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...

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...

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...

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...

PHOENIX - The DEA’s Phoenix Division has finished tallying the amount of drugs collected from those agencies who participated in the October 28th National Take Back event. Once again, Arizonans turned out in huge numbers and disposed of 11,668 pounds, nearly six tons, of prescription drugs. The total for the...

PHOENIX - DEA announced today the expansion of the its Heroin Enforcement Action (HEAT) initiative to Pinal County as part of a collaborative effort by the DEA Phoenix Field Division and the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office to address the opioid epidemic. Nearly 500 people in Arizona have lost their lives...

PHOENIX - On August 13, 2017, Drug Enforcement (DEA) Phoenix Field Division agents and Tempe Police Department detectives seized 30,000 fentanyl pills, during an enforcement operation against a Sinaloa Cartel-related drug trafficking organization. This is the largest seizure of fentanyl tablets in Arizona’s history. The pills were discovered after a...

TUCSON, Ariz. - The DEA announced today the sentencing of Gustavo Nunez to 38.25 years in prison for performing illegal cosmetic surgeries on seven victims, three of whom were hospitalized, one with life-threatening injuries. In April 2017, Nunez pleaded guilty to 28 felony charges after performing illegal liposuction procedures. “Gustavo...

PHOENIX, Ariz. - The Drug Enforcement (DEA) and Homeland Security (HSI) executed multiple search and arrest warrants today, closing two valley pharmacies and arresting a pharmacist as part of an ongoing OCDETF-designated investigation. On June 28, 2017, agents obtained an indictment from a federal grand jury charging pharmacist Vilawoe Aku...

PHOENIX, Ariz. - The DEA announced the sentencing of Dale Thomas Ratcliffe, a former Doctor of Osteopathy, to 5 years’ probation and the surrender of his medical license, after Ratcliffe was indicted on multiple federal charges earlier this year. Ratcliffe plead guilty to conspiracy to furnish false information after the...