Source: Office of United States Attorneys
LOS ANGELES – A Hollywood woman was found guilty by a jury today of running a tech-savvy drug delivery business that employed drivers – including a part-time actor – and resulted in three near-fatal fentanyl overdoses.
Mirela Todorova, 36, a.k.a. “Mimi,” was found guilty of one count of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances resulting in serious bodily injury, one count of distribution of fentanyl, three counts of distribution of fentanyl resulting in serious bodily injury, one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine, one count of possession with intent to distribute MDMA (Ecstasy), and one count of making false statements to federal investigators.
The jury also found that Todorova must forfeit $498,555 in drug proceeds to the government.
“This defendant used her knowledge of technology to peddle the poison of fentanyl – despite knowing the pills she sold ran the risk of killing people,” said Acting United States Attorney Joseph McNally. “Investigating and prosecuting these cases saves lives. I commend our local and federal partners for stopping this dangerous criminal organization and bringing justice to the victims here.”
“This case highlights the importance of looking at every overdose incident,” said Matthew Allen, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Los Angeles Field Division. “This case started with a single overdose and led to the identification of the dealer responsible for multiple overdoses. This drug distributor had knowledge of the harm she was creating and didn’t care.”
According to evidence presented at a nine-day trial, Todorova from June 2020 to March 2021 orchestrated a technology-savvy drug trafficking operation in which she provided cellphones and narcotics – including counterfeit oxycodone pills that contained fentanyl – to drivers to facilitate the delivery of drugs to customers across Los Angeles County and elsewhere. Todorova – who is a citizen of the United States, Canada, and Bulgaria – also delivered drugs herself.
Several times throughout the drug trafficking conspiracy, Todorova visited Mexico, where she continued to manage her drug operation while tending to her pet jaguar, “Princess.”
To carry out the scheme, Todorova hired Mucktarr Kather Sei, 39, of Koreatown, as a driver and, later, gave him the keys to her Hollywood drug stash house, allowing him to run the drug ring’s operations while continuing to direct him from abroad.
Despite warnings from customers that the oxycodone pills she was selling were laced with fentanyl and potentially fatal, Todorova continued to sell them. From November 2020 to January 2021, three customers of Todorova’s drug ring suffered near-fatal overdoses of fentanyl-laced oxycodone pills. Despite knowing their danger, Todorova continued to sell these fentanyl-laced pills until February 2021.
In March 2021, law enforcement executed search warrants on Todorova’s person, car, and home, seizing numerous drug trafficking materials and narcotics, including lab-confirmed methamphetamine, cocaine, and MDMA, as a well as a single purported oxycodone pill laced with fentanyl.
In December 2021, Todorova knowingly made series of false statements to federal law enforcement official when she said she thought the drugs seized from her apartment were vitamins, she never instructed anyone how to package or make drugs, and she only met Sei twice.
United States District Judge André Birotte Jr. scheduled a September 12 sentencing hearing, at which time Todorova will face a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in federal prison and a statutory maximum sentence of life imprisonment. She has been in federal custody since April 2021.
Sei and two other defendants charged in this case – Christopher Y. Moreno Núñez, 29, of Pacific Palisades, and Ashley Alicia Nicole Johnson, 34, of Los Angeles – each pleaded guilty last year to felony narcotics distribution charges and will be sentenced in the coming months. Sei has been in federal custody since February 2022.
This case is the result of an investigation by the Los Angeles Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Overdose Justice Task Force, which was created to address opioid-related deaths in the greater Los Angeles area, most of which are caused by the synthetic opioid fentanyl. Under the Overdose Justice program for the DEA’s Los Angeles Field Division, DEA agents collaborate with local law enforcement to analyze evidence to determine if there are circumstances that might lead to a federal criminal prosecution, and, if so, proactively target the drug trafficker.
Assistant United States Attorney Patrick Castañeda of the International Narcotics, Money Laundering, and Racketeering Section, Assistant United States Attorneys Jason C. Pang and Suria M. Bahadue of the General Crimes Section, and Assistant United States Attorney James E. Dochterman of the Asset Forfeiture and Recovery Section are prosecuting this case.