Tag: fentanyl

China Using Fentanyl as Weapon in ‘Unrestricted Warfare’ Against US, Former DEA Special Ops Chief Says

Just the News

A former top Drug Enforcement Administration official is warning that China is using the Mexican drug cartels to traffic fentanyl as part of a larger “unrestricted warfare” strategy to kill off America’s next generation and supplant the U.S. as the world’s preeminent power.

Derek Maltz, the agency’s former chief of special operations, told Just the News the Biden administration has strong evidence of how China markets the precursor ingredients for fentanyl to the cartels and where in Mexico the production labs are based. But, he said, the administration is allowing cartels to operate freely across the U.S. southern border to move drugs and earn billions of dollars trafficking humans to create new cash flow for their fentanyl supply networks, a scourge claiming more than 100,000 American lives a year.

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Nogales Port Director Michael Humphries: More Fentanyl Seized in Three Months than 2022 Fiscal Year

Neil Jones

Nogales Port of Entry Director Michael Humphries stated Monday that more fentanyl had been seized at his port in three months than in the entirety of the 2022 fiscal year (FY).

“In the first 3 months of FY23, the Nogales POE has already surpassed the total amount of fentanyl seized throughout all of FY22, which was already a record year,” tweeted Humphries.

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Attorney General Mark Brnovich Announces Grant Money Going to Combat the Opioid Epidemic in Rural Counties

Neil Jones

Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich (R) announced that over 2 million in grant funding would be going to service organizations in rural counties to combat the effects of the opioid crisis.

“Our office has been leading and is continuing to hold accountable manufacturers, marketers, and distributors who have contributed to the opioid crisis,” said Brnovich. “We are now investing settlement funds to reduce the financial impact to Arizona taxpayers and assist people recovering from addiction and resuming their lives as healthy and productive members of society.”

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Florida AG Moody Calls on Biden to Restore Top Drug Post to Address National Fentanyl Crisis

The Center Square
Ashley Moody

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody on Monday called on President Joe Biden to reverse an Obama-era decision to make the Director for the Office of the National Drug Control Policy a cabinet-level position again.

Moody sent a letter to the president asking him to take action immediately before the public health authority Title 42 ends this week, “which will fuel a massive border surge and allow even more deadly fentanyl to flood into the country,” she said.

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Arizona Patient Samples Show a 261 Percent Increase in Fentanyl Positivity Since 2019

Neil Jones

A new study from the California-based Millennium Health (MH) showed that fentanyl positivity increased in Arizona by 261 percent between the first half of 2022 and 2019.

“We have already seen too many Arizona families lose loved ones to drugs. Our goal is to work hand-in-hand with public health and safety authorities, health care providers, and community organizations to proactively address drug exposures and help prevent drug overdose deaths,” said Angela Huskey, PharmD, CPE, Chief Clinical Officer at MH.

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Fentanyl Overdose Deaths Skyrocket over 1,000 Percent in Los Angeles County

Admin

Los Angeles County saw accidental fentanyl overdose deaths increase more than twelvefold from 2016 to 2021, according to a new County Public Health Department report.

Accidental fentanyl overdoses killed 1,504 people in the county last year, a roughly 1,280% rise compared to the 109-individual death toll in 2016, according to the report released Tuesday. Total accidental drug overdose deaths more than doubled in that time, with deaths from accidental opioid overdoses and methamphetamine overdoses both rising by over 300%.

Adults from 26 to 39 years old had the highest accidental fentanyl overdose rate of any age group in 2020, while 18- to 25-year-olds had the highest fentanyl overdose hospitalization rate that year, based on the report’s data. Men died of accidental fentanyl overdoses at a far higher rate than women.

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Miyares Launches ‘One Pill Can Kill’ Campaign Warning of Dangers of Counterfeit Drugs

Eric Burk

Attorney General Jason Miyares announced a “One Pill Can Kill” awareness campaign over the risks of fentanyl and counterfeit drugs to try to launch conversations among families ahead of the holidays.

