Montreal man extradited to U.S. on drug trafficking, money laundering charges

A Montreal man extradited to the U.S. faces opioid trafficking and money laundering charges after allegedly selling thousands of synthetic pills to undercover agents. (Courtesy U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Florida)

A 49-year-old Quebec man has been extradited to the United States to face charges of importing opioids and money laundering.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida, Sebastien (Stix) Rollin is charged by federal indictment with conspiracy to import protonitazene, distribution of protonitazene for importation into the U.S., and international promotional money laundering.

If convicted, Rollin faces a maximum penalty of 120 years in federal prison. The indictment also states that U.S. authorities are seeking a forfeiture order against him.

Officials allege Rollin, who lives in Montreal, arranged the sale of synthetic opioid pills disguised as oxycodone, knowing the drugs were destined for Tampa.

“Rollin sold more than 10,000 such pills on May 13, 2024, to an undercover officer. He later sold 25,000 pills to an undercover officer on July 9, 2024,” the attorney’s office stated. “Rollin accepted payment for these sales via cryptocurrency that was sent from an undercover cryptocurrency wallet in the Middle District of Florida to Canada.”

In mid-July 2024, Rollin allegedly negotiated the sale of 300,000 synthetic opioid pills to the U.S. The shipment, transported by an organization courier, was intercepted by the RCMP.

That same day, the RCMP executed search warrants at two clandestine laboratories in Quebec used to manufacture synthetic opioids. The raids resulted in the seizure of millions of pills, recipes for synthetic drugs, and a firearm.