HomeNewsAre Fentanyl Trafficking Routes Shifting on the US-Mexico Border? 
NEWS

Are Fentanyl Trafficking Routes Shifting on the US-Mexico Border? 

FENTANYL / 6 APR 2023 BY ISAAC NORRIS EN

Over the last eight months, US officials have seized more illicit fentanyl at Arizona’s ports of entry than anywhere else on the US-Mexico border, suggesting a possible shift in synthetic drug trafficking routes.

US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) seized more than 5 million fentanyl pills at the Nogales port of entry in southern Arizona throughout March, according to Michael Humphries, director of CBP's operations at the port. The seizures form part of a larger trend among the 10 international ports of entry covered by CBP's Tucson field office.

That office seized more than four tons of fentanyl between July 2022 and February 2023, accounting for 58% of all seizures of the synthetic opioid at ports of entry along the entire US-Mexico border during that time, according to official data.

In past years, a majority of fentanyl seizures were concentrated at California’s ports of entry. The San Diego field office accounted for 63% of all fentanyl seized at ports of entry on the southwest border in fiscal year 2020, and 66% of the total in fiscal year 2021. During that same time, the Tucson field office accounted for around one-quarter of all fentanyl seized at ports of entry.

SEE ALSO: Record Fentanyl Seizures and Migrant Encounters on US-Mexico Border Are Unrelated

As seizures in Tucson have risen during the last eight months, the share of fentanyl seized by the San Diego field office has fallen. It now represents less than 40% of all fentanyl seized at ports of entry on the southwest border, while seizure quantities have also dropped.

A CBP spokesperson confirmed to InSight Crime that authorities have noted an uptick in fentanyl seizures at Arizona’s ports of entry, but said there have been no changes to local enforcement efforts.

The vast majority of illicit fentanyl smuggled into the United States passes through ports of entry hidden in passenger vehicles, tractor trailers, or concealed on the bodies of individuals. Fentanyl seizures in the United States hit record levels in 2022 and are already on track to do so again this year. 

InSight Crime Analysis

Rather than a change in trafficking routes, the apparent shift in fentanyl seizures from California to Arizona may be due in part to new technology and increased vigilance on the part of US authorities. 

Improved scanning technology was first rolled out earlier this year. Then, in mid-March, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) launched “Operation Blue Lotus” in an effort to crack down on fentanyl trafficking through ports of entry along the entire US-Mexico border. 

With a significant increase in targeted inspections, as well as the installation of a “multi-energy portal” scanner -- a non-intrusive inspection technology -- at the port of entry in Nogales, the operation led to 18 drug seizures during the first week, including over 400 kilograms (900 pounds) of fentanyl, according to DHS.

"[The new technology] made it far more effective in detecting fentanyl that had already been going through undetected," according to Adam Isacon, director of the Washington Office on Latin America’s (WOLA) Defense Oversight Program.

Between the start of the operation and the end of March, almost 4 million fentanyl pills were seized at the port of entry in Nogales alone. The technological upgrades may explain the rise in fentanyl seizures at Arizona's ports of entry, as other drugs have long been trafficked through this corridor.

SEE ALSO: Caborca Cartel Resists Chapitos in Battle for Sonora, Mexico

Just across the border from Arizona is the Mexican state of Sonora, where the Chapitos -- a faction of the Sinaloa Cartel headed by four sons of now-jailed Joaquín Guzmán Loera, alias "El Chapo" -- and the Caborca Cartel have been battling for control of historic trafficking routes, especially for synthetic drugs like methamphetamine and fentanyl.

That said, federal officials haven't offered any explanation for the uptick in seizures. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) deferred InSight Crime’s request for comment to DHS, but that agency did not respond, and a regional CBP officer in California directed the request to the DEA.

share icon icon icon

Was this content helpful?

We want to sustain Latin America’s largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources.

DONATE

What are your thoughts? Click here to send InSight Crime your comments.

We encourage readers to copy and distribute our work for non-commercial purposes, with attribution to InSight Crime in the byline and links to the original at both the top and bottom of the article. Check the Creative Commons website for more details of how to share our work, and please send us an email if you use an article.

Was this content helpful?

We want to sustain Latin America’s largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources.

DONATE

Related Content

DISPLACEMENT / 3 MAR 2022

Without the bodies, the exact number of people executed in broad daylight at a funeral in Mexico's western state of…

FEATURED / 10 NOV 2022

The threat of fentanyl in Mexico is growing, yet a lack of comprehensive data collection means the problem is unseen…

AYOTZINAPA / 6 OCT 2022

Mexico's army is being given more public security responsibilities, despite its human rights abuses.

About InSight Crime

WORK WITH US

Open Position: Social Media and Engagement Strategist

27 MAY 2023

InSight Crime is looking for a Social Media and Engagement Strategist who will be focused on maintaining and improving InSight Crime’s reputation and interaction with its audiences through publishing activities…

THE ORGANIZATION

Venezuela Coverage Receives Great Reception

27 MAY 2023

Several of InSight Crime’s most recent articles about Venezuela have been well received by regional media. Our article on Venezuela’s colectivos expanding beyond their political role to control access to…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime's Chemical Precursor Report Continues

19 MAY 2023

For the second week in a row, our investigation into the flow of precursor chemicals for the manufacture of synthetic drugs in Mexico has been cited by multiple regional media…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime’s Chemical Precursor Report Widely Cited

THE ORGANIZATION / 12 MAY 2023

We are proud to see that our recently published investigation into the supply chain of chemical precursors feeding Mexico’s synthetic drug production has been warmly received.

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime’s Paraguay Election Coverage Draws Attention 

5 MAY 2023

InSight Crime looked at the various anti-organized crime policies proposed by the candidates in Paraguay’s presidential election, which was won on April 30 by Santiago Peña. Our pre-election coverage was cited…