WASHINGTON - Federal grand juries in Mississippi and North Dakota have indicted two Chinese nationals for distributing large quantities of fentanyl and other powerful narcotics.
Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein announced the indictments Tuesday, saying the pair ran one of the world's most prolific drug trafficking and money laundering organizations. Also indicted were more than a dozen people accused of trafficking the drugs in the U.S. and Canada.
Authorities say the investigations of 40-year-old Xiaobang Yan and 38-year-old Jian Zhang show the many ways the deadly drug is flooding into the US as it struggles with an abuse epidemic.
Officials say American customers could purchase pure fentanyl and other dangerous drugs online, directly from Chinese factories. Inexperienced users don't know the drug is pure and overdose.