Phoenix, ARIZ – On March 26, 2026, Ismael Alejandro Ortiz was sentenced to five years in prison by the Pima County Superior Court. On July 29, 2025, in Pima County, Arizona, Ortiz attempted to knowingly transport approximately 12.9 pounds of cocaine for sale, using a mobile barbershop bus as cover...

San Diego – Marking a powerful start to 2026, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration dealt a significant blow to drug trafficking networks during Phase II of Operation Fentanyl Free America. Between January 12 and February 10, 2026, DEA seized more than 4.7 million fentanyl pills and nearly 2,396 pounds of...

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,”...

OCEANSIDE, CA — On March 12, 2026, the Oceanside Police Department, in coordination with agents and task force officers from the DEA Carlsbad Resident Office, agents from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS), and detectives from the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department Marijuana Enforcement Team (MET), conducted vape and smoke...

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...

SAN DIEGO – A superseding indictment unsealed today charges René Arzate-García, aka “La Rana,” alleged Tijuana plaza boss for the Sinaloa Cartel, with Narcoterrorism and Material Support of Terrorism in connection with trafficking massive amounts of fentanyl, cocaine, methamphetamine and marijuana into the United States. Also today, the U.S. Department...

TUCSON, Ariz. – Aaron Leopoldo Aguirre-Gutierrez, 50, of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, was sentenced on Jan. 20, 2026, by U.S. District Judge Raner C. Collins to 48 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. Aguirre-Gutierrez previously pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Distribute Cocaine. Between Feb. 24, 2024, to...

Tucson, Ariz. – Ramon Renteria, 33, of Avondale, Arizona, was sentenced on Jan. 15, 2026, by U.S. District Judge Angela M. Martinez to 64 months in federal prison followed by four years of supervised release, with community restitution and a fine totaling $7,000. Renteria previously pleaded guilty to Possession with...

SAN DIEGO – Nameer Mohammad Atta was sentenced in federal court today to 20 years in prison for distributing the fentanyl that led to the fatal overdose of a 26-year-old active-duty lance corporal in the United States Marine Corps on May 21, 2020. When handing down the sentence, U.S. District...

SAN DIEGO – Claudia Patricia Alvarez Hernandez, the wife of incarcerated Sinaloa Cartel kingpin Jorge Alberto Valenzuela Valenzuela, was sentenced in federal court today to 14 years in prison for her role in a massive drug trafficking and money laundering conspiracy. U.S. District Judge Andrew G. Schopler also ordered Alvarez...