The opioid epidemic has had a devastating effect on our Commonwealth. There isn’t a corner of our state that hasn’t been touched by its pain and destruction. Tragically, overdose deaths are now not limited to addiction, but to counterfeit pills laced with a highly potent, deadly substance – fentanyl,” Miyares said in a press release Tuesday. “Unfortunately, we’ve seen too many young people overdose and die after experimenting with these powerful drugs. As a father, this new threat terrifies me. That’s why I launched ‘One Pill Can Kill,’ a public awareness initiative aimed at generating conversations around the dangers of counterfeit drugs and fentanyl.”

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TBI Says Mexican Cartels Working in Tennessee

Peter D'Abrosca

According to a Wednesday report, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) says dangerous Mexican Cartels are actively operating in Tennessee. 

“There are two primary cartels that we have found very connected to almost everything we do,” TBI Director David Rausch reportedly said. “That is the Sinaloa Cartel out of Mexico and the new Jalisco Cartel. Both of them are actively, very engaged in operations in Tennessee and we are working closely with our friends at the DEA on addressing that head on.”

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Arizona Man Sentenced for Selling Fentanyl in Phoenix Homeless Camp

Neil Jones

Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell revealed that Cristian Machado, 21, has been sentenced for supplying the population of the major homeless camp in Downtown Phoenix with fentanyl and other drugs.

“Selling illegal drugs to anyone in our community is a threat to public safety. To target those who are experiencing homelessness, and particularly vulnerable, is especially cruel, and this sentence demonstrates that my office will hold those who pose a danger to others accountable,” said Mitchell.

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Ohio Attorney General Announces Preliminary Agreement with Walmart on Opioid Addiction Liability

Bradley Vasoli

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost (R) announced on Tuesday that he and 15 other state attorneys general have negotiated a preliminary deal with the multinational retailer Walmart, from which Ohio would get $114 million for opioid recovery programs.

The $3.1 billion national agreement comes after Yost and other prosecutors sought accountability for what they characterize as the superstore’s failure to safely and securely dispense high-strength prescription pain relievers through its more than 5,100 pharmacies across America. Other state prosecutor’s offices who worked alongside him include California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, New York, Tennessee and Texas.
The agreement comes after Yost and other prosecutors sought accountability for what they characterize as the superstore’s failure to safely and securely dispense high-strength prescription pain relievers through its more than 5,100 pharmacies across America. Other state prosecutor’s offices who worked alongside him include California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, New York, Tennessee and Texas.

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Blake Masters Criticizes Mark Kelly as Border Encounters Appear to Rise in October

Neil Jones

Arizona’s Republican Senate nominee, Blake Masters, spoke Sunday night against incumbent Mark Kelly (D) and the Biden Administration’s failed handling of the Southern border, saying they are not even trying to protect anything.

“Well, [Joe] Biden and Marky Kelly, they’re not even trying. Look at what they’re doing at the southern border. It would be bad enough if Mark Kelly and Joe Biden were trying but failing to secure our border, but guys, they’re not even trying. Day one, one of the first things Biden did, he signed away the border wall,” Masters said. “This dereliction of duty at the southern border, I think it’s just one of many reasons why Senator Kelly is going to be fired on Tuesday.”

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Kari Lake Rises Above Attack Ad Featuring Mother of Capitol Police Officer Who Blames Lake for Son’s Death

Susan Berry, PhD

Arizona Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake gracefully handled an attack ad that featured the mother of deceased Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick who blamed Lake and “people like her” for her son’s death.

In the video ad, paid for by the Republican Accountability PAC, Gladys Sicknick is heard introducing herself as “the mother of Brian Sicknick, the Capitol Police Officer who died defending our country on January 6.”

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Opioid Epidemic in 2020 Cost Virginia Nearly $3.5 Billion

Eric Burk

The opioid epidemic in Virginia cost almost $3.5 billion in 2020, according to a new cost calculator from the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) and the Virginia Commonwealth University. On average, over four Virginians died of an opioid overdose each day in 2020, according to a VDH announcement of the cost calculator.

“This burden is carried by Virginia’s workers, employers, and governments, and includes both future losses and current direct spending that could have been avoided,” the calculator’s site explains. “Virginia families and businesses take on a large amount of these costs, mostly due to lost future worker productivity. Federal, state, and local governments also see increased healthcare and government costs and lost future tax revenues. The cost burden of the opioid epidemic is split among several sectors.”

