meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
Headlines From The Times

The takedown of a dial-up drug network

Headlines From The Times

L.A. Times Studios

News, Daily News, Society & Culture, The Times, California

4.1544 Ratings

🗓️ 1 April 2022

⏱️ 24 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Ray Mascolo died of a drug overdose in 2020. One good thing came out of the tragedy: the takedown of a dial-up drug-delivery network.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Ray Moskolo was one year sober in the fall of 2020.

0:03.0

He had a new business, a new baby daughter.

0:06.0

The Beverly Hills resident was getting his life back to a better place.

0:10.0

Until one Sunday evening, he relapsed.

0:13.0

With just a few clicks on his phone, Ray ordered up on-demand drugs, delivered right to him.

0:19.0

The next morning, he was found dead from a fentanyl overdose.

0:23.7

There is one positive outcome from Ramoskolo's tragic death, though.

0:27.9

It helped to expose a drug delivery business that used a disturbing distribution model.

0:33.1

There's delivery just like postmates or Uber Eats or ordering a pizza and they come to your house and bring you anything.

0:41.8

I had no awareness to that whatsoever. So now when I'm just driving around, I'll see cars sometimes don't they go.

0:47.9

I wonder if that's like some drugs being delivered now.

0:57.0

I'm Gustavo Ariano. You're listening to The Times, Daily News from the LA Times.

1:01.0

It's Friday, April 1st, 2022.

1:04.0

Today, LA Times Courts reporter Michael Finnegan takes us to key locations around Los Angeles, spots that help the feds

1:11.9

uncover a delivery app like drug business, and then they were able to shut it down.

1:21.0

When I first heard about this story, about this case, I was new to the federal court beat and I had noticed

1:30.0

there were a whole lot of drug cases and I saw the complaint in Mini Totorova's

1:35.6

arrest and I thought this looks interesting I don't know what exactly happened

1:41.6

here the name of the guy who was found on his kitchen floor in Beverly Hills is still unknown.

1:47.5

How big her drug operation is not yet clear.

1:51.3

How big they think it is.

1:53.2

But there's something here.

...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from L.A. Times Studios, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of L.A. Times Studios and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.