United States Drug Enforcement Administration

LAS VEGAS -- As the nation struggles to deal with the opioid epidemic many on the frontlines, such as law enforcement, are looking for innovative ways to tackle the opioid crisis that killed approximately 72,000 Americans in 2017, which is higher than car crashes and gun deaths. In Clark County...

MINNEAPOLIS – Agents and staff from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Minneapolis District Office participated in the 21st annual Government on Display Exposition held at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, on January 25. One of 23 agencies represented, the event drew approximately 7,000 people to the booths located...

DES MOINES, Iowa – Agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration Des Moines Resident Office partnered with the Mid-Iowa Narcotics Enforcement Task Force, United States Postal Inspection Service and U.S. Department of Homeland Security Investigations to take down 21 high-ranking members of the Jesse Sanchez Drug Trafficking Organization based out of...

OMAHA, Neb. – In a three-day span beginning Dec. 5, the DEA Omaha Division, in coordination with state and local law enforcement partners, arrested five people and seized 240 pounds of methamphetamine, two kilograms of heroin, one stolen handgun and $289,269 in drug profits. Four of the five arrests and...

LOS ANGELES – The culmination of a four-year investigation resulted in a member of the Sinaloa Drug Cartel being sentenced on Dec. 6, 2019 to 180 months in federal prison for narcotics and weapons violations. Jesus Raul Salazar-Espinoza a.k.a. “Pedro,” 51, of Sinaloa, Mexico, was sentenced by United States District...

OMAHA, Neb. – Registered Nurse La Vang, of Newport, Minnesota, was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for stealing prescription pain medication from his patient between April and August, 2018, as announced November 27, by United States Attorney Erica H. MacDonald. “Temptation and addiction plague all professions,” said U.S...

OMAHA, Neb., – U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agents and staff in the Omaha Division talked with more than 3,500 students about the dangers of drugs during Red Ribbon Week presentations in October. Reaching students from kindergarten through high school, grade-specific presentations focused on reading and understanding prescription medication labels, the...

OMAHA, Neb. –The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration collected 882,919 pounds of unwanted, unused and expired prescription medications and vaping cartridges at the 18th National Prescription Drug Take Back Day event, October 26, while the DEA Omaha Division accounted for 22,067 pounds collected from sites in Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota...

LOS ANGELES – The Drug Enforcement Administration is alerting the public of dangerous counterfeit pills killing Americans. Mexican drug cartels are manufacturing mass quantities of counterfeit prescription pills containing fentanyl, a dangerous synthetic opioid that is lethal in minute doses, for distribution throughout North America. Based on a sampling of...

LOS ANGELES – Over the course of 17 prior events, the National Drug Take Back Day Initiative continues to remove ever-higher amounts of opioids and other medications from the nation’s homes, where they are vulnerable to misuse, theft or abuse by family members and visitors, including children and teens. In...