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Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

A Florida pharmacist and pharmacy owner was sentenced yesterday to 90 months in prison for her role in illegally dispensing over 300,000 oxycodone 30mg pills to pharmacy patrons who had no medical need for the drug.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Olushola Yusuf, 60, of Tampa, dispensed oxycodone to nearly all of her pharmacy customers. Yusuf charged customers approximately 10 times the typical cost of the drug and required payment from them in cash. In total, Yusuf dispensed at least 335,351 pills of oxycodone 30mg during the conspiracy. Oxycodone 30mg is the maximum strength available of the drug and is both sought after and potentially dangerous due to its potency. It is typically prescribed to seriously ill patients, such as those suffering from chronic cancer pain or traumatic injuries.

Photograph of Cash Paid to Yusuf for Illegally Distributing Oxycodone from her Pharmacy

Yusuf owned and operated two pharmacies, Boots LLC doing business as, Striderite (Boots) in Margate, and Chans Pharmacy Plus, Inc. (Chans) in Pembroke Pines. Yusuf distributed oxycodone 30mg pills through these pharmacies. Customers drove long distances to have Yusuf fill prescriptions that they could not get filled at any other pharmacy. Some customers paid as much as $1,300 a month in cash to Yusuf for the drugs. And some customers were drug dealers who picked up oxycodone pills purportedly on behalf of dozens of patients at a time who were not present. According to witnesses at trial, Yusuf kept the doors to her pharmacies locked during business hours, directing employees only to open the door for certain identified customers. Yusuf continued to dispense oxycodone in this way even after repeated warnings from her employees and the DEA about the dangers of her pharmacy operations.

After a two-week trial in July 2026, the jury convicted Yusuf of conspiracy to illegally distribute drugs and five counts of illegal drug distribution. Yusuf’s co-defendant, Saman Gimenez, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to illegally distribute drugs and is scheduled be sentenced later this year.

Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the Justice Department’s National Fraud Enforcement Division; U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida; Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Chief of Operations Matthew W. Allen; FBI Co-Deputy Director Christopher Raia; and Acting Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Miranda L. Bennett for the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS OIG) made the announcement.

DEA, FBI, and HHS-OIG investigated the case.

Trial Attorney Angela Benoit of the Fraud Division’s Health Care Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacqueline DerOvanesian for the Southern District of Florida prosecuted the case.

On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the Fraud Division. The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.

The Department of Justice’s Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program, currently comprised of nine strike forces operating in federal districts across the country, has charged more than 6,200 defendants who collectively billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $45 billion since 2007. In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at www.justice.gov/fraud/health-care-fraud-section.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

SAN DIEGO – Four federal grand jury indictments charge 42 alleged members and associates of various San Diego County street gangs, including an increasingly violent and sophisticated Poway gang called Varrio Hidden Hills, with distributing large amounts of methamphetamine and fentanyl. In a coordinated takedown on Wednesday and Thursday, hundreds of FBI agents, members of the North County Regional Gang Task Force and federal, state, and local law enforcement officials arrested 35 defendants and executed 10 search warrants on homes and vehicles in Poway, Lemon Grove, San Diego, National City, Chula Vista, Imperial Beach, El Cajon, Oceanside, Escondido, Vista, Temecula, Murrieta, Riverside, and Tulare. As of 2:30 p.m. today, seven defendants were still being sought. Authorities seized drugs, guns, ammunition and cash during the takedown and throughout the two-year investigation.

Source: United States Department of Justice

SAN DIEGO – Four federal grand jury indictments charge 42 alleged members and associates of various San Diego County street gangs, including an increasingly violent and sophisticated Poway gang called Varrio Hidden Hills, with distributing large amounts of methamphetamine and fentanyl. In a coordinated takedown on Wednesday and Thursday, hundreds of FBI agents, members of the North County Regional Gang Task Force and federal, state, and local law enforcement officials arrested 35 defendants and executed 10 search warrants on homes and vehicles in Poway, Lemon Grove, San Diego, National City, Chula Vista, Imperial Beach, El Cajon, Oceanside, Escondido, Vista, Temecula, Murrieta, Riverside, and Tulare. As of 2:30 p.m. today, seven defendants were still being sought. Authorities seized drugs, guns, ammunition and cash during the takedown and throughout the two-year investigation.

Source: United States Department of Justice

PHOENIX, Ariz. – Today, U.S. Attorney Timothy Courchaine announced that his office has opened a case into recent reporting about three non-profit organizations registering non-citizens to vote in Arizona. The United States Attorney’s Office has already referred the matter to the FBI for a thorough federal investigation.

Source: United States Department of Justice

California doctor Violetta Mailyan was sentenced yesterday to 15 years in prison for using her medical practice to fraudulently bill Medicare more than $45 million for Botox injection services that were medically unnecessary and never provided.  

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Violetta Mailyan, 45, of Glendale, California, owned and operated Healthy Way Medical Center, a clinic that purported to provide beauty and cosmetic services. 

