Date: January 5, 2024 Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov MIAMI — Today, a south Florida defendant pled guilty to participating in a conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a synthetic opioid, protonitazene. Will Catis, Sr. of Deerfield Beach, pled guilty before U.S. District Judge Raag Singhal. According to the agreed upon factual proffer, on April 12, 2022, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Administrator issued a temporary order to schedule seven synthetic benzimidazole-opioid substances, including protonitazene, in schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act. Protonitazene is a synthetic opioid that is equally as potent, if not more potent, than fentanyl. As part of an investigation into Chinese chemical companies that were sending synthetic opioids, such as protonitazene, to the U.S. and Mexico, several U.S. based drug traffickers were identified. One of those individuals was Catis. Catis was obtaining protonitazene and metonitazene from Jiangsu Bangdeya New Material Technology Co. LTD. ("Bangdeya"). On October 22, 2022, Postal Inspectors seized a parcel addressed to "Will Catis." This parcel was sent from Bangdeya. On October 28, 2022, a search warrant was obtained for the parcel. The search revealed a plastic bag of yellowish powder determined to be 172.3 grams of protonitazene. On December 27, 2022, a search warrant was obtained for the Catis' electronic media which was found to contain videos reflecting a kilogram press, firearms, and large sums of U.S. currency. Additionally, there were screenshots and photos reflecting Catis' drug trafficking, including chats with Chinese chemical company sales representatives, bags filled with a powdery substance that were similar to the seized protonitazene, and screenshots of advertisements from Chinese chemical companies selling protonitazene. After Catis' arrest and pursuant to searches of his residence and storage unit, the following substances were discovered(1) 258.7 grams of a mixture of bromazolam, protonitazene, metonitazene, and fentanyl; (2) 1060.1 grams of a mixture of metonitazene, protonitazene, fentanyl, and lidocaine; (3) 4654 grams of a mixture of n-propylbutylone, eutylone, fentanyl, heroin, metonitazene, protonitazene, p-fluorofentanyl, lidocaine, quinine, and caffeine; (3) 726.5 grams of 3,4-Methylenedioxy-α-cyclohexylaminopropiophenone; (4) 3.45 grams of protonitazene; (5) 28.77 grams of a mixture of protonitazene and cocaine; (6) 361.9 grams of a mixture N-Ethylpentylone, eutylone, metonitazene, protonitazene, fentanyl, heroin, α-Pyrrolidino-2-phenylacetophenone, p-Fluorofentanyl, quinine, lidocaine, and caffeine; (7) 1389.6 grams of a mixture of N-Ethylpentylone, metonitazene, eutylone, heroin, α-Pyrrolidino-2-phenylacetophenone, ANPP, quinine, caffeine, and lidocaine; (8) 571.6 grams of protonitazene; (9) 27.8 grams of metonitazene; (10) 28 grams of protonitazene; (11) 448.4 grams of bromazolam; and (12) 176 grams of a mixture of N-Propylbutylone, eutylone, metonitazene, fentanyl, protonitazene, bromazolam, heroin, lidocaine, quinine, and caffeine. Catis' sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 11, 2024, at noon. He faces up to 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Matthew D. Line of the IRS Criminal Investigation (CI) Miami Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Deanne L. Reuter of the DEA, Miami Field Division, Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and Miami, Inspector in Charge Juan A. Vargas of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), Miami Division. CI Miami, Miami Field Office, DEA Miami Field Division Counternarcotic Cyber Investigations Task Force, HSI Miami, and USPIS-Miami investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Monique Botero for the Southern District of Florida is prosecuting the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michell Hyman for the Southern District of Florida is handling asset forfeiture. The indictment is a result of Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigations. The OCDETF mission is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States, using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency task force approach. OCDETF synchronizes and incentivizes prosecutors and agents to lead smart, creative investigations targeting the command-and-control networks of organized criminal groups and the illicit financiers that support them. Members of the South Florida High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force carried out this case and prosecution. HIDTA was established in 1990. This program, which is made up of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies, fosters intra-agency cooperation among law enforcement agencies in South Florida and involves them in developing a strategy to target the region's drug-related and violent crime threats to public safety, as with the opioid epidemic, fentanyl, and the cocaine threat to our nation. The South Florida HIDTA uses the funding provided by the Office of National Drug Control Policy, out of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, that sponsors a variety of law enforcement initiatives that target the region's illicit drug and violent crime threats to our community. CI is the criminal investigative arm of the IRS, responsible for conducting financial crime investigations, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money-laundering, public corruption, healthcare fraud, identity theft and more. CI special agents are the only federal law enforcement agents with investigative jurisdiction over violations of the Internal Revenue Code, obtaining a more than a 90 percent federal conviction rate. The agency has 20 field offices located across the U.S. and 12 attaché posts abroad.
