Federal Inmate Pleads Guilty to Operating Multi-Kilo Fentanyl Conspiracy

Jacksonville, Florida - Daniel Don Juan (35, Georgia) has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. He faces a minimum sentence of 15 years, up to life, in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set. United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.

According to court records, on April 12, 2025, agents from the Department of Homeland Security (HSI) in Jacksonville were contacted by HSI agents in Savannah regarding a traffic stop conducted by the Turner County Georgia Sheriff's Office (TCSO). One of Don Juan's co-conspirators had been pulled over for a traffic violation. During the stop, TCSO and Georgia State Police conducted a dog sniff around the co-conspirator's vehicle during which the dog alerted to drugs being present inside the vehicle. During a subsequent search, the officers located approximately seven kilograms of fentanyl.

Agents determined that this co-conspirator was transporting the drugs from Lawrenceville, Georgia, to Jacksonville, Florida. According to Don Juan's co-conspirator, on the morning of April 12, 2025, the co-conspirator was instructed by Don Juan to meet an individual at a store in Lawrenceville to pick up "7 pieces," which was later determined to mean the seven kilograms of fentanyl. Once the co-conspirator arrived in the store parking lot, a male arrived in a separate vehicle and placed a box containing the seven kilograms of fentanyl in the back of co-conspirators vehicle.

Already serving a federal prison term for a prior drug conspiracy conviction, Don Juan used a contraband cellphone and instructed this co-conspirator to deliver this box to Jacksonville. Don Juan provided specific instructions on the route to Jacksonville as well as a meeting location and information regarding the person his co-conspirator was to meet in Jacksonville to deliver the box containing the drugs. Agents learned that this co-conspirator had made several trips to deliver drugs for Don Juan in the past, including within the Middle District of Florida.

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Florida Highway Patrol, the Turner County Sheriff's Office, and the Georgia State Police. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys John Cannizarro and Elisibeth Adams.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.