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Florida Law Enforcement Officers Seize Enough Fentanyl to Kill State’s Entire Population

The Center Square
Fentanyl

 In the past few months, Florida law enforcement officers have seized enough fentanyl to kill the state’s entire 22 million population.

Attorney General Ashley Moody announced massive seizures of illicit fentanyl pouring into Florida after being smuggled across the southern border as her office continues to fight the Biden administration in court over its immigration policies.

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Sen. Hagerty: Biden Will Allow Two Times Tennessee’s Population in Illegal Aliens to Enter Country

Peter D'Abrosca

A U.S. Senator from Tennessee slammed President Joe Biden for his open borders policies, and contextualized the amount of illegal aliens who will cross into the United States under the Biden administration. 

“With an estimated 5,500,000 illegal border crossings so far, Biden is on track over a 4-year term to allow illegal immigration in an amount nearly double the entire population of Tennessee,” Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-TN) said Tuesday on Twitter. 

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Ohio Senatorial Candidate Flips Stance, Calls for Fentanyl to Be Classified as ‘Weapon of Mass Destruction’

Hannah Poling

Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Rep. Tim Ryan (D-13) claims that he wants to label fentanyl as a “weapon of mass destruction” although he previously made a pledge to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) in 2019 to decriminalize all drug possession.

The long time Democrat has consistently opposed efforts to limit the flood of the deadly opioid into the United States and Ohio.

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Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey Continues to Fill Border Barrier Gaps as Migrant Encounters Soar

Neil Jones

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey announced Monday that he had continued his mission to plug holes in Arizona’s border, this time in Cochise County.

“Today, we continued to follow through on our promise to add physical barriers to the border where possible. We stepped up to the plate in Cochise County. Construction on a 10.25-mile border wall gap began this morning [Monday],” Ducey said. “The unresolved border and public safety crisis caused by the Biden admin continues – in Arizona, we don’t stand idly by when our citizens need us most. Arizona isn’t afraid of a challenge. We will not back down. We will protect our state.”

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Drug Task Force Finds $200 Million Worth of Fentanyl in Shelby County

Kaitlyn Osteen

The West Tennessee Drug Task Force (WTDTF) found over $200 million worth of fentanyl in Shelby County on Thursday.

WTDTF shared a post on Facebook saying, “The investigation led to the discovery of 22 pounds of fentanyl and the arrest of three Kentucky men. This amount of fentanyl is enough to overdose the population of Shelby County nine times over. Fetanyl and fentanyl derived pills are deadly! Don’t even try it once! The agent who made the stop is assigned to the task force by Sheriff Garrett of Haywood County.”

The West Tennessee Drug Task Force shared a post on Facebook saying, “The investigation led to the discovery of 22 pounds of fentanyl and the arrest of three Kentucky men. This amount of fentanyl is enough to overdose the population of Shelby County nine times over. Fetanyl and fentanyl derived pills are deadly! Don’t even try it once! The agent who made the stop is assigned to the task force by Sheriff Garrett of Haywood County.”

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Kari Lake Presents New Ad Showcasing the Grief Caused by Fentanyl

Neil Jones

With just over two weeks until Arizona’s General Election, Republican gubernatorial nominee Kari Lakes continues her flow of TV advertisements, this time addressing the fentanyl crisis plaguing Arizona.

“I have met with too many grieving families to just stand by while our open border allows millions of fentanyl pills to flood Arizona’s communities and take the lives of our babies. Our open border may be too politically inconvenient for Katie Hobbs to talk about, but Arizona families deserve to know what their candidates are going to do to put an end to this invasion of fentanyl into our state,” Lake said in a statement shared with the Arizona Sun Times.

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DEA: 36 Million Lethal Doses of Fentanyl Removed from U.S. Communities Between May and September

The Center Square

As a result of law enforcement operations from May through September of this year, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agents and law enforcement partners confiscated 36 million lethal doses of fentanyl, enough to kill 36 million Americans.

As part of the DEA’s One Pill Can Kill initiative, DEA agents and law enforcement partners in multiple states seized more than 10.2 million fentanyl pills and approximately 980 pounds of fentanyl powder.

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Doug Ducey Celebrates Results from Historic Multistate Law Enforcement to Disrupt Cartel Activity

Neil Jones

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey (R) celebrated the results of a first-of-its-kind law enforcement operation between 26 states to crack down on cartel activity by seizing deadly drugs and firearms.

