ALBUQUERQUE – A Las Cruces man is facing federal charges after allegedly selling cocaine and a machinegun conversion device to undercover agents. According to court documents, on August 19, 2025, investigators conducted a controlled purchase of a machinegun conversion device from Victor Andrew Pardo Jr., 26, in Las Cruces, New...

ALBUQUERQUE – An Albuquerque man was sentenced to 220 months in prison for his role in a drug trafficking organization that distributed large quantities of narcotics in Albuquerque. There is no parole in the federal system. According to court documents, beginning in August 2024, agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration...

PHOENIX, Ariz — DEA Special Agent in Charge Apolonio Ruiz Jr. joined Maricopa County Sheriff Jerry Sheridan, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes and HIDTA Director Dawn Mertz to announce the results of a major multi-agency drug operation targeting criminal organizations operating in Arizona communities. “This extraordinary investigation saved countless lives,”...

PHOENIX, Ariz. – Eduardo Valenzuela Lopez, 33, of Cajeme, Sonora, Mexico, and Jael Gonzalez Banuelos, 22, of Phoenix, Arizona, were arrested on the morning of Feb. 24, 2026, by members of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) for conspiring to distribute fentanyl. Valenzuela Lopez and Gonzalez Banuelos were charged by criminal...

ALBUQUERQUE – A Hobbs man was sentenced to 26 years in prison for drug trafficking and illegal firearm possession as a convicted felon. There is no parole in the federal system. According to court documents, on October 19, 2023, agents with the Lea County Drug Task Force stopped a SUV...

EL PASO - A former FBI “Ten Most Wanted Fugitive” and leader of the El Paso/Juarez-based Bario Azteca gang pleaded guilty today in federal court in El Paso, Texas, for his role in the March 2010 U.S. Consulate murders in Juarez, Mexico, in which three people associated with the U.S...

ALBUQUERQUE – Four members of the Navarrette Drug Trafficking Organization have been indicted, and one charged by a criminal complaint, on federal drug trafficking charges following an investigation into the distribution of methamphetamine, fentanyl, and cocaine in Hobbs, New Mexico. According to court documents, from October 2024, through December 2025...

ARIZONA – The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration is intensifying its fight against the deadly threat of synthetic opioids with the launch of Fentanyl Free America, a comprehensive enforcement initiative and public awareness campaign aimed at reducing both the supply and demand for fentanyl. This effort underscores DEA's unwavering commitment to...

ALBUQUERQUE – Two Mexican nationals illegally present in the United States were sentenced to 17 and 22 years in federal prison following a multi-agency drug investigation that uncovered methamphetamine, fentanyl, cocaine and multiple loaded firearms at an Albuquerque residence. There is no parole in the federal system. According to court...

ALBUQUERQUE – A Hobbs woman involved in a high-speed chase with law enforcement was sentenced to 19 years in federal prison for drug trafficking and firearms offenses uncovered during an investigation into a significant fentanyl and methamphetamine distribution operation. According to court records, on October 19, 2023, agents with the...