{"id":2228059,"date":"2024-04-23T11:40:02","date_gmt":"2024-04-23T15:40:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/colorado-fentanyl-seizures-on-the-rise-as-cartels-spread\/"},"modified":"2024-04-23T11:42:16","modified_gmt":"2024-04-23T15:42:16","slug":"colorado-fentanyl-seizures-on-the-rise-as-cartels-spread","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/colorado-fentanyl-seizures-on-the-rise-as-cartels-spread\/","title":{"rendered":"Colorado sees increase in fentanyl seizures amid cartel expansion"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fcolorado-fentanyl-seizures-on-the-rise-as-cartels-spread%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2228059&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Fentanyl \u200dseizures in Colorado are increasing as cartels expand their reach,\u2062 reported by DEA officials. In 2023, the DEA&#8217;s Rocky Mountain Field Division set\u200b a new record with over 2.6 million fentanyl\u2062 pills seized in Colorado. The trend is expected \u200dto continue\u200b in 2024. The DEA noted a shift in\u2064 distribution patterns,\u200d with Denver now facing\u2064 quantities once seen\u200b in Phoenix and Los Angeles. The surge in fentanyl\u200c seizures in Colorado, attributed to \u200dcartel expansion,\u200c has been \u2063highlighted by DEA authorities. A <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fentanyl-seizures-at-border-hit-record-high-in-fiscal-year-2022\/\" title=\"Fentanyl Seizures at Border Hit Record High in Fiscal Year 2022\">record-breaking seizure<\/a> of over 2.6 million fentanyl \u2062pills \u2063in Colorado \u200cby\u200d the DEA&#8217;s \u200cRocky Mountain Field Division occurred\u2062 in 2023.\u2062 This escalating trend is anticipated to persist \u200cinto\u200d 2024, with Denver experiencing quantities\u2064 akin to those\u2063 in Phoenix and Los Angeles.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Seizures of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/fentanyl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>fentanyl<\/a> in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/colorado\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Colorado<\/a> are on the rise as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/cartel\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>cartels<\/a> expand their territory and spread into new areas, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/dea\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Drug Enforcement Administration<\/a> officials said.<\/p>\n<p>In 2023, the Rocky Mountain Field Division of the DEA saw a new record reached in the total amount of fentanyl seized after agents captured over 2.6 million pills in Colorado, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/us\/fentanyl-seizures-surge-colorado-cartels-spread-new-regions-dea-says.amp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>according<\/a> to a report citing Dave Olesky, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/video-81-year-old-pharmacist-accused-of-trading-drugs-for-sexual-favors\/\" title=\"VIDEO: 81-Year-Old Pharmacist Accused of Trading Drugs for Sexual Favors\">acting special agent<\/a> in charge of the Rocky Mountain Field Division and DEA spokesman.<\/p>\n<p>That record is likely to break in 2024, he added.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cQuantities of fentanyl that we are seeing now in the Denver area, they used to be, two years ago, typically what you might see in one of the distribution cities down in Phoenix, Los Angeles. But nowadays, those cities are seeing exponential increases in terms of the number of and quantities of fentanyl being seized,\u201d Olesky said.<\/p>\n<p>Capturing 100,000-quantity seizures is now \u201csadly becoming the norm\u201d in the Denver area, according to Olesky.<\/p>\n<p>This new \u201cnorm\u201d arrives as Democratic Denver Mayor Mike Johnston and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pro-life-groups-sue-san-antonio-over-500000-out-of-state-abortion-fund\/\" title=\"Pro-life groups sue San Antonio over abortion fund.\">city council continue<\/a> to push a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/2970771\/denver-plan-slash-police-fire-department-budgets-pay-migrant-crisis-clears-first-hurdle\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>$41 million budget reduction policy<\/a> that would slash police and fire department funding to cover the costs of the migrant crisis.<\/p>\n<p>Along with Colorado, the Rocky Mountain Field Division is seeing more signs of cartel crime in Montana, Utah, and Wyoming, the report noted.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe have also seen local street gangs that might be more common in Detroit and the East Coast actually coming into the state of Montana to compete for that territory because the price per pill is so much higher up there,\u201d Olesky said.<\/p>\n<p>Fentanyl is extremely dangerous on the street, and seven out of 10 of the cheap illicit pills are now carrying a fatal dose of the drug, according to the DEA.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Mexican drug trafficking organizations are able to produce this as simply as whether it\u2019s a super lab or a garage in Mexico,\u201d Olesky said.<\/p>\n<p>Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell of Colorado feels the border crisis under President Joe Biden is adding to the surge of fentanyl in the state.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy do we see such a huge rise in Colorado with fentanyl? We are 10 hours from El Paso,\u201d Mikesell said. \u201cThey are coming here as a place that\u2019s supposedly going to house them.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title><strong>CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Olesky does not completely share that sentiment.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCertainly, there is a border piece to this, but then there\u2019s also got to be the outreach piece, the education piece,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Fentanyl seizures surge in Colorado as cartels expand, per DEA. In 2023, the DEA&#8217;s Rocky Mountain Field Division broke records, seizing over 2.6 million pills in the state. Cartels are spreading to new areas, leading to heightened drug enforcement efforts<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2644,"featured_media":2228060,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/rainbow-fentanyl-m30-1024x452.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2228059","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/rainbow-fentanyl-m30-1024x452.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2228059","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2644"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2228059"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2228059\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2228060"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2228059"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2228059"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2228059"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}