Arizona officials are alarmed at the massive seizure of dangerous narcotics in the Phoenix area. Tempe Police Interim Chief Josie Montenegro, Phoenix DEA Special Agent in Charge Cheri Oz, and Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes held a joint press conference to discuss the alarming surge in narcotic seizures, particularly over four and a half million fentanyl pills and over 140 pounds of fentanyl powder, seized from criminal illegal drug traffickers with the Sinaloa Cartel.
“Last year nationwide, we lost 107,622 lives to drug poisonings with fentanyl being the primary drug,” said Phoenix DEA Special Agent in Charge Cheri Oz. “The drug cartels are putting fentanyl in all of their illicit drugs such as cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin, and fake pills, which they disguise to look legitimate, like pharmaceutical pills. It is trickery. It is deception. It is death.”
“These dangerous drugs primarily come from criminal illegal drug traffickers with the Sinaloa Cartel,” says Cheri Oz. “I want to be crystal clear, the drugs that are flooding Arizona every single day are sourced primarily by one evil entity, the Sinaloa Drug Cartel…The Sinaloa Drug Cartel is evil, and they’re motivated by greed. They’re recklessly endangering our communities, taking lives every single day.”
Fentanyl is a highly dangerous opioid, and its use is currently the leading cause of death for Americans aged between 18 and 45 years old. The severity of the issue is underscored by the fact that fentanyl seizures in the Phoenix area have been surging in recent years. In 2022 alone, the DEA seized over 50.6 million deadly fentanyl-laced, fake prescription pills, and over 10,000 pounds of fentanyl powder, half of which came from Arizona, enough to kill over 379 million people.
WATCH:
@DEAPHOENIXDiv @TempePolice @AZAGMayes announced 150+ charged & seizures:
➡️4.5 mil #fentanyl fake 💊
➡️ 66 kilos #fentanyl powder
➡️ 3100 lbs methamphetamine
➡️ 138 kilos cocaine
➡️ 35 kilos heroin
➡️ $22 mil cash
To read more: https://t.co/LyPaJg5Grw
Video of drugs seized pic.twitter.com/uvslxKwk69— DEAPhoenix (@DEAPHOENIXDiv) February 23, 2023
Montenegro and Oz noted that the majority of the seizures occurred within the state of Arizona, specifically, in the city of Tempe. The investigations stemming from Tempe have yielded over four and a half million fentanyl pills, over 140 pounds of fentanyl powder, over 135 kilos of cocaine, over 3000 pounds of methamphetamines, 35 kilos of heroin, 49 firearms, and over 2 million dollars in cash.
“These seizures have occurred over a period of time of just over three years,” says Montenegro.
Kris Mayes noted this was a “recent large-scale interagency narcotics investigation in the Valley.” However, during her speech, Mayes failed to mention that this investigation has been ongoing for over three years. This has raised suspicions that her statement was only political theater meant to appeal to Arizonans before the administrations of Katie Hobbs and Kris Mayes further open the southern border and give free rein to the cartels.
Mayes, when asked about the use of Arizona’s sovereign authority to secure the border, told a correspondent, “That’s a federal issue, and I’m not going to address that right now.”
This development has raised concerns about the ongoing surge of dangerous drugs in Arizona, causing the loss of lives every day. DEA and law enforcement agencies have been called upon to be more proactive in clamping down on drug trafficking in the state, particularly by the Sinaloa Drug Cartel.
WATCH the video report below for more details:
Source: TheGatewayPundit