DEA Archived Press Releases

Press Releases before January 20, 2025
16 Results - Showing 1 to 10
PRESS RELEASE

DEA Omaha Division Notes Record Fentanyl Seizures in 2023

OMAHA, Neb. – The five state Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Omaha Division marked an 83 percent increase in the number of fentanyl pills seized in 2023 and removed an estimated 2.9 million lethal doses of fentanyl both in pill and powder form, from Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA Operation Last Mile Tracks Down Sinaloa and Jalisco Cartel Associates Operating within American Communities

OMAHA, NE –The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) concluded a year-long operation in which it identified direct connections between the Mexican-based Sinaloa and Jalisco Cartels and communities across the nation, to include the five state DEA Omaha Division. Operation Last Mile targeted operatives, associates and distributors affiliated with the Sinaloa...
PRESS RELEASE

Law Enforcement Partnership in Nebraska Takes Stance Against Methamphetamine

KEARNEY, Neb. – In response to the increasing amount of methamphetamine seen threatening Nebraskans, federal, state and local law enforcement agencies in Nebraska have formed a coalition to help combat the number one drug threat in both rural and urban communities across the state. Nebraska Attorney General, Doug Peterson; Interim...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA Issues Public Safety Alert on Sharp Increase in Fake Prescription Pills Containing Fentanyl and Meth

Today, the Drug Enforcement Administration issued a Public Safety Alert warning Americans of the alarming increase in the lethality and availability of fake prescription pills containing fentanyl and methamphetamine. DEA’s Public Safety Alert, the first in six years, seeks to raise public awareness of a significant nationwide surge in counterfeit...
PRESS RELEASE

Iowa Man Sentenced to 19 Years in Federal Prison

DES MOINES, Iowa – An Ottumwa, Iowa man was sentenced to 19 years in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person in violation of federal law...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA Seizures of Heroin and Fentanyl Increase Across North Dakota in 2020

OMAHA, Neb. –Seizures of fentanyl and heroin made by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in North Dakota increased in 2020 with investigators seeing a 223 percent increase from 2019 in the two drugs combined. Fentanyl, estimated at approximately 100 times more potent than morphine and 50 times more potent than...
PRESS RELEASE

Cocaine and Fentanyl Seizures Rise in Iowa

OMAHA, Neb. – Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) investigators took an estimated $2.8 million worth of methamphetamine and marijuana off the streets of Iowa in 2020 and reported an increase in cocaine and fentanyl seizures. Agents from DEA offices in Cedar Rapids, Des Moines, Sioux City and the Quad Cities removed...
PRESS RELEASE

Drug Seizures Surge in 2020, Fentanyl Remains a Threat in Nebraska

OMAHA, Neb. – Marijuana and methamphetamine were the top two drugs seized by Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) investigators in Nebraska in 2020, with 2.5 kilograms of fentanyl, or the equivalent of one-and-a-half million lethal doses, also making its presence known across the state. Methamphetamine seizures jumped 68 percent in 2020...
PRESS RELEASE

Arizona Man Sentenced to 20 Years in Interstate Methamphetamine Distribution Conspiracy

OMAHA, Neb. – United States Attorney Joe Kelly announced that Reiko Elio Penunuri, 42, of Arizona, was sentenced January 13 in federal court in Omaha for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and for use of facilities in interstate commerce in aid of racketeering. A cellular phone is a “facility” as used...
PRESS RELEASE

Operation Boyztown Results in Rare Life Sentence for Methamphetamine Distributor

OMAHA, Neb. – Between March 2015 and September 2018, the DEA Omaha Division office in cooperation with the Douglas and Sarpy County Sheriff’s Offices, Omaha Police Department and U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Nebraska, conducted a complex, multi-jurisdictional investigation into a methamphetamine distribution organization with direct links to...