United States Drug Enforcement Administration

WASHINGTON - The National Heroin Threat Assessment (NHTA), released today by the United States Drug Enforcement (DEA), shows heroin use and availability on the rise and causing more overdose deaths than at any time in the last decade. Although fewer people presently use heroin than other illicit drugs, the heroin...

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - On May 13, 2015, the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit submitted a 57 page opinion affirming the conviction of Edison Burgos-Montes, announced Rosa Emilia Rodríguez-Vélez, U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. Edison Burgos-Montes appealed from his conviction for two...

WASHINGTON - DEA Special Agent Joseph Piersante today became the first-ever member of DEA to receive the Secretary of Defense Medal for the Defense of Freedom - . Piersante was struck by enemy gun fire while on a counter-terrorism and narcotics mission in Afghanistan in 2011. The Defense of Freedom...

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - On April 16, a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico returned an indictment against 29 defendants charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances, announced Rosa Emilia Rodríguez-Vélez, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. The Drug...

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - U.S. Customs and Border (CBP) Office of Air and Marine Agents intercepted a vessel Wednesday evening attempting to smuggle 42 bales of cocaine, totaling 2,425 (1,100 kilos), with an approximated street value of $30.8 million, south of the island of Vieques; an eastern island off...

WASHINGTON - The United States Drug Enforcement (DEA) today issued a nationwide alert about the dangers of fentanyl and fentanyl analogues/compounds. Fentanyl is commonly laced in heroin, causing significant problems across the country, particularly as heroin abuse has increased. This alert was issued through the multi-agency El Paso Intelligence (EPIC)...

WASHINGTON - DEA Administrator Michele M. Leonhart today issued the following statement on the arrest in Mexico of Zetas leader Omar Trevino Morales: "The Drug Enforcement Administration proudly congratulates the Government of Mexico and their leadership in the arrest of Omar Trevino Morales, head of the Zetas cartel. The Zetas...

WASHINGTON - DEA Administrator Michele M. Leonhart today issued the following statement in response to the capture of Knights Templar Cartel Leader Servando Gomez-Martinez, a.k.a. “La Tuta” by the Mexican Federal Police: "The arrest of Servando Gomez-Martinez, a.k.a. "La Tuta," is another win for Mexico in the fight against brutal...

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - On February 19, 2015, a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico returned an indictment against 25 defendants charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances in the municipality of Yauco, PR, announced Vito S. Guarino, Special Agent in (SAC)...

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - The Coast Guard Cutter Key Largo and a U.S. naval vessel with a Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment onboard apprehended a Russian smuggler and intercepted 1,729 pounds of marijuana aboard a Finnish-flagged sailing vessel in the Caribbean Sea Saturday, approximately 130 nautical miles south of...