Attorney General Pam Bondi said Tuesday that federal agents made one of the largest fentanyl busts in history by breaking up a multi-state drug trafficking ring run by Mexico’s powerful Sinaloa Cartel.
Ms. Bondi said authorities seized 11.5 kilograms of the potent synthetic opioid, including three million fentanyl-laced pills, in the cartel network that spanned Phoenix, Arizona; Albuquerque, New Mexico; and parts of Utah, Nevada and Oregon.
Scores of methamphetamine, cocaine, heroin and guns were also confiscated by agents in the six-month investigation that saw the arrest of suspected Sinaloa Cartel leader Alberto Salazar Amaya, who Ms. Bondi said was calling the shots from his hideout in Oregon.
She said six of the 16 people arrested in connection to the cartel drug ring are in the country illegally.
U.S. Attorney for New Mexico Ryan Ellison said each of the suspects will face multiple charges of fentanyl trafficking and conspiracy-related offenses. Others will face gun and immigration charges where applicable.
Officials expressed interest in prosecuting the suspected illegal immigrants in the U.S., rather than deporting them back to Mexico, to prevent them from rejoining the drug trade south of the border.
“If convicted, we will put you behind bars. There will be no negotiating and we will lock you up for as long as humanly possible,” Ms. Bondi said from the Department of Justice’s headquarters. “We will not negotiate with those who are killing our family members, including brothers, sisters, daughters, sons, parents, friends.”
The attorney general said the investigation is ongoing, so she didn’t share details about how Mr. Salazar Amaya was pinpointed as the leader of this narcotics network or how agents were able to link his alleged associates to the drug trade.
But Ms. Bondi said the suspected cartel leader tried to appear clean by living so far away from where the fentanyl was being trafficked.
She said Mr. Salazar Amaya did not have any drugs on him when he was taken into custody, but agents found millions of dollars and a Mercedes at his home in Salem, Oregon.
“That’s what these cartels do, whether it’s Sinaloa, whether it’s MS-13, whether it’s Tren de Aragua — the highest leaders insulate themselves,” Ms. Bondi said.
Officials said they seized 35 kilograms of methamphetamine, 7.5 kilograms of cocaine, 4.5 kilograms of heroin, 49 rifles and pistols during the crackdown.
“We will not tolerate those who profit from poisoning American citizens,” said Mr. Ellison. “The fight continues, but today, our communities are safer with these drugs and criminals off the streets.”
