Fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid, is at the center of a crackdown by federal prosecutors who have filed 20 cases this year against alleged dealers connected to fatal overdoses. A surge in deaths related to this drug has prompted action from the OD Justice Task Force, operating within the DEA's Los Angeles Field Division.
The task force has been pivotal in working alongside local law enforcement to investigate cases where fentanyl distribution directly led to fatalities. In these cases, dealers face serious charges, including mandatory minimum sentences of 20 years, if convicted. Among the accused is Michael McDevitt, facing distribution charges after a Ventura County victim's death, and Alexander Nihar Biswas, indicted for a fatality in San Bernardino County, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office, Central District of California.
Another notable case is that of Michel Joseph Abdallah, charged with two counts of distribution resulting in death following incidents in Mission Viejo and Aliso Viejo. In total, counting this year’s filings, 163 defendants have been implicated in fatal fentanyl poisonings since the task force's inception in 2018. The U.S. Attorney's Office, Central District of California reported, there were an estimated 80,391 overdose deaths in 2024 alone, a majority of which were led by fentanyl misuse.
Reacting to the crisis of overdose deaths, DEA agents have provided training to help local agencies determine when evidence might support federal prosecution. Defendants like Jesus Erick Casillas and Macey Delynn Putnam are currently awaiting trial, with accusations tied to losses in Los Angeles County. Each of the mentioned cases, as well as others like United States v. Perez and United States v. Almazo, represents the growing legal response to a spreading fentanyl epidemic. It should be noted that all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, as per the U.S. Attorney's Office, Central District of California.
As trials and court dates loom for the likes of Myles Ray Miller, accused of distributing fentanyl to an individual grappling with addiction, and Kevin Lopez, who allegedly ran a distribution ring, prosecutors continue to signal a robust offensive against the spread of this lethal substance. This includes cases involving the sale to individuals under the age of 21, intensifying the gravity of these offenses in the eyes of federal authorities.
