WASHINGTON D.C. - The U.S. Department of State has announced a $5 million reward for information leading to the apprehension, and, or conviction of People’s Republic of China national, Jian Zhang (aka Hong Kong Zaron).
Zhang, the owner of Zaron Biotech in Shangdong Province, is also the leader of the Zhang Drug Trafficking Organization, which is a leading supplier of the deadly drug fentanyl to drug dealers in the United States, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA).
In a news release, the DEA stated:
The investigation, coordinated and conducted by DEA and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), discovered that since January 2013, Zhang’s organization sent thousands of orders of fentanyl, fentanyl analogues and other illicit drugs, pill presses, stamps, or dies used to shape fentanyl and fentanyl analogues into pills, to customers in the United States through the mail or international parcel delivery services. The controlled substances and controlled substance analogues that Zhang’s organization imported into and distributed throughout the United States resulted in the overdose deaths of four individuals in North Dakota, Oregon, North Carolina, and New Jersey, as well as serious bodily injuries to five additional individuals.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office District of North Dakota has charged Zhang with drug trafficking conspiracy, international money laundering conspiracy, and trafficking of illicit drugs which led to death and/or serious bodily injury.
If anyone has information regarding Zhang’s location, they are urged to contact the DEA by calling or texting +1-504-534-5134 via telephone/text/WhatsApp, or emailing ZhangJianTIPS@dea.gov.
*Last year, 93,331 people died in the U.S. as a result of fentanyl overdoses, nearly a 30 percent increase over 2019, when 72,151 Americans died as a result of taking fentanyl.
Fentanyl is “50 to 100 times more potent than morphine,” according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse. The synthetic opioid is now being used to cut other drugs, such as heroin and cocaine.
