A California man was sentenced on Mar. 18 in federal court in Boston for operating an unlicensed money transmitting business connected to online pharmacy websites. Jimmy Fu, 64, of West Hills, California, received a sentence of one year and one day in prison, followed by one year of supervised release. Fu had pleaded guilty in November 2025 to the charge and agreed to forfeit approximately $689,697.09 seized from various accounts.
The case is significant due to its connection with illegal online pharmacies distributing misbranded and counterfeit drugs, including controlled substances. Law enforcement began investigating two such pharmacies believed to be operating out of India since around November 2022. The investigation found that orders placed by U.S. customers were filled through illicit pill press locations within the United States as well as shipments from overseas manufacturers.
Undercover purchases during the investigation revealed counterfeit prescription drugs; some contained controlled substances while others did not contain any active pharmaceutical ingredients. For example, one purchase of Adderall pills was found to contain methamphetamine and caffeine, while another contained no active ingredient at all.
Fu operated Axson Engineering, Inc., doing business as “Axson Data” in Canoga Park, California. His business processed customer payments for these controlled substances and wired proceeds overseas to various businesses identified as information technology consulting firms among others. Over 18 undercover purchases were processed by Axson Data during the investigation, with thousands of checks deposited into Axson’s bank accounts from individuals across the country between January 2021 and August 2024—totaling about $11.5 million.
A search warrant uncovered evidence linking Axson accounts directly to drug transactions, including a photo showing a positive test for methamphetamine after an order for Adderall was fulfilled with pressed meth instead.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley announced the sentencing along with officials from Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Criminal Investigations. Several other agencies provided assistance throughout the case.
This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation aimed at dismantling high-level criminal organizations using a multi-agency approach.