VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – A Virginia Beach man pleaded guilty to dealing fake Xanax pills on the dark web, federal prosecutors said.
Anthony Dimaiuat, 26, is scheduled to be sentenced next week.
Court documents state that several federal agencies opened an investigation in February 2020, analyzing packages being sent in the mail with different return addresses from around Hampton Roads.
Investigators gathered evidence from post office kiosks and worked in an undercover capacity on the dark web, where they learned that a vendor had about 968 sales of Xanax bars.
Law enforcement agents purchased the drugs for $150 plus $10 for shipping and were able to send them all over the country, including to locations in Maryland, St. Louis and Chicago.
Law enforcement then executed a search warrant at Dimaiuat’s house and found 2,400 grams of white pills, two glass containers with white powder and packaging material.
Investigators said the pills were clonazolam and flubromazolam, which are non-scheduled substances, and stated that the white powder contained cocaine.
Clonazolam's effects are similar to other benzodiazepines, such as anxiolysis, disinhibition, lethargy, muscle relaxation, and euphoria. While no dose of clonazolam is considered "safe" due to its lack of research and extreme potency, doses higher than 0.5 mg can cause benzodiazepine overdose in some individuals.
Court documents say Dimaiuat told investigators that he started buying Xanax pills two years ago, usually purchasing between 250 and 500 pills from a vendor online. He said the website from the vendor online stated the pills did not contain fentanyl or alprazolam.
Dimaiuat then sold the misbranded pharmaceutical drugs, court documents say.
After investigators searched Dimaiuat's home, court documents say he noticed law enforcement didn’t find everything. He then brought it to their attention and handed over the pills.
Dimaiuat's lawyer told News 3 he had no comment about the case due to the pending status of the sentencing, which is scheduled for next Thursday.
