyl, and heroin; more than 350 grams of cocaine base; more than one kilogram of liquid PCP; various amounts of cocaine; five firearms; and over $28,000.

• The Southern District of West Virginia reported that after a three-day trial, a jury in the convicted Steven McCallister of distribution of fentanyl, possession with the intent to distribute fentanyl, being a felon in possession of a firearm, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking. Officers conducted a 50-gram purchase of heroin from McCallister, which then led to the execution of a search warrant at McCallister’s home. Officers seized over one kilogram of fentanyl and a firearm.

PITTSBURGH, PA - A federal grand jury in Pittsburgh has returned two separate, but related, Indictments following a five-month Title III wiretap investigation into drug trafficking and violence in and around Wilkinsburg and the East Hills neighborhood in Pittsburgh, United States Attorney Scott Brady announced today. The Indictments charge 26 residents of western Pennsylvania with narcotics trafficking and firearms violations.

“Every family in Pittsburgh deserves to live, work and raise their children in a community free from violence,” said United States Attorney Scott Brady. “For far too long, the people of the East End, Homewood and Wilkinsburg have suffered from disproportionate numbers of homicides, shootings and dispatches for shots fired. Our goal remains the same: to make Pittsburgh the safest city in America. In order to do so, we must prosecute and remove the most violent criminals from these neighborhoods. And that is what we have done. The Shot Boyz gang is done.”

“The Shot Boyz gang has terrorized our community with violence and drug trafficking for long enough,” said FBI Pittsburgh Special Agent in Charge Michael Christman. “The community will not be handcuffed by fear of leaving their homes, getting attacked, having their children hurt or worse, being killed. These arrests are the first step to making the community safer from individuals intent on harming their neighbors. I commend the work of the Pittsburgh Safe Streets Task Force and our numerous other local and state partners for working diligently to bring those solely focused on illegal activity to justice.”

“ATF is committed to working with our local, state and federal partners to target those responsible for drug trafficking and gun violence in our communities,” said John Schmidt, acting Special Agent in Charge of ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division. “This coordinated effort between ATF and our partners demonstrates our continued dedication to identify, target, and investigate violent criminals who lessen the quality of life in our neighborhoods.”

“The people of Pittsburgh and western Pennsylvania deserve to live in drug-free and violence-free neighborhoods,” Pittsburgh Police Chief Scott Schubert said. “This coordinated effort illustrates the unwavering commitment of the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police and our partner law enforcement agencies to guard, protect and serve our communities.”

“It was an honor and privilege to work so closely with such professionals in this case,” added Latrobe Police Chief John Sleasman. “The amount of heroin and fentanyl coming into Westmoreland County and Latrobe will be dramatically reduced as will the amount of senseless overdoses in our area. I want to personally thank all of the case agents, local agents and local officers who worked tirelessly on this distribution case. The citizens of Latrobe are forever grateful.”

The first Indictment, returned on August 19 and unsealed today, names the following 25 individuals as defendants:

Tyric Allen, 25, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania;

Phillip Ahmad-Revis, 20, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania;

Djuan Beasley, 20, of Swissvale, Pennsylvania;

Marcus Best, 27, of Munhall, Pennsylvania;

Davon Cleveland, 20, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania;

Donshae Dunning, 32, of McKeesport, Pennsylvania;

Dominic Fields, 33, of McKeesport, Pennsylvania;

Donald Hantz, 37, of Latrobe, Pennsylvania;

Taire Hardeman, 20, of Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania;

Natrell Jeffries, 21, of Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania;

Mandee Kozar, 34, of Latrobe, Pennsylvania;

Seth Lindsey, 26, of Verona, Pennsylvania;

Davon Loveings, 29, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania;

Bryan Matthews, 31, of Penn Hills, Pennsylvania;

Tayvon Mattox, 20, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania;

Barbara McClure, 46, of Latrobe, Pennsylvania;

Jerome Pleasant-Simpson, 25, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania;

Parris Scott, 20, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania;

Nikki Sherback, 35, of Latrobe, Pennsylvania;

Robert Smiley, 30, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania;

Patrick Smith, 36, of Latrobe, Pennsylvania;

Jeffrey Tumer, 29, of Monroeville, Pennsylvania;

Garrett Weaver, 38, of Monroeville, Pennsylvania;

Jeremy Winfield, 25, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and

Marquille Wright, 25, of Munhall, Pennsylvania.