Although Medicare reimburses medical providers for Botox injections when necessary to treat documented cases of chronic migraines, Mailyan billed and received payments for thousands of injections that were never provided, were provided only for cosmetic purposes, or were given to patients whose primary care physicians had not referred them for treatment of chronic migraines. Evidence also showed that Mailyan billed for thousands of injections, representing over $19 million, purportedly provided on days when her clinic was closed. Mailyan also billed for providing Botox injections when she was actually on vacation in Mexico, Hawaii, Las Vegas, Pennsylvania, and New York at various times throughout her fraud scheme. For example, Mailyan billed over $200,000 for purportedly providing Botox services to patients in California when she was actually relaxing on the beach in Cabo:

Photograph from Mailyan’s Phone, Sent from Cabo, Mexico, the Same Day She Billed Medicare $34,560 For Services Purportedly Rendered in Glendale, California

The evidence also showed that when Mailyan realized federal investigators were closing in, she tried to hide her tracks by falsifying medical records and forging Medicare beneficiary signatures, including for a man who was in federal prison during the time Mailyan claimed to have provided treatment. Mailyan submitted these records to federal investigators, intending to throw them off her trail and make it appear as though she had seen patients she had not actually seen.

Mailyan used the money she stole to purchase luxury goods, including a $12,000 17th century crossbow and a $3,000 painting, depicted below:

17th Century Crossbow and $3,000 Painting that Mailyan Purchased with Medicare Fraud Proceeds

In sentencing Mailyan, the Court commented that Mailyan’s fraud “was truly breathtaking in scope and shocking in its duration,” and that her actions were “almost unbelievable in their brazenness.” In addition to the prison sentence, the Court ordered the immediate forfeiture of over $16,029,742 worth of property seized from Mailyan, including real property, personal property, securities, and bank funds, effectively returning this taxpayer money to the United States. Mailyan was also ordered to pay $32,904,049.41 in restitution to Medicare, and the United States will vigorously pursue the return of these stolen funds.

After a six-day jury trial ending in May 2026, Mailyan was convicted of nine counts of wire fraud and three counts of obstruction of a criminal investigation of a health care offense. The jury also found that Mailyan used the fraud proceeds to purchase two Tesla vehicles, including a Cybertruck, and five pieces of California real estate.

HHS-OIG and FBI investigated the case.

Trial Attorneys Sandor Callahan and Jeffrey A. Crapko of the Fraud Division’s Health Care Fraud Section prosecuted the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tara Vavere for the Central District of California’s Asset Forfeiture and Recovery Section is handling asset forfeiture matters.

On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the Fraud Division. The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.

The Department of Justice’s Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program, currently comprised of nine strike forces operating in federal districts across the country, has charged more than 6,200 defendants who collectively billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $45 billion since 2007. In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

DANNY TURKVAN, also known as “Smooth” 55, of Stamford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to an additional 14 months of imprisonment for distributing crack cocaine after he had been sentenced in another federal case and prior to reporting to prison.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

REGINALD ROGERS 38, of Woodbridge, and LESTER ARRINGTON, 34, of Naugatuck, have each been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 120 months of imprisonment and five years of supervised release for trafficking cocaine.  Rogers was sentenced today and Arrington was sentenced on October 27.

Source: United States Department of Justice

Associate Attorney General Stanley E. Woodward, Jr. of the U.S. Department of Justice issued the following statement today in connection with the Antitrust Division’s investigation into the acquisition of Cogentrix Energy (Cogentrix) by Vistra Corp. (Vistra) (together, the “Parties”):

“Electricity customers in Maine, New Hampshire, and across New England will benefit from continued competition to generate affordable electricity. As New Englanders turn on the heat for the coming winter season, it’s critical that consumers not bear the risks of higher electricity bills. The Division anticipates that Vistra’s divestitures will save consumers throughout New England tens of millions of dollars annually in electricity bills.”

On January 5, Vistra announced an agreement to acquire Cogentrix from Quantum Capital Group. Both firms are electricity generation companies that compete in wholesale electricity and electric capacity auctions run by Regional Transmission Organizations (RTOs) or Independent System Operators (ISOs). RTOs and ISOs are nonprofit organizations responsible for managing and operating electric power grids within specific regions of the United States. These organizations also rely on internal or external market monitors, who are responsible for overseeing and evaluating the electricity market’s performance.

Vistra’s acquisition of Cogentrix combines overlapping electricity generation asset portfolios in three different RTO/ISOs: PJM Interconnection, LLC (which covers portions of the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic); ISO New England Inc. (ISO-NE); and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas.

As required by federal law, Vistra and Cogentrix filed an application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for approval of the transaction. During FERC’s review process, the Internal Market Monitor of ISO-NE submitted comments to FERC stating that Vistra’s acquisition of Cogentrix raised concerns about a potential reduction in competition that may enable the exercise of market power in ISO-NE. While the Parties’ FERC application was pending, Vistra unilaterally decided to sell its Casco Bay Energy facility (Casco Bay) in ISO-NE. FERC acknowledged that it “consider[ed]” Vistra’s unilateral decision and approved the transaction without conditions. Following FERC’s approval, the Division continued its investigation to assess whether Vistra would have the ability and incentive to withhold electricity from the ISO-NE market after acquiring Cogentrix, notwithstanding the Casco Bay facility divestiture.

