If convicted defendants face at least a 20-year sentence, potential maximum sentence of life without parole in federal prison
By Sam Catanzaro
Federal authorities this month announced 11 criminal cases against alleged drug dealers, including a Rancho Park man, who sold or provided narcotics to users who suffered fatal overdoses from opioids such as fentanyl or fentanyl analogues.
As a result of the operation led by the Drug Enforcement Administration, each of the 12 defendants named in the 11 cases is charged with distribution of narcotics resulting in death. If convicted, each defendant would face at least a 20-year mandatory minimum prison sentence and a potential maximum sentence of life without parole in federal prison.
“These charges are the first steps in bringing justice to the families of victims who often died without knowing they were ingesting some of the world’s most powerful opioids,” said Acting United States Attorney Tracy L. Wilkison. “The conduct alleged in these cases demonstrates the grave threat people face now that fentanyl is widespread and is commonly hidden in a variety of illicit narcotics. The danger posed by opioids is real – both for unwitting users who risk death and for the dealers who face decades in prison for spreading deadly poison in our communities.”
“The collaborative work to build these cases demonstrates our shared commitment to go after individuals who push fentanyl within our communities and further the opioid crisis, devastating families across the nation,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge Bill Bodner. “Drug dealers who market and sell counterfeit pills via online marketplace and social media platforms may think they can hide behind technology and are absolved from responsibility, but they are not. While our actions can’t bring back a loved one, we hope that we can save other lives by putting these individuals behind bars so they can’t continue to distribute dangerous opioids in the community.”
The cases are the result of investigations by the DEA’s Overdose Justice Task Force, which was created to address opioid-related deaths in the greater Los Angeles area, most of which are caused the synthetic opioid fentanyl. Under the Overdose Justice program for the DEA’s Los Angeles Field Division, DEA agents collaborate with local law enforcement to analyze evidence to determine if there are circumstances that might lead to a federal criminal prosecution, and, if so, proactively target the drug trafficker. Since the start of the Overdose Justice program in 2018, the DEA has worked with an ever-expanding list of local police agencies to obtain approximately one dozen federal indictments that specifically charge death resulting from narcotics trafficking. The 11 cases announced today add to that list of prosecutions. The Task Force is currently investigating other incidents and expects to file additional criminal cases in federal court.
The 11 cases announced today include seven new cases that were filed this week and one case in which prosecutors this week filed special allegations that would lead to a mandatory sentence of life without parole in federal prison if the defendant is convicted.
Saied Ziafathy Nobar, 57, of the Rancho Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, and his nephew, Amir Ziafathy, 33, of Granada Hills, face charges of distributing fentanyl that resulted in an overdose death on December 30, 2019.
The defendants allegedly sold the victim two counterfeit oxycodone pills that contained fentanyl. Nobar and Ziafathy were arrested in this case on March 16, and they are currently scheduled to go on trial on July 27. The FBI, the DEA and the Los Angeles Police Department are investigating this matter. Assistant United States Attorney Ali Moghaddas and Kathrynne Seiden of the General Crimes Section are prosecuting the case.