“In Arizona, we’re taking action to stop the flow of dangerous drugs through the southern border, impede the cartels’ criminal activity and protect our communities,” said Ducey. “Earlier this year, we teamed up with Texas and 24 other states to share intelligence and strengthen security through the first-of-its-kind American Governors’ Border Strike Force. We’re already seeing results thanks to this coordinated effort — including thousands of pounds of drugs being seized all across the nation.”

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Commentary: Youngkin Is Right – Under Democrat Rule, Virginia Is a Border State

Admin

Recently, Virginia Democrats and dishonest mainstream media pundits have attempted to dunk on Governor Youngkin for saying that under Democrat rule, “Virginia is a border state.” But while Virginia doesn’t share a physical border with Mexico, Governor Youngkin’s comments nonetheless underscore a stark reality for Americans in Virginia and throughout the entire country – thanks to Joe Biden and failed Democrat policies, every state is now a border state.

Governor Youngkin’s comments on Fox News were in reference to the opioid crisis that is sweeping our nation – a crisis that Democrats are apparently oblivious to or unwilling to acknowledge is directly related to the surge of illegal immigration at our southern border. The entire country, not just border states, is experiencing a spike in fentanyl overdoses as thousands of pounds of the deadly narcotic pour into the country. According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there were more than 107,000 fatal drug overdoses in 2021, the highest number on record. In just the past two months, border patrol officers have seized more than 5 million fentanyl pills at just the border crossing in Nogales, Arizona.

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Commentary: The Opioids Crisis’ Impact on America’s Economy

RealClearWire

Strung out on drugs half her life, Brandi Edwards, 29, said the longest she held a job before getting sober four years ago was “about two and a half months.”

“I worked at an AT&T call center, a day-care center for a month, fast food places, but I had to take drugs to get out of bed in the morning and when I did show up, I wasn’t productive,” the West Virginia mother of three told RealClearInvestigations. “The first paycheck came along and I was out of there.”

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DEA Phoenix Seizes over 8 Million Fentanyl Pills During Operation

Neil Jones

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration announced Wednesday that an enforcement operation spanning from May to September seized millions of illicit fentanyl pills.

“On the frontline as we race to save lives, DEA Arizona continues to seize historic amounts of deadly fentanyl,” said Cheri Oz, the Phoenix DEA Special Agent in Charge of the operation. “It is terrifying that the drug cartels are mimicking candy to make fentanyl appear harmless. We need your help spreading the word about the dangers of fentanyl. It’s a matter of life and death.”

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Nation’s Second-Largest School District Stocks Overdose Reversal Drugs After Student Deaths

Admin

The second-largest school district in the country is stocking its schools with naloxone, an opioid overdose reversal drug, following student deaths, according to a Thursday news release.

In the recent weeks, nine students have died from overdoses in the Los Angeles Unified School District, with one student overdosing in the bathroom after obtaining a pill containing fentanyl from a peer, according to the Los Angeles Times. Every school in the district, beginning with elementary schools, will be stocked with the nasal spray version of naloxone, or Narcan, according to news release by the school.

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Phoenix Police Make Largest Single Seizure of Fentanyl Pills in Department History

Neil Jones

The Phoenix Police Department (PHXPD) shared Friday that officials made the largest single seizure of fentanyl pills in the department’s history this week.

“Phoenix police detectives with the Drug Enforcement Bureau have made the single largest fentanyl bust in Phoenix police history. Two men have been arrested in connection to the seizure which netted more than one million fentanyl pills,” according to a media advisory shared with the Arizona Sun Times.

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Arizona Police Seize 52 Pounds of Fentanyl from Smuggler

Peter D'Abrosca

Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) troopers on September 14 seized more than 50pounds of fentanyl during a traffic stop in Pima County, according to a release from this week. 

“During the traffic stop, the trooper observed multiple indicators of criminal activity,” the release said. “A subsequent search of the vehicle led to the discovery of 52 pounds of suspected fentanyl pills concealed within a compartment built into the vehicle’s rocker panels. The suspected fentanyl was being smuggled from Nogales, Mexico, to Tucson.”