According to the Indictment, the named defendants are collectively the members and associates of a group of drug traffickers identifying themselves as “Shot Boyz,” “Drive Boyz,” and/or “OTS” (collectively, the “Shot Boyz”). During the periods of time set forth in the Indictment, the Shot Boyz sold large quantities of fentanyl in the City of Pittsburgh and the surrounding neighborhoods, including East Hills, Homewood, and Wilkinsburg. Associates of the Shot Boyz also distributed fentanyl in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. In order to further their drug trafficking operation, and to protect themselves, their drugs, and their proceeds from drug trafficking, members of the Shot Boyz obtained and possessed firearms.

The Indictment alleges that the defendants conspired to possess with intent to distribute and distribute at least 400 grams of fentanyl from March 2019 through August 2020. The Indictment further alleges individual drug trafficking charges against Tyric Allen, Phillip Ahmad-Revis, and Davon Loveings, as well as individual firearms violations against Allen and Loveings.

The second Indictment, returned on August 19 and also unsealed today, charges Keith Redman, 22, of Braddock, Pennsylvania, with one count of possessing a firearm and ammunition on May 21, 2020, after being convicted of a crime punishable by more than a year in prison, namely, aggravated assault. Federal law prohibits anyone who has been convicted of a crime punishable by a term of imprisonment exceeding one year from possessing a firearm or ammunition.

For all defendants associated with the first Indictment, the law provides for a maximum total sentence of up to life imprisonment, a fine of not more than $10,000,000, or both. As to Keith Redman, the law provides for a maximum total sentence of 10 years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both.  Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendants.

Assistant United States Attorney Nicole Vasquez Schmitt is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

The FBI Greater Pittsburgh Safe Streets Task Force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, the Latrobe Police Department, the Allegheny County Sheriff's Office, the Munhall Police Department, the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General, Allegheny County Probation, the Wilkinsburg Police Department, the Monroeville Police Department, and the Penn Hills Police Department conducted the investigation leading to the Indictments in this case.

This case is part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force program, known as OCDETF. OCDETF was established in 1982 to support comprehensive investigations and prosecutions of major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations. It is the keystone of the drug reduction strategy of the Department of Justice. By combining the resources and expertise of federal agencies and their state and local law enforcement partners, OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the most serious drug trafficking, money laundering, and transnational criminal organizations.

An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PITTSBURGH, PA – A federal grand jury returned a Superseding Indictment charging 48 defendants, many of whom are serving federal prison sentences or were recently released from federal prison sentences, with committing drug trafficking, money laundering, and firearm crimes and with engaging in interstate travel and transmissions in aid of racketeering, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.

The 10-count Superseding Indictment, returned on June 18 and unsealed on June 21, adds 21 defendants and two counts to a 27-defendant, eight-count Indictment that was returned in January 2019. The Superseding Indictment charges 46 defendants in Count 1 with conspiring from January 2017 to January 2019 to distribute Schedule I, II, and III controlled substances, including 5 kilograms or more of cocaine, 1 kilogram or more of heroin, 400 grams or more of fentanyl, a quantity of para-fluoroisobutyryl fentanyl, a quantity of carfentanil, a quantity of oxycodone, a quantity of 5F-ADB, a quantity of FUB–AMB, a quantity of ADB-CHMINACA, a quantity of 4-CN-CUMYL-BUTINACA, a quantity of MMB-CHMICA, and a quantity of buprenorphine.

The 46 defendants charged in Count 1 are:

