DOJ Announces 36 Charged in Multi-State Drug Trafficking and Money Laundering Case

The Justice Department announced Tuesday that 36 people have been charged across related indictments in a multi-state drug trafficking and money laundering investigation centered on South Carolina.

The total includes 18 people charged in April 2026, another 16 added in a 42-count superseding indictment unsealed in November, and two people charged in July 2025. Six defendants have pleaded guilty, the department said. The announcement does not mean all 36 were newly arrested Tuesday.

Investigators seized 346 kilograms of fentanyl, 70 kilograms of cocaine, 23 kilograms of methamphetamine, 43 firearms and more than $2.8 million during the investigation, according to the department. Authorities also seized jewelry and 15 luxury vehicles they linked to drug proceeds.

Prosecutors allege a Mexico-based organization has operated in South Carolina since at least 2011 and supplied large quantities of fentanyl and cocaine since at least 2021. Its alleged network included people in Mexico, several U.S. states and federal and state prisons.

The investigation involved the DEA, Homeland Security Investigations, the FBI and numerous state and local agencies.

Charges are allegations. Defendants who have not pleaded guilty are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.