30,000 fentanyl pills seized near Tucson

Around 30,000 fentanyl pills trafficked by a Mexican drug cartel through an Arizona Indian reservation by the border were seized last week, according to U.S. officials.

The Interior Department Law Enforcement Task Force on Opioids said the seizure was part of an operation that also seized $700,000 worth of illegal drugs in four border states.

The operation was related to a Bureau of Indian Affairs Drug Enforcement joint investigation into large amounts of fentanyl pills from a Mexican drug trafficking organization being transported into the U.S.

“The Joint Task Force has enabled the Department and Indian Affairs to fulfill one of our primary missions, to insure safe and healthy Indian communities,” said Tara Sweeney, the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs.

“These criminals endanger our children and families, and I am very proud of the hard and dangerous work that our Office of Justice Services agents are doing as part of the Task Force,” added Sweeney.

The operation was related to a joint drug investigation that began along the southwest border on the Tohono O’odham reservation.

During the operation, three non-Indian subjects were taken into custody without incident. One subject was found to be in possession of a pistol during the incident.