Federal prosecutors in New York announced Monday that two India-based pharmaceutical companies have been charged with smuggling chemicals used to manufacture the lethal drug fentanyl. Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid, was responsible for around 200 American deaths a day in 2023. Federal authorities describe fentanyl as roughly 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times more potent than morphine. The drug's distribution in the U.S.
by cartels has been a focus for the federal government, which has had to work to unpick a complex, global network—including pill pressers, transporters and money launderers—in an attempt to cut off the flow into the country. Raxuter Chemicals and Athos Chemicals face separate indictments accusing them of conspiring to distribute and import chemicals into the United States, Mexico and other countries with the knowledge that they would be used to produce fentanyl, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York. Bhavesh Lathiya, a founder and senior executive at Raxuter Chemicals, has also been indicted on related charges. The 36-year-old executive, known by aliases 'Bhavesh Patel' and 'Bhavesh Bhai,' was arrested Saturday in New York City and has been detained following his arraignment in Brooklyn federal court, according to prosecutors.Lathiya's public defender declined to comment on Monday, while representatives for Raxuter Chemicals and Athos Chemicals did not immediately respond to requests from The Associated Press for comment on the indictments. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Lathiya served as a director at Athos Chemicals until 2022, before departing to establish Raxuter Chemicals. Prosecutors allege that the two companies, based in Surat, a city in India's Gujarat state, smuggled all the essential materials for fentanyl production into the U.S. and Mexic