Flood of opiates across border 'worst it's ever been' and could destroy country, retired DEA leader warns
The former DEA leader also warned against drug legalization
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The recently retired head of the El Paso division of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) warned that the influx of drugs through the U.S. southern border has never been seen before and threatens to destroy the country.
"It’s the worst it's ever been," said Kyle W. Williamson during an interview last month with El Paso Times. "There's no good news here. And the amount of methamphetamine and fentanyl coming in right now is unprecedented."
Williamson, who retired this year after 30 years of service, also warned about a looming drug cartel war in Juárez and cautioned against the consequences of drug legalization.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Trump-era border wall remains unfinished after the Biden administration put a stop to it. (Fox News)
Fentanyl overdoses are surging in the United States, prompting the DEA to issue a rare national public safety alert in September regarding counterfeit pills containing fatal doses of the synthetic opioid. Two out of every five counterfeit pills could have a lethal dose, the DEA warned, and two milligrams can kill a human being.
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"These counterfeit pills are easy to purchase, widely available, and often contain deadly doses of fentanyl. Pills purchased outside of a licensed pharmacy are illegal, dangerous, and potentially lethal," the DEA warned.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"While there will be pundits and people out there who’ll disagree [about drug legalization] and they’ll take the small extreme things and make them big, but the reality is that drugs will destroy this country; it will destroy our society if we continue at the pace that we are [going]," warned Williamson.
June 10, 2021: A pair of migrant families from Brazil pass through a gap in the border wall to reach the United States after crossing from Mexico to Yuma, Ariz., to seek asylum. ((AP Photo/Eugene Garcia, File))
The DEA’s El Paso Division covers West Texas and New Mexico, patrolling roughly 778 miles of the U.S.-Mexico border, which is more than any other division of the DEA.
On Friday, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) unsealed indictments against four high-ranking members of the Sinaloa Cartel, according to Just the News.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Sinaloa Cartel is the most powerful drug cartel and has a presence in almost every Mexican state, and also controls the southern border with the U.S. from California to parts of Texas.
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TUCSON, Ariz. – U.S. Border Patrol agents working the Interstate 19 Immigration Checkpoint near Amado, Arizona, seized over 50 pounds of suspected fentanyl and arrested the driver of the vehicle on Oct. 13, 2021. (U.S. Customs and Border Protection) (U.S. Customs and Border Protection)
"The indictments allege various violations of United States law occurring over several years related to the international distribution of controlled substances, including fentanyl, heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, and marijuana," the press release from ICE reads in part.
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Fox News' Stephanie Bennett contributed to this report.