A high-stakes methamphetamine operation has been dismantled in Louisiana, with three international suspects facing charges of conspiring to distribute massive amounts of the deadly drug.
According to court documents, Ryan Ernst Nyberg, 33, Christopher Byron Fritchie, 42, also known as ‘Byron,’ and Naser Yousef Gheith, 35, also known as ‘Nick,’ allegedly conspired from 2011 to 2014 to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine in the Eastern District of Louisiana and elsewhere.
The indictment, unsealed on April 10, 2014, carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment, a $10,000,000 fine, and at least five years of supervised release for each defendant if convicted.
Nyberg, a U.S. citizen residing in Germany, was arrested by German Customs Investigation Bureau authorities on March 20, 2014, in Duisburg, Germany. The U.S. intends to formally request his extradition from Germany.
Fritchie, also a U.S. citizen and resident of the San Francisco area, was arrested by DEA Agents on April 29, 2014, in San Francisco, California.
Gheith, the third suspect, remains at large, and the DEA is urging anyone with information about his whereabouts to come forward.
The investigation, led by the DEA New Orleans Division Office with assistance from the DEA Frankfurt, Germany Country Office and the DEA San Francisco Division Office, has brought the complex case to a head, with the indictment now pending against the three suspects.
U.S. Attorney Kenneth Allen Polite, Jr. emphasized that the indictment is merely a charge, and the guilt of the defendants must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
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Key Facts
- State: Louisiana
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Fraud & Financial Crimes|Violent Crime|Sex Crimes|Cybercrime|Public Corruption|Weapons|Human Trafficking|White Collar Crime|Organized Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release ↗
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