Cops seize enough fentanyl, meth to kill 15 million

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Cops seize enough fentanyl, meth to kill 15 million

Thousands of pounds of methamphetamine. Hundreds of thousands of fentanyl pills. Police seized enough drugs to kill every Arizonan twice over the last week of January.

A multi-agency effort including the Arizona Department of Public Safety, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the Arizona Attorney General’s Office captured $3.4 million worth of ******** drugs after executing a residential search warrant in the Phoenix area, DPS said in a statement.

The agency said the warrant was issued after an initial traffic stop resulted in the seizure of 50 pounds of meth.

Officers collected more than 1,600 pounds of meth, 735,000 fentanyl pills and 47 pounds of fentanyl powder on Jan. 27 — amounts DPS called “an alarming threat to public safety.” There was enough meth to kill 3.7 million people and enough fentanyl powder to kill 10.8 million people, the agency said. Each fentanyl pill was lethal, too.

In total, the drugs could have killed roughly 15.2 million people. The population of Arizona is about 7.6 million.

Officials from DPS and the DEA said the seizure directly hit a criminal network, meaning it would significantly disrupt the flow of drugs into the community and save lives.

DPS Director Col. Jeffrey Glover said the seizure “underscores the ongoing battle we are fighting against drug traffickers who profit from addiction and suffering.”

Glover, Attorney General Kris Mayes and DEA Phoenix Field Division Special Agent Cheri Oz said they would continue working to identify and dismantle criminal operations endangering Arizonans.

Mayes said her office would “Prosecute those responsible and ensure they are held accountable to the fullest extent of the law. This operation is a testament to the power of law enforcement collaboration,” she said.

Information about the specific location of the drug bust, who the suspects were and what happens next was not immediately available. DPS said the investigation was ongoing.

Drug bust 1 of many in recent years

January’s massive drug bust adds to a series of significant seizures by local, state and federal law enforcement in Arizona in recent years.

Phoenix police worked with the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, multiple drug trafficking organizations and multiple federal and state law enforcement agencies on a massive operation that captured 2 million fentanyl pills and 100 pounds of illicit drugs in November.

The years-long investigation and crackdown, dubbed Operation Night Owl, led to 17 indictments of Mexico- and Arizona-based suppliers, couriers, stash house operators and distribution coordinators, according to Phoenix police.

Glendale police said it seized almost 300 fentanyl pills, 200 Xanax pills, 4.6 grams of heroin and 15.35 grams of meth during

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.

El Mirage police confiscated eight pounds of fentanyl, a few pounds of meth and ********, and hundreds of grams of opioids

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.

In 2022, Phoenix Police said it collected nearly 1 million fentanyl pills from a house in Avondale.

In 2021, Scottsdale Police and federal authorities seized $9 million worth of illicit drugs, including 1.7 million fentanyl pills, at an Airbnb — a record at the time. Authorities believed the Mexico-based Sinaloa Cartel was responsible.

Taylor Seely covers Phoenix and Scottsdale for The Arizona Republic / azcentral.com. Reach her at *****@*****.tld or by phone at 480-476-6116.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic:

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