New Mexico delegation presses DEA over reports agents let fentanyl shipments continue
New Mexico's congressional delegation is demanding answers from the DEA after reports that agents allowed millions of fentanyl pills to continue circulating during criminal investigations.
Lawmakers seek answers after whistleblower allegations that agents declined to seize at least 1.8 million fentanyl pills during investigations
Organ Mountain News report
WASHINGTON - New Mexico's congressional delegation is demanding answers from the Drug Enforcement Administration after whistleblower allegations that agents allowed at least 1.8 million fentanyl pills to continue circulating in New Mexico communities rather than immediately seizing them during ongoing investigations.
U.S. Sens. Martin Heinrich and Ben Ray Luján, along with U.S. Reps. Teresa Leger Fernández, Melanie Stansbury and Gabe Vasquez, sent a letter Friday to DEA Administrator Terrance Cole seeking documents and explanations about the agency's fentanyl interdiction policies and investigative practices.
The lawmakers cited whistleblower complaints alleging Albuquerque-based DEA agents declined to interdict at least 1.8 million fentanyl pills between 2023 and 2025 in hopes of dismantling a larger trafficking organization.
"We unequivocally assert that allowing fentanyl to go unseized creates an unconscionable risk to New Mexicans," the delegation wrote.
Joshua Bowling
According to the lawmakers, federal fentanyl protocols adopted in 2017 directed agents to "seize or otherwise prevent the distribution" of fentanyl "as soon as practicable." They said a 2024 revision gave investigators greater discretion to weigh public safety risks against investigative benefits, a shift the delegation urged the DEA to reverse immediately.
The letter requests documentation of every instance since January 2017 in which DEA agents in New Mexico declined to seize fentanyl, along with records explaining the agency's current policies governing when agents may allow shipments to continue under surveillance. The delegation is also seeking information about safeguards used during such investigations, reassignment of New Mexico DEA personnel since January 2025 and the timeline of the agency's response to the whistleblower allegations.
The lawmakers asked the DEA to respond within 10 days so Congress can determine whether legislative action is needed to limit the agency's discretion in future fentanyl investigations.
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