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Arizona Officials React to August Southern Border Encounter Statistics

Neil Jones

New southern border encounter statistics from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) revealed that officials encountered over 200,000 migrants at the border for the sixth month in a row, which Gov. Doug Ducey said is especially harsh on Arizona border towns.

“Border towns bear the weight of this record illegal immigration. Government services, hospitals and food banks are strapped. The Yuma sector had more than 24,000 migrant encounters in August – almost a quarter of the town’s population,” tweeted Ducey.

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Maricopa County Indicts Two Women Transporting over 850,000 Fentanyl Pills

Neil Jones

The Maricopa County Grand Jury indicted two women Monday for possessing over 850,000 counterfeit pills laced with fentanyl, enough to cause potentially millions of overdoses.

“Two out of five counterfeit pills that come across our border are laced with lethal doses of fentanyl. These drugs are being marketed to our youth in the most proliferous ways and are being produced in candy-like colors. We must hold those who bring these lethal pills into our community accountable,” said County Attorney Rachel Mitchell.

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Florida and Connecticut Attorneys General Lead Bipartisan Effort to Classify Illicit Fentanyl as Weapon of Mass Destruction

The Center Square
fentanyl pills on the hood of a vehicle

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody and Connecticut Attorney General William Tong are leading a multistate, bipartisan effort urging President Joe Biden to classify illicit fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction (WMD).

“I first called for President Biden to take swift action in July and call fentanyl what it is – a weapon of mass destruction,” Moody said. “Now, I am leading a bipartisan coalition of 18 attorneys general demanding the president take action now, declare fentanyl a WMD and join us in our fight to prevent the death and destruction caused by this highly-lethal substance from getting even worse.”

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Border Patrol Agents Seize Record Amounts of Deadly Fentanyl, Meth in Arizona, Texas

The Center Square

U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents are seizing record amounts of fentanyl and meth in Arizona and Texas brought in by Mexican cartel operatives and foreign nationals trying to enter the U.S. illegally.

In just five separate inspections ahead of Labor Day weekend, for example, officers seized 625,000 pills in Nogales, Arizona, which borders Sonora, Mexico, Michael Humphries, CBP Director of the Nogales Port of Entry, said.

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Blake Masters: Mark Kelly Should Be Forced to Attend the Funerals of Teenagers Overdosing on Fentanyl

Neil Jones

Arizona Republican Senate nominee Blake Masters recently blasted his incumbent opponent Mark Kelly (D-AZ) for supporting the Biden Administration’s open border policies that have led to a flood of fentanyl entering the country.

“There are no words to describe tens of thousands of dead American teenagers, dead from fentanyl because of the wide-open southern border,” Masters said. “Mark Kelly should be forced to attend the funerals of each of those dead children, so he can better understand the consequences of his support for Joe Biden’s open borders. I truly mean that.”

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Arizona Troopers Making Traffic Stop Seize Enough Fentanyl to Kill Seven Million People

Peter D'Abrosca

An Arizona state trooper made a massive drug bust when he pulled over a motorist in late August. 

“During the traffic stop, the trooper observed multiple indicators of criminal activity,” said a Friday press release from the Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS). “A subsequent search of the vehicle led to the discovery of approximately 46 pounds of suspected fentanyl pills concealed in natural compartments within the vehicle.”

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Arizona Fills In over 3,000 Feet of the Yuma Border Wall Section

Neil Jones

Arizona Governor Doug Ducey (R) announced Wednesday that over 3,000 feet of previously open sections in Yuma’s border wall had been filled, celebrating that Arizona is doing what the federal government will not.

“Five wide open gaps in the border wall near Yuma neighborhoods and businesses are now closed off. In just 11 days, Arizona did the job the federal government has failed to do — and we showed them just how quickly and efficiently the border can be made more secure – if you want to,” said Ducey.

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Arizona Leaders Respond to CBP’s July Southern Border Encounter Statistics

Neil Jones

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently shared the total number of encounters at the southern border in July, and several of Arizona’s leaders have spoken on the new numbers, including Arizona Rep. Paul Gosar (r-AZ-04).

