OAKLAND — A Concord man who allegedly crowned himself the “Xanax King” because of his ability to mass produce counterfeit tablets of the anti-anxiety drug was denied release from jail while he fights new federal charges.
Jeremy Donagal, 42, was arrested earlier this month while on supervised release for conduct that prosecutors say is nearly identical to what he was sentenced to federal prison for in 2015. On May 14, authorities served a search warrant on his Concord warehouse, and found “multiple pill presses and thousands (possibly tens of thousands)” of counterfeit tablets of Xanax, prosecutors wrote in court filings last week.
In 2015, Donagal was sentenced to 75 months in federal prison for operating a Concord warehouse that manufactured counterfeit Xanax tablets by the thousands, and sold it on the Dark Web, a section of the internet where various illegal wares are bought and sold. In his sentencing hearing, Donagal pledged to change his ways, writing a letter to the judge that professed he had changed his ways and only resorted to a life of crime after a series of personal tragedies, including being diagnosed with brain cancer and losing his mother.
Last week, Donagal’s attorneys argued that because of the COVID-19 pandemic, he would be released from jail while he fights these new federal charges. The motion, filed by Oakland-based defense attorney Kathryn Ross, argued that Donagal did not pose a risk of violence if released and highlighted his “strong ties” to the Bay Area.
“In light of the inadequate medical care inmates already experienced before the COVID19 pandemic, the Court cannot be confident Mr. Donagal will receive medical attention if he is infected with COVID-19,” Ross wrote.
Federal prosecutors countered that Donagal had proven he could not be deterred from drug trafficking. Once released from federal prison, Donagal immediately began to build a sophisticated drug manufacturing factory, and carried out his plan despite being on federal probation, assistant U.S. Attorney Frank Riebli wrote in court filings.
“Donagal set up a large-scale counterfeit pill operation and distributed those pills nationwide through multiple vendor pages on the dark web,” Riebli wrote. “He built a full-scale laboratory where it appears he manufactured and tested the benzodiazepines he created, a press room where he used multiple commercial pill presses capable of pressing thousands of pills per hour, a room where he stored finished products ready to be put in boxes and mailed, and a room with a photo box and special lighting where he could take the photos he posted online to attract buyers.”
On May 20, a federal judge sided with prosecutors, and remanded Donagal to custody at Santa Rita Jail, in Dublin. His next court date, a preliminary hearing, has been set for Thursday, according to court records.
