NEW ORLEANS (NewsNation) — Federal immigration agents are just beginning their latest enforcement operation in New Orleans, but the city is also being seen as a major hub for Mexican drug cartels to move fentanyl, methamphetamine and cocaine.
Drug Enforcement Administration officials tell NewsNation that two of Mexico’s most dangerous transnational criminal organizations are behind the surge of illicit drugs entering New Orleans. Members of the Sinaloa cartel and the Jalisco New Generation cartel are pushing a variety of dangerous drugs into the region, using Louisiana’s largest city as a major entry point from Mexico.
The New Orleans Department of Health reports that 816 people in the area have died from drug overdoses over the past two years. Of those deaths, 80% have been connected to fentanyl.
DEA officials say that many of the drug deals being conducted by cartel members are taking place on social media platforms. In many cases, local low-level drug dealers don’t realize that they are dealing with groups that have been designated by the Trump administration as foreign terrorist organizations. That designation allows the DEA to invest more tools and resources to combat the influx of dangerous and illicit drugs into Louisiana.
Since January, DEA agents working in New Orleans have seized nearly $10 million in assets, including cars and homes. In addition, federal agents have seized 20 kilograms of fentanyl, 140 kilograms of cocaine and about 400 kilograms of marijuana, which officials say have been laced with fentanyl.
DEA officials also say that a substance known as green fentanyl — or kryptonite — is raising new concerns after users have unwittingly taken the deadly drug.
The crackdown on cartel drug trafficking has led to about 400 arrests this year. Some of those who have been taken into custody include local residents, some of whom entered the United States illegally. DEA officials tell NewsNation that the cartel has operatives working in Louisiana from all walks of life and not just those who have organized ties to international drug networks.
“So when we say, are the cartels here in our city? (and) are they flooding our city with dangerous drugs like fentanyl that are killing Americans? The short answer is yes,” Steven L. Hofer, special agent in charge of the DEA’s New Orleans division, told NewsNation.
“But it doesn’t necessarily mean it is the cartel boss in Mexico somewhere who’s making a trip here and then personally distributing it. This is a large network organization that is spread not only here in New Orleans, but it’s in every city in America.”
DEA officials tell NewsNation that Mexican drug cartels are operating in 40 countries around the world and have an established presence in all 50 U.S. states. But New Orleans has proven to be a strategic goldmine for the cartels because of major interstates that connect New Orleans to cities like Houston and Atlanta, as well as to Florida and its open waterways.
Hofer said with the Trump administration’s mission to close the U.S.-Mexico border, cartels have shifted to trafficking narcotics on boats, allowing a massive increase in drugs to wash up on shore in New Orleans as part of the organizations’ multi-million dollar drug trafficking operation.
The DEA will be part of a multi-agency federal enforcement operation that began last week. That effort has brought about 200 U.S. Border Patrol agents, who will be part of a monthslong operation overseen by Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino.
Federal officials say they hope to make about 5,000 arrests during the operation, which could also bring National Guard troops to New Orleans with the support of Louisiana Republican Gov. Jeff Landry.
While federal agencies like the Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement will focus on illegal immigration, the DEA is hoping to find a helping hand from its federal partners when it comes to tackling drug trafficking.
“If it’s our partners that we ask them to come help us when it’s time to do drug cases,” Hofer told NewsNation. “So, absolutely, we’re going to be there when they need assistance. They have a big job in front of them and we’re here to help them in any manner that we can. Ultimately, yes, what is asked for, we’re going to provide.”