Xiaobing Yan, Fentanyl Trafficking, Mississippi 2017

Jackson, Miss. - A Chinese national has been accused of manufacturing and distributing fentanyl and other opiate substances in Mississippi, authorities announced today.

Xiaobing Yan, a Chinese national, was indicted in the Southern District of Mississippi on September 7, 2017 with two counts of conspiracy to manufacture and distribute multiple controlled substances, including fentanyl and fentanyl analogues, and seven counts of manufacturing and distributing the drugs in specific instances.

If convicted, Yan faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, a $1 million fine, and three years of supervised release.

Yan allegedly operated websites selling acetyl fentanyl and other deadly fentanyl analogues directly to U.S. customers in multiple cities across the country, as well as two chemical plants in China that were capable of producing ton quantities of fentanyl and fentanyl analogues.

According to the indictment, Yan used different names and company identities over a period of at least six years and monitored legislation and law enforcement activities in the United States and China, modifying the chemical structure of the fentanyl analogues he produced to evade prosecution in China.

Over the course of the investigation, federal agents identified more than 100 distributors of synthetic opioids involved with Yan's manufacturing and distribution networks, and investigators have traced illegal proceeds of the distribution network.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury designated Yan as a significant foreign narcotics trafficker pursuant to the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act, and the White House unveiled a series of private-sector advisories to help domestic and foreign businesses protect themselves and their supply chains from inadvertent fentanyl trafficking.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdms/pr/chinese-national-indicted-southern-district-mississippi-designated-us-treasury