The Brief
- The Phoenix DEA division has seized a record amount of fentanyl this year, reporting a 79% increase in fentanyl powder from 2024 and noting that Arizona accounts for 60% of all fentanyl seized nationwide.
- DEA officials, including Assistant Administrator Cheri Oz, said the Sinaloa Cartel is using Arizona as a key gateway to traffic massive amounts of fentanyl powder, cocaine and methamphetamine into the United States.
- The DEA is targeting the cartels’ supply chain and finances through investigations into money laundering, Bitcoin and the dark web, bolstered by President Donald Trump’s declaration of fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction.
PHOENIX – The Phoenix division of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has seized a record amount of fentanyl this year, reporting a 79% increase in fentanyl powder from 2024.
What they’re saying:
The DEA stated that Arizona is a key gateway used by the Sinaloa Cartel for drug distribution across the United States, primarily moving fentanyl powder rather than pills.…