Noah Landfried, Moon Township

Mario Allen, USP-Lee, Virginia

Larry Benavides, Clinton County Jail, Pennsylvania

Dashawn Burley, Monroeville

Michel Cercone, Sewickley

Ahmad Fletcher, FCI-Gilmer, West Virginia

Michael S. Frawley, Pittsburgh

Christopher Gahagan, Ambridge

Richard Georgelos, Santa Cruz, Arizona

Nicholas Giammichele, FCI-Danbury, Connecticut

Robert Korbe, FCI-Loretto, Pennsylvania

Ross Landfried, USP-Lee, Virginia

Sterling Marshall, USP-Lee, Virginia

Darren Martin, Aliquippa

Harold Novick, Ambridge

Paul Nuara, Erie

Omari Patton, FCI-Fort Dix, New Jersey

James Perry, Ambridge

John Ramsey, FCI-Ray Brook, New York

Donnell Steward, FCI-Otisville, New York

Quoc Boa Trinh, FCI-Otisville, New York

Terrell Williams, Pittsburgh

Richard Wood, Pittsburgh

Shayla Yates, Dinwiddie, Virginia

Krystian Zarate, Santa Cruz, Arizona

Shamar Banks, FCI-Hazelton, West Virginia

Nicole Bracey, Waldorf, Maryland

Richard Bracey, FCI-Lee in Virginia

David Curran, FCI-Berlin, New Hampshire

William Fielder, FCI-Hazelton, West Virginia

Darwin Good, FCI-McKean, Pennsylvania

Eugene Hall, West Mifflin

Dorianne Harris, Homestead

Andrea Hopes, Pittsburgh

Thomas Hopes, FCI-Elkton, Ohio

Richard Jasek, West Mifflin

Seth Lindsey, Verona

Brandon Massie, FCI-Schuylkill, Pennsylvania

Lamar Middleton, USP-Big Sandy, Kentucky

Dana Penney, Beaver County Jail

Diassandai Serrano, North Versailles

Anthony Smith, McKeesport

Christian Stevens, Allegheny County Jail

Christopher Threet, RRM Detroit, Michigan

Paris Wilson, FCI-Sandstone, Minnesota, and

Sandra Wilson, McKees Rocks.

 

The Superseding Indictment charges 17 defendants in Count 2 with conspiring to launder drug trafficking proceeds from January 2017 to January 2019. The 17 defendants charged in Count 2 are Noah Landfried, Allen, Benavides, Cercone, Fletcher, Korbe, Ross Landfried, Marshall, Perry, Steward, Yates, Nicole Bracey, Richard Bracey, Andrea Hopes, Thomas Hopes, Middleton, and Threet.

The Superseding Indictment charges Angelo Williams (FCI-Cumberland in Maryland) and Priyanka Kumar (of Potomac, Maryland) in Count 3 with engaging in interstate travel and transmissions in aid of racketeering from January 2017 to January 2019.

Counts 4, 6, and 7 of the Superseding Indictment charge Gahagan with distributing cocaine in September 2017, January 2018, and April 2018. Count 5 charges Benavides with possessing para-fluoroisobutyryl fentanyl and 5F-ADB with intent to distribute in November 2017. Count 8 charges Noah Landfried with possessing with intent to distribute and distributing 40 grams or more of fentanyl and heroin in June 2018.

The Superseding Indictment adds Counts 9 and 10. Count 9 charges Penney with possessing fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine in June 2018. Count 10 charges Penney with possessing, brandishing, and discharging a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime in July 2018.

The Superseding Indictment seeks forfeiture of the proceeds of the crimes as well as property that was acquired with the proceeds or was used to commit the crimes.

The law provides for minimum and maximum sentences for the counts in the Superseding Indictment ranging from at least 10 years to up to life in prison for Counts 1 and 10, up to 20 years for Count 2, up to 5 years for Count 3, up to 20 years for each of Counts 4 through 7 and 9, and from at least 5 years to up to 40 years for Count 8. Fines ranging from $250,000 to up to $20,000,000 may also be imposed. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentences imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal histories, if any, of the defendants.

Assistant United States Attorney Craig W. Haller is prosecuting this case on behalf of the United States.

The Drug Enforcement Administration, the Internal Revenue Service, the federal Bureau of Prisons, and the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General led the multi-agency investigation that also included the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Beaver County District Attorney’s Office, the Department of Homeland Security/Homeland Security Investigations, the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, the United States Marshals Service, the Pennsylvania State Police, the Munhall Police Department, the Robinson Township Police Department, the McKees Rocks Police Department, the Stowe Township Police Department, the Etna Police Department, and the Erie County District Attorney’s Office.

The investigation was funded by the federal Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Program (OCDETF). The OCDETF program supplies critical federal funding and coordination that allows federal and state agencies to work together to successfully identify, investigate, and prosecute major interstate and international drug trafficking organizations and other criminal enterprises.

A Superseding Indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.