The Division conducted a thorough investigation, reviewing thousands of documents, performing sophisticated economic modeling, and conducting extensive interviews with industry participants. After evaluating this evidence, the Division remained concerned that the portfolio of electricity generation units that would be combined in ISO-NE may result in a substantial lessening of competition, even with the sale of the Casco Bay facility. The Division’s legal and economic analysis followed the framework for evaluating electricity mergers described in the Division’s 2025 settlement complaint and competitive impact statement regarding Constellation Energy Corp.’s acquisition of Calpine Corp.

Vistra and Cogentrix then unilaterally decided to sell Cogentrix’s gas-fired combined-cycle power plant in Rumford, Maine, which would reduce the combined firm’s ability and incentive to withhold electricity and raise prices in ISO-NE. The Division will continue to monitor Vistra’s sale of the Rumford facility. In the interim period, Vistra and Cogentrix must continue to abide by all applicable FERC regulations. The Division emphasizes that the outcome of this investigation is limited to its facts.

“The Division has developed sophisticated methods for reviewing electricity generation mergers; these tools benefit American consumers and businesses that depend on affordable power,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General G. Charles Beller. “Given the importance of affordable electricity for consumers, the Division will continue to monitor electricity transactions and the electricity sector as a whole. The Division will not hesitate to take appropriate action to safeguard competition in electricity markets.”

Source: United States Department of Justice

Associate Attorney General Stanley E. Woodward, Jr. of the U.S. Department of Justice issued the following statement today in connection with the Antitrust Division’s investigation into the acquisition of Cogentrix Energy (Cogentrix) by Vistra Corp. (Vistra) (together, the “Parties”):

“Electricity customers in Maine, New Hampshire, and across New England will benefit from continued competition to generate affordable electricity. As New Englanders turn on the heat for the coming winter season, it’s critical that consumers not bear the risks of higher electricity bills. The Division anticipates that Vistra’s divestitures will save consumers throughout New England tens of millions of dollars annually in electricity bills.”

On January 5, Vistra announced an agreement to acquire Cogentrix from Quantum Capital Group. Both firms are electricity generation companies that compete in wholesale electricity and electric capacity auctions run by Regional Transmission Organizations (RTOs) or Independent System Operators (ISOs). RTOs and ISOs are nonprofit organizations responsible for managing and operating electric power grids within specific regions of the United States. These organizations also rely on internal or external market monitors, who are responsible for overseeing and evaluating the electricity market’s performance.

Vistra’s acquisition of Cogentrix combines overlapping electricity generation asset portfolios in three different RTO/ISOs: PJM Interconnection, LLC (which covers portions of the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic); ISO New England Inc. (ISO-NE); and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas.

As required by federal law, Vistra and Cogentrix filed an application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for approval of the transaction. During FERC’s review process, the Internal Market Monitor of ISO-NE submitted comments to FERC stating that Vistra’s acquisition of Cogentrix raised concerns about a potential reduction in competition that may enable the exercise of market power in ISO-NE. While the Parties’ FERC application was pending, Vistra unilaterally decided to sell its Casco Bay Energy facility (Casco Bay) in ISO-NE. FERC acknowledged that it “consider[ed]” Vistra’s unilateral decision and approved the transaction without conditions. Following FERC’s approval, the Division continued its investigation to assess whether Vistra would have the ability and incentive to withhold electricity from the ISO-NE market after acquiring Cogentrix, notwithstanding the Casco Bay facility divestiture.

The Division conducted a thorough investigation, reviewing thousands of documents, performing sophisticated economic modeling, and conducting extensive interviews with industry participants. After evaluating this evidence, the Division remained concerned that the portfolio of electricity generation units that would be combined in ISO-NE may result in a substantial lessening of competition, even with the sale of the Casco Bay facility. The Division’s legal and economic analysis followed the framework for evaluating electricity mergers described in the Division’s 2025 settlement complaint and competitive impact statement regarding Constellation Energy Corp.’s acquisition of Calpine Corp.

Vistra and Cogentrix then unilaterally decided to sell Cogentrix’s gas-fired combined-cycle power plant in Rumford, Maine, which would reduce the combined firm’s ability and incentive to withhold electricity and raise prices in ISO-NE. The Division will continue to monitor Vistra’s sale of the Rumford facility. In the interim period, Vistra and Cogentrix must continue to abide by all applicable FERC regulations. The Division emphasizes that the outcome of this investigation is limited to its facts.

“The Division has developed sophisticated methods for reviewing electricity generation mergers; these tools benefit American consumers and businesses that depend on affordable power,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General G. Charles Beller. “Given the importance of affordable electricity for consumers, the Division will continue to monitor electricity transactions and the electricity sector as a whole. The Division will not hesitate to take appropriate action to safeguard competition in electricity markets.”

Source: United States Department of Justice

REGINALD ROGERS 38, of Woodbridge, and LESTER ARRINGTON, 34, of Naugatuck, have each been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 120 months of imprisonment and five years of supervised release for trafficking cocaine.  Rogers was sentenced today and Arrington was sentenced on October 27.