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Arizona DEA seizes record fentanyl powder, up 79% from 2024

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Published  December 16, 2025 5:33pm MST
Crime and Public Safety
FOX 10 Phoenix
DEA: Arizona sees record surge in fentanyl powder seized

DEA: Arizona sees record surge in fentanyl powder seized

The Phoenix division of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has seized a record amount of fentanyl this year, reporting a 79% increase in fentanyl powder from 2024. FOX 10's Kenzie Beach has the details.

The Brief

    • The Phoenix DEA division has seized a record amount of fentanyl this year, reporting a 79% increase in fentanyl powder from 2024 and noting that Arizona accounts for 60% of all fentanyl seized nationwide.
    • DEA officials, including Assistant Administrator Cheri Oz, said the Sinaloa Cartel is using Arizona as a key gateway to traffic massive amounts of fentanyl powder, cocaine and methamphetamine into the United States.
    • The DEA is targeting the cartels' supply chain and finances through investigations into money laundering, Bitcoin and the dark web, bolstered by President Donald Trump's declaration of fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction.

PHOENIX - The Phoenix division of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has seized a record amount of fentanyl this year, reporting a 79% increase in fentanyl powder from 2024.

What they're saying:

The DEA stated that Arizona is a key gateway used by the Sinaloa Cartel for drug distribution across the United States, primarily moving fentanyl powder rather than pills.

"This lab has seen a record number of fentanyl powder seizures this year," Cheri Oz, assistant administrator of the DEA's Diversion Control Division, said during an exclusive walkthrough of the Phoenix lab. "It's the largest amount of fentanyl powder they’ve seen come through Arizona."

Oz, who spent six years as the special agent in charge of the Phoenix Field Division, stressed the danger and the cartels' use of the state.

"Arizona is a key state in the war against drugs. The cartels are using Arizona to bring massive amounts of fentanyl, fentanyl powder, fentanyl pills, cocaine, methamphetamine into the United States," she said.

The DEA’s goal is to infiltrate the cartels' supply chain by going after their finances.

"The cartels really focused on greed, so we go after their money," Oz said. "So we're going through money laundering, Bitcoin, and the dark web."

Dig deeper:

As of Dec. 1, the U.S. DEA has seized 45 million fentanyl pills and more than 9,000 pounds of fentanyl powder nationwide, with Arizona accounting for 60% of the drugs seized in the U.S.

The DEA official also noted the rapid testing done at the Phoenix lab gives authorities a two-week lead time before those drugs show up elsewhere in the country.

President Donald Trump has declared fentanyl a weapon of mass destruction, which provides agencies like the DEA with additional resources.

The Source

  • FOX 10's Kenzie Beach reported on this story by interviewing Cheri Oz, assistant administrator of the DEA's Diversion Control Division.

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