A Chinese national was indicted in El Paso, Texas, for allegedly conspiring to sell equipment used to manufacture counterfeit pills containing fentanyl, a highly addictive synthetic opioid blamed for hundreds of thousands of overdose deaths in the United States.
Xaiofei Chen, 28, a Chinese national, was arrested at a trade show in Las Vegas on October 29 by Department of Homeland Security agents, according to a federal grand jury indictment.
The indictment charges Chen with one count of conspiracy to distribute and import a tableting machine used to manufacture a controlled substance and one count of conspiracy to distribute dies designed to imprint and reproduce the trademark, trade name and other identifying mark and imprint of another, according to the indictment returned on November 20.
Chen faces a maximum penalty of four years in prison and a fine of $250,000 if convicted.
According to the indictment, Chen worked for a Chinese-based company that sold die molds and equipment, and that Chen sold pill press equipment and counterfeit die molds to buyers in the United States.
The indictment alleges that Chen avoided Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) disclosure requirements by dismantling equipment and shipping parts in separate packages into the United States. This equipment allegedly included counterfeit dies, including M30 dies meant to mimic a common prescription drug but which are regularly used to make fake opioid pills.
A federal court in Nevada ordered Chen, a foreign national, detained pending her trial in El Paso, where the indictment was returned.
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Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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