Department of Justice Announces Results of Enforcement Surge to Reduce the Fentanyl Supply Across the United States

At the DEA Museum in Washington, D.C. a permanent memorial displays the faces of lives lost due to fentanyl overdose. Hundreds of these photos line the walls, with the victims spanning many ages.

DEA Administrator Anne Milgram escorted Attorney General Merrick B. Garland and Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco through the Faces of Fentanyl memorial as the Department officials paid their respects to the victims.

“Across the country, fentanyl is devastating families and communities, and we know that violent, criminal drug cartels bear responsibility for this crisis,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “The Justice Department, including the extraordinary professionals of the DEA, is working to disrupt and dismantle the operations of these cartels, remove deadly fentanyl from our communities, and save Americans’ lives.”

DEA Administrator Anne Milgram answered questions regarding the cartels involved in fentanyl distribution. Of the 390 cases investigated during this period, 51 cases are linked to overdose poisonings and 35 cases link directly to one or both of the primary Mexican cartels responsible for the majority of fentanyl in the United States – the Sinaloa Cartel and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG).

“For the past year, confronting the fentanyl crisis has been the top priority for DEA,” said DEA Administrator Anne Milgram. “The most urgent threat to our communities, our kids, and our families are the Sinaloa Cartel and CJNG who are mass producing and supplying the fentanyl that is poisoning and killing Americans...To save American lives, the DEA is relentlessly focused on defeating the Sinaloa Cartel and CJNG by degrading their operations to make it impossible for them to do business.”

DEA Administrator Anne Milgram continued, highlighting how drug traffickers have expanded their inventory to sell fentanyl in a variety of bright colors, shapes, and sizes. Rainbow fentanyl was first reported to DEA in February 2022, and it has now been seized in 21 states. In addition, 129 investigations are linked to social media platforms, including Snapchat, Facebook Messenger, Instagram, and TikTok.