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Federal prosecutors say a Mexico-based drug trafficking and money laundering organization ran a fentanyl distribution network that reached into the Grand Strand, and 36 people now face charges in the case.
The U.S. Justice Department announced the charges Tuesday. DOJ said nine of the defendants are in the country illegally. The case came out of a multi-state Homeland Security Task Force investigation led by the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Investigators seized 346 kilograms of fentanyl, 23 kilograms of methamphetamine, 70 kilograms of cocaine, 34 pounds of marijuana, 43 firearms and more than $2.8 million in cash, according to DOJ.
The DEA also seized jewelry and 15 luxury vehicles it says were bought with or traced to drug money. Those include two Rolls-Royces, a Lamborghini and an Aston Martin. Federal authorities also filed notice of lawsuits against 17 properties in South Carolina and Georgia, valued together at nearly $4 million.
An April 2026 indictment charged 18 members of the operation. A 42-count superseding indictment unsealed in November added 16 more defendants. Two others were charged in a separate indictment in July 2025. Six defendants have pleaded guilty so far.
According to DOJ, the organization has operated in South Carolina since at least 2011. Its members were active in Mexico, South Carolina and other states, and inside both the Federal Bureau of Prisons and the South Carolina Department of Corrections.
Investigators say the group has supplied South Carolina with hundreds of kilograms of fentanyl and cocaine since at least 2021. The drugs originated in Mexico and crossed the southern border, prosecutors said.
The investigation identified a large fentanyl distribution network across the Lowcountry, Pee Dee, Grand Strand and Midlands. DOJ said that network re-pressed, repackaged and redistributed large quantities of fentanyl delivered by the organization.
Several local agencies took part in the investigation:
“Thanks to the work of the Homeland Security Task Force, the people of South Carolina are safer today than they were two years ago,” Attorney General Todd Blanche said in the release.
U.S. Attorney Bryan Stirling for the District of South Carolina said the investigation “has an impact on every region of our state, and beyond.” He said his office will keep working with its partners “to stop the flow of deadly narcotics from across the Southern border.”
“We will not stop at the first arrest,” said Michael J. Connolly, acting special agent in charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division. “We will continue following the evidence, identifying those involved, and holding them accountable.”
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mike O’Mara and Cole Shannon are prosecuting the case. The DEA, Homeland Security Investigations, the FBI’s Columbia Field Office and SLED led the investigation alongside more than 20 state and local agencies in South Carolina and North Carolina.
The case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force initiative created under Executive Order 14159.
An indictment is only an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Defendants charged | 36 (9 in the U.S. illegally, per DOJ) |
| Guilty pleas so far | 6 |
| Fentanyl seized | 346 kg |
| Cocaine seized | 70 kg |
| Methamphetamine seized | 23 kg |
| Marijuana seized | 34 lb |
| Firearms seized | 43 |
| Cash seized | More than $2.8 million |
| Vehicles seized | 15, incl. 2 Rolls-Royces, a Lamborghini, an Aston Martin |
| Properties targeted | 17 in SC and GA, ~$4 million total |
| Charging documents | July 2025 indictment (2); April 2026 indictment (18); 42-count superseding indictment unsealed November 2026 (16) |
| Organization active in SC | Since at least 2011; fentanyl and cocaine supply since at least 2021 |
| Prosecutors | AUSAs Mike O’Mara and Cole Shannon, District of South Carolina |
