Brothers Chad Williams Wesevich, 40, and Jamie Wesevich, 41, have been sentenced to federal prison for their involvement in manufacturing and distributing fentanyl-laced pills disguised as legitimate pharmaceutical-grade pain medications. U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani made the announcement.
The Wesevich brothers pleaded guilty in August 2023 to various charges including conspiracy to manufacture and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
U.S. District Judge David S. Morales ordered the brothers to serve a total of 35 years in prison, with Chad Wesevich receiving 360 months concurrently on drug and money laundering charges, and Jamie Wesevich receiving 240 months concurrently on those charges, as well as an additional consecutive 60 months on the firearm charge. Judge Morales emphasized the impact of their actions, noting that despite supportive letters from friends and family, people had overdosed on the pills, resulting in irreversible loss.
According to Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Daniel C. Comeaux, the Wesevich Drug Trafficking Organization was responsible for several overdose deaths linked to the distribution of their fraudulent hydrocodone pills, which actually contained fentanyl.
Between 2017 and 2021, the brothers obtained equipment and materials from foreign sources to manufacture the pills, including two industrial pill presses capable of producing 9,000 pills per hour. These pills were distributed throughout Corpus Christi and surrounding areas, leading to fatal and non-fatal overdoses.
Law enforcement seized tens of thousands of counterfeit hydrocodone pills containing over 1,500 grams of fentanyl, as well as pill presses, dies, vacuums, separators, seven vehicles, five houses, seven guns, and $350,000 in cryptocurrency and cash.
The brothers have been in custody since their arrests in May 2022 and will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility. U.S. Attorney Hamdani emphasized the impact of synthetic opioids like fentanyl on communities, stating that the dismantling of this drug trafficking organization has made Corpus Christi a safer place.
The DEA led the investigation, with support from IRS Criminal Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, Corpus Christi Police Department, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Texas Department of Public Safety.
