DEA Administrators for Fentanyl
Drug Officer Enforcement The Administration said two Mexican cartels are behind the influx of fentanyl into the United States that is killing tens of thousands of Americans.
"What is happening in the DEA is, essentially, that there are two cartels in Mexico, the Sinaloa Cartel and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, which is the most devastating and record-breaking cartel ever seen. We're killing Americans with fentanyl fast," DEA administrator Ann Milgram told CBS Morning on Friday ahead of National Fentanyl Prevention Awareness Day. . They use placebos, hide them in other drugs, cause addiction, and use any means to make money.”
Fentanyl, which was developed as a pain management treatment for cancer patients, is , is up to 100 times more potent than morphine, according to the DEA December 2020 and December 2021,according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And since 2018, he says, seizures of fentanyl-laced tablets by law enforcement have increased nearly 50-fold.
"Fentanyl is the deadliest widespread drug we've ever seen," said Milgram. "If it doesn't kill someone, it's very likely that they'll become addicted and buy more and more."
She said part of the recent increase in I think it's in the manufacturing method.
"This is an artifact," she said. “So it is important to know that the amount that these two cartels can make is unlimited. It's just a precursor chemical that you bring in and synthesize in bulk."
She also said accessibility to how users buy fentanyl is behind the influx.
"We now live in a world of technology, the digital age, where social media has become a superhighway," she said Milgram. ".Someone doesn't have to walk to a street corner to buy drugs. There is a child sitting in the bedroom. Anyone with a smart phone is with a drug dealer."
Fentanyl is marketed to children and teens, often through social media platforms, in counterfeit pill form as OxyContin, Adderall or Percocet, she said.
"There is no more dangerous place in the United States for young people, now 18 to her 45, than social media," said Milgram.
After being alerted by officials, Snapchat said it was cracking down on illegal drug sales on its platform and educating its users.
"In the last year, we have significantly enhanced our tools to proactively detect drug trafficking activity and close dealers, improve our support for law enforcement, and help Snapchat users educated about the deadly dangers of counterfeit pills, along with fentanyl," the company said in a statement.
Milgram said the DEA is "actively investigating" all possible clues that could be taken to combat the availability of fentanyl nationwide.
"We have to stop it before it comes from China to Mexico to America," she said. “. Our agents are in danger," she said. "As we remove loaded guns from streets across the United States and around the world on an almost daily basis, threats to law enforcement are a concern, and my number one priority as an administrator is employee It's healthy and safe."
- In:
- Drug Overdose
- Fentanyl
- Cartel
- Drug Enforcement Administration
Tori B. Powell is a breaking news reporter for CBS News. tori.powell@viacomcbs.com
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