Chinese National indicted for largest fentanyl precursor smuggling operation in Southern District of Texas
HOUSTON - A 48-year-old Chinese national has been indicted for his part in a conspiracy involving importing what is believed to be the largest amount of fentanyl precursors in the southern district of Texas, officials said.
Minsu Fang, also known as Fernando, is expected to make an appearance in court on Tuesday.
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Fang was initially arrested in New York City on an arrest warrant based out of Laredo.
Officials said a federal grand jury charged Fang on July 17 in a four-count indictment under seal with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance, conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance for purpose of unlawful importation, conspiracy to import a controlled substance, and conspiracy to export a controlled substance.
"To end the deadliest drug threat the United States has ever faced, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) starts where the harm begins – with the Chinese chemical companies and the individuals that are selling chemicals to those who make and sell the fentanyl that is killing Americans. This work led DEA to Minsu Fang, who is charged with selling more than 2,000 kilograms of fentanyl precursors. This marks one of DEA’s largest seizures of fentanyl chemicals to date in the United States," said DEA Administrator Anne Milgram. "The DEA is laser-focused on saving American lives by disrupting the entire global fentanyl supply chain that is responsible for flooding our communities with fentanyl. By disrupting Fang’s operations, DEA and our partners saved countless lives in the United States."
The now unsealed charges allege Fang and his associates shipped over 2,000 kilograms of fentanyl precursor chemicals from China into the United States and on to Mexico in approximately 100 separate shipments between August and October 2023.
Fang and his co-conspirators were able to avoid law enforcement interdiction of the shipments by declaring them to have a de minimis value, less than $800, and commingling the boxes containing the precursor chemicals with similarly low valued import items, according to the charges.
As a result, each of the shipments were allegedly admitted into the United States without a detailed inspection of the individual contents. Once in the United States, Fang, through co-conspirators, shipped the chemicals into Mexico, according to the charges.
If convicted, Fang faces up to life on each count of conviction as well as a $10 million fine.