Hernando Sheriff, DEA Bust Multi-County Drug Trafficking Ring After Fatal Overdose

A fatal overdose in Pasco County the day after Christmas 2025 unraveled a drug trafficking operation stretching across three counties, culminating in a Spring Hill search that turned up two pounds of MDMA, two pounds of psilocybin mushrooms, and roughly 20 additional pounds of marijuana from a single Utah Street residence.

Sheriff Al Nienhuis and DEA Deputy Chief Inspector Daniel Escobar stood before cameras at the Hernando County Sheriff's Office in Brooksville on March 16 to detail the months-long joint investigation targeting Ryan Perez. Nienhuis held up a photo of Perez as he described how the probe expanded from that December overdose to connect trafficking activity across Pasco, Hillsborough and Hernando counties.

Deputies executed a search warrant at Perez's Utah Street home in Spring Hill on March 11. They reported a strong odor of marijuana upon arrival. Inside, they found drug paraphernalia, approximately two pounds of MDMA, 10 counterfeit Adderall pills, 14.5 grams of LSD, two pounds of psilocybin mushrooms, about one pound of marijuana plants and roughly 20 pounds of additional marijuana.

The investigation did not stop at the residence. Law enforcement also seized firearms and cryptocurrency machines from smoke shop locations connected to Perez.

Investigators believe Perez used the dark web and cryptocurrency to purchase chemical ingredients sourced from China, India and Europe. Authorities say he imported those substances into the United States, used them to alter otherwise legal products, and repackaged the altered goods for sale through his shops.

No arrest or formal charges were listed in materials released by the Hernando County Sheriff's Office as of the March 16 press conference. The investigation involves the DEA alongside Hernando County deputies, and the tri-county scope of the trafficking links suggests federal involvement could follow.