The executive director of the San Jose Police Officers' Association (SJPOA) has been charged with attempting to illegally import synthetic opioids into the U.S. for mass distribution, according to federal authorities.
A press release said a federal criminal complaint has been filed charging 64-year-old San Jose resident Joanne Marian Segovia with attempting to "illegally import a controlled substance in connection with a scheme to bring synthetic opioids into the country and distribute them throughout the United States." The criminal complaint was filed by United States Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey and Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent in Charge Tatum King on March 27, and unsealed Thurday.
According to the complaint, Segovia is the Executive Director of the SJPOA. The complaint "alleges that Segovia used her personal and office computers to order thousands of opioid and other pills to her home and agreed to distribute the drugs elsewhere in the United States."
The complaint alleges that between October 2015 and January of this year, Segovia had at least 61 shipments mailed to her home. Countries of origin included Hong Kong, Hungary, India, and Singapore. The manifests for these shipments declared the contents of the packages with labels like "Wedding Party Favors," "Gift Makeup," or "Chocolate and Sweets." However, between July 2019 and last January, officials intercepted and opened five of these shipments and found that they contained thousands of pills of controlled substances, including the synthetic opioids Tramadol and Tapentadol, which are similar to fentanyl. The complaint stated certain packages were valued at thousands of dollars' worth of drugs.
The complaint also alleged that Segovia communicated using encrypted WhatsApp messages to plan the logistics for receiving and sending pill shipments and used her office at the San Jose Police Officers' Association to distribute controlled substances and even used the SJPOA's UPS account for a shipment . According to the complaint, Segovia continued to order controlled substances even after being interviewed by federal investigators last month. Just over two weeks ago on March 13, federal agents seized a parcel in Kentucky containing valeryl fentanyl addressed to Segovia. The package allegedly originated from China on March 10, 2023 and declared its contents as a "clock."
Segovia is charged with attempt to unlawfully import valeryl fentanyl and faces a maximum statutory sentence of 20 years if convicted. In addition, the court may order a convicted defendant to serve at least 3 years of supervised release and to pay a fine of up to $250,000.