Executive of Indian Chemical Company Sentenced to 54 Months in Prison for Distributing and Smuggling Fentanyl Precursor Chemicals
In First of its Kind Case, India-Based Defendant Smuggled Fentanyl Precursor Chemicals into the United States Knowing They Would Be Used to Manufacture Fentanyl
Wednesday, September 2, 2026 - Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, Bhavesh Lathiya was sentenced by United States District Judge Pamela K. Chen to 54 months in prison for his conviction of smuggling and distributing fentanyl precursor chemicals knowing they would be used to manufacture fentanyl. Lathiya was the leader and founder of Raxuter Chemicals, a company based in Surat, India, that illegally sold and smuggled more than 50 pounds of chemicals commonly used to manufacture fentanyl. As part of the case, the defendant was ordered to pay forfeiture in the amount of $24,560. The defendant pleaded guilty in April 2026 and will be deported upon completion of his prison term.
Joseph Nocella, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Pete Gizas, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations, New York (HSI New York), announced the sentence.
“During a national crisis when hundreds of Americans were dying every day of fentanyl overdoses, Lathiya smuggled and distributed chemical ingredients, including those that were the building blocks for this deadly drug, without any regard for the harm that his conduct would cause,” stated United States Attorney Nocella. “With today’s sentence, the message is loud and clear that our Office will hold precursor traffickers like the defendant accountable for their role in the fentanyl supply chain.”
“Bhavesh Lathiya’s conduct placed him at the source of the fentanyl supply chain, where he knowingly moved the chemical building blocks of a lethal drug into the United States through deception, false labeling, and international shipments in a prosecution that breaks new ground against an India-based supplier. By feeding the market for fentanyl at its earliest stage, he turned chemical commerce into a direct threat to public safety, widening the reach of a drug that continues to inflict profound harm across our communities. This Homeland Security Task Force investigation, co-led by HSI New York, demonstrates our resolve to attack the fentanyl supply chain before the poison is manufactured, packaged, and sold to the public,” stated HSI Acting Special Agent in Charge Gizas.
As set forth in court filings, Lathiya supplied precursor chemicals to the United States and Mexico, among other places, despite knowing they would be used to manufacture fentanyl. He and his company also sent their chemical products to the United States and Mexico using international mail and package carriers. The chemicals distributed by the defendant included all the materials necessary to manufacture fentanyl via the most common pathways. To prevent detection and interception of chemical products at the borders, the defendant employed deceptive and fraudulent practices, such as mislabeling packages and falsifying customs forms.
For example, on or about June 29, 2024, a package shipped by Raxuter Chemicals was delivered to an address in the Eastern District of New York. The package had a false manifest that listed its contents as Vitamin C. In truth, the contents were a List I chemical, 1-boc-4-piperidone, an unlawfully imported fentanyl precursor.
On or about October 2, 2024 and October 15, 2024, Lathiya appeared on a video call to discuss sale of fentanyl precursor chemicals with an HSI undercover officer. After being told by the undercover officer that his “clients in Mexico were very happy with the quality of what you sent me” and with “the yield they got of the final product,” Lathiya agreed to sell 20 kilograms 1-boc-4-piperidone, which is a List I chemical used in fentanyl synthesis. Lathiya also proposed mislabeling the chemical as an antacid. The undercover officer replied and asked if it would be easier to ship the product to Mexico, stating “This is a very controversial product … Because like you said it’s banned and in Mexico I think it could be easier but there’s so much pressure on them because of fentanyl.” On or about November 23, 2024, Raxuter Chemicals and Lathiya shipped approximately 20 kilograms of 1-boc-4-piperidone to the Eastern District of New York. The package was mislabeled as an antacid.
Mexican drug trafficking organizations, including but not limited to the Sinaloa Cartel, have increasingly availed themselves of the fentanyl precursors developed and distributed by companies like the defendant’s, including in India and China.
This sentence follows the Office’s pathbreaking indictments of three Chinese chemical companies and three employees in United States v. Anhui Rencheng Technology Co. (Rencheng) Ltd et al. and United States v. Hefei GSK Trade Co. Ltd, et al., charging them with similar offenses, including conspiracy to manufacture and distribute fentanyl, conspiracy to distribute a List I chemical, distribution of a List I chemical, and customs fraud conspiracy.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s International Narcotics and Money Laundering Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Adam Amir, William P. Campos, Chand Edwards-Balfour, and Katherine P. Onyshko are in charge of the prosecution with the assistance of Paralegal Specialists Cleon Thomas and Zoubida Bicane.
The Defendant:
BHAVESH RANCHHODBHAI LATHIYA (also known as “Bhavesh Patel,” “Bhavesh Bhai,” and “Bhavesh Lathia”)
Age: 37
Surat, Gujarat, India
E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 24-CR-525 (S-2) (PKC)
Contact
John Marzulli
Denise Taylor
United States Attorney’s Office
(718) 254-6323
Source: U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of New York
