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Police union leader charged with importing large quantities of fentanyl into US
ByMeredith Deliso  ABCNews logo
Friday, March 31, 2023 4:45PM



Police union leader charged with importing large quantities of fentanyl into US
The Executive Director of the San Jose Police Officers Association Joanne Marian Segovia is seen...Show more
ABCNews
The head of a police union in the San Francisco Bay Area faces federal charges for allegedly smuggling thousands of synthetic opioids into the U.S. from multiple countries with the intent to distribute them.

San Jose Police Officers Association Executive Director Joanne Marian Segovia, 64, has been charged with attempt to unlawfully import a controlled substance -- specifically valeryl fentanyl, a fentanyl analog -- according to a complaint filed in federal court earlier this week.

Between 2015 and 2023, Segovia received 61 shipments that were labeled "Wedding Party Favors," "Shirts Tops," "Gift Makeup," "Chocolate and Sweets," "Food Supplement," "Health Product" and "Supplement," originating from countries including Hong Kong, Hungary, India and Singapore, according to the complaint. In reality, they were illicit drugs, prosecutors in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of California allege.

Between July 2019 and January 2023, as part of an ongoing Homeland Security investigation into controlled substances being shipped into the San Francisco Bay Area from India, authorities intercepted and opened five such shipments and found that they contained thousands of pills, including the synthetic opioids Tramadol and Tapentadol, prosecutors said.

In a voluntary interview with Homeland Security agents in February, Segovia reportedly claimed to have only ordered "supplements" and "nothing out of the ordinary," according to the complaint. She reportedly denied ordering or receiving prescription medications through the mail and said that she would never do so, adding, "I wouldn't even know where to start," according to the complaint.


In a second interview earlier this month, Segovia allegedly told investigators "that she had nothing to do with the orders sent to her" and blamed them on a woman she identified as a "family friend and housekeeper," according to the complaint.

Segovia continued to order controlled substances even after the February interview with Homeland Security, prosecutors allege. On March 13, federal agents in Kentucky seized a parcel purportedly containing a clock that originated from China that was addressed to Segovia and allegedly contained valeryl fentanyl, the complaint said.

Amid the investigation, agents also found emails and WhatsApp chat messages on Segovia's phone allegedly talking about shipments of drugs.

Segovia is scheduled to make her first court appearance Friday afternoon.