DEA Archived Press Releases

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

Cochise County man pleads guilty to transport of a narcotic drug for sale and misconduct involving weapons

SIERRA VISTA, Ariz. – Attorney General Mark Brnovich announced a Cochise County superior court judge sentenced Timothy Henry, a Sierra Vista drug distributor, to 14 years in prison. Henry’s co-defendants, Jaime Rene Leza, Jennifer Sue Phillips, and Shalmarie Tulk, were all previously convicted and sentenced for their role assisting Henry...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA announces launch of Operation Crystal Shield

WASHINGTON – Drug Enforcement Administration Acting Administrator Uttam Dhillon today announced that the DEA will direct enforcement resources to methamphetamine “transportation hubs” — areas where methamphetamine is often trafficked in bulk and then distributed across the country. While continuing to focus on stopping drugs being smuggled across the border, DEA’s...
PRESS RELEASE

Eleven arrested in DEA and AZDPS joint enforcement operation targeting Tucson drug traffickers

TUCSON, Ariz. – The Drug Enforcement Administration announced today the arrest of 11 people as the result of the culmination of a year-long joint investigation by the DEA’s Sierra Vista Resident Office along with the Arizona Department of Public Safety’s Border Strike Force, into the alleged drug trafficking activities of...
PRESS RELEASE

Nearly 170,000 deadly fentanyl pills seized by DEA Task Force, Phoenix PD and Arizona DPS

PHOENIX – During an investigation into the drug trafficking activities of 24-year old Marcelino Ontiveros Quintero, DEA Task Force agents and detectives seized approximately 169,150 lethal fentanyl pills from Quintero and his associate, one of the largest fentanyl pill seizures in the state. The DEA Task Force, led by a...
PRESS RELEASE

Drug Trafficker Sentenced To 24 Years In Federal Prison

PHOENIX - On December 19, 2012, Doug Coleman, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement (DEA) Phoenix Field Division and U.S. Attorney John S. Leonardo announced that Francisco Alfredo Montes-Vargas, of Culiacan, Mexico, was sentenced to 292 months in federal prison, to be followed by five years of supervised...
PRESS RELEASE

Eleven Members Convicted In Phoenix Area Marijuana Distribution Conspiracy

PHOENIX - On April 25, 2012, a federal grand jury in Phoenix returned a 76 count superseding indictment against 11 defendants charging them with multiple crimes including conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute marijuana, structuring financial transactions through a domestic financial institution and promotional money laundering. The defendants are...
PRESS RELEASE

DEA NEWS: Valley-wide Synthetic Drug Takedown

PHOENIX - Agents from the U.S. Drug Enforcement (DEA) along with various state and local law enforcement agencies executed 12 search warrants yesterday and seized more than 20,000 units of synthetic drugs in the second statewide enforcement action against the synthetic designer drug industry responsible for the production and sale...
PRESS RELEASE

Alert - Extortion Scam - Alert

OCT (PHOENIX)- - The Drug Enforcement Administration is warning the public about criminals posing as DEA special agents or other law enforcement personnel as part of an international extortion scheme. This criminal activity has occurred in the past, but is now occurring with much more frequency. The DEA Phoenix and...
PRESS RELEASE

Over 4500 Marijuana Plants Eradicated Near Wenden, Arizona

YUMA, Ariz. - The Drug Enforcement (DEA) along with the Arizona Department of Public (DPS) eradicated and destroyed more than 4500 marijuana plants found growing along the Centennial Wash, near Wenden, Arizona in La Paz County. The plants ranged from 3 to 6 feet high and were located in four...