“For the seventeenth straight month, more than 150,000 illegal aliens crossed the southern border including [nearly] 200,000 illegal aliens in July 2022. Since Biden and the open border democrats took over in January 2021, they have facilitated an invasion of our sovereign borders of more than 4.2 million illegal aliens. Included in this invasion are terrorists – over five dozen documented so far, drug traffickers, sex traffickers and common criminals,” Gosar said.

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Four Alleged Cartel Members Charged with Sending Money to China for Fentanyl Production

Admin
Fentanyl

Four alleged cartel members were charged in connection with an international money laundering operation that involved sending funds to China to produce fentanyl.

The four New Jersey men, William Panzera, 49, Thomas Padovano, 48, Bartholomew Padovano, 71, and Sean Tighe, 46, were indicted by a federal grand jury in the District of New Jersey Wednesday, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ).

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Gov. Doug Ducey Issues Executive Order to Fill Gaps in Southern Border Wall

Neil Jones

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey (R) issued an executive order Friday to fill a 1,000-foot gap in the Yuma sector of the southern border wall.

“Arizona has had enough,” Ducey said. “We can’t wait any longer. The Biden administration’s lack of urgency on border security is a dereliction of duty. For the last two years, Arizona has made every attempt to work with Washington to address the crisis on our border. Time and time again we’ve stepped in to clean up their mess. Arizonans can’t wait any longer for the federal government to deliver on their delayed promises.”

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Tennessee Extends State Drug Rehab Clinics to More Rural Counties

Peter D'Abrosca

Tennessee is expanding its drug rehabilitation footprint into more rural counties, according to the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuses (TDMHSAS).

“Tennessee’s Project Rural Recovery is growing.  Thanks to $6.3 million budgeted in the current fiscal year by Governor Bill Lee and the Tennessee General Assembly, Project Rural Recovery is expanding to ten new counties,” said a Thursday release. 

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Exclusive: Sen. Blackburn Discusses Fentanyl Crisis with TBI Special Agent

Peter D'Abrosca

A U.S. senator from Tennessee sat down for a wide-ranging interview with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) Drug Task Force Director to expose America’s deadly fentanyl crisis that is getting worse by the day.

“Thousands of people are on the march toward our southern border as we speak. What do they want? Biden’s welcome package – free phone, free plane ticket, and free baby formula,” said Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN). “We know that among that group, drug dealers and smugglers are bringing across deadly amounts of fentanyl. I spoke with TBI Special Agent in Charge Thomas Farmer to expose how this crisis is devastating our communities.”

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Paul Gosar Introduces Legislation Aiming to Punish Fentanyl Distributors with Death Penalty

Neil Jones

Arizona Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ-04) recently introduced House Rule (HR) 8228, which aims to punish those who distribute fentanyl, resulting in death, with the death penalty or life in prison.

“One of the many deeply troubling consequences of Joe Biden’s open border policies is the deadly flow of fentanyl across the southern border. Since Biden assumed office in January 2021, more than 1,000,000 pounds of illegal drugs have been seized, including 7,700 pounds of fentanyl in just the first five months of 2022. The overwhelming majority of fentanyl is smuggled across the border from Mexico,” Gosar said in a press release.

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Mark Brnovich Announces Two Multistate Settlements with Four Pharmaceutical Companies for Their Roles in the Opioid Crisis

Neil Jones

Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich (R) recently announced two historic multistate settlements, totaling $26 billion, with four pharmaceutical companies over their roles in the opioid crisis.

“We are working to get these opioid abatement funds to local communities as quickly as possible,” Brnovich said in a press release. “They will help facilitate more effective treatment, education, and prevention as our state continues to tackle this heartbreaking crisis.”

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22 Arizonans Indicted for Drug-Related Charges After Criminal Gang Investigation

Neil Jones

The Arizona US Attorney’s Office (USAO) recently revealed that 22 Arizonians have been indicted for drug-related charges following a multi-year investigation of a South Phoenix criminal street gang.

“According to the criminal complaints filed last week, in January 2020, the Arizona Department of Public Safety (“DPS”) began an investigation targeting a drug and firearms supplier in South Phoenix. In February 2021, in conjunction with the DPS investigation, the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (“FBI”) Violent Street Gang Task Force began investigating the Lindo Park Crips (“LPC”), a criminal street gang operating in South Phoenix,” according to a press release from the USAO.

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