U.S. Rep. Tim Burchett recently reintroduced legislation into congress, which would stiffen penalties for trafficking illegal fentanyl in the United States.
According to a press release, the Fentanyl Trafficker Elimination Act would sentence anyone convicted of intentionally trafficking fentanyl or fentanyl analogues to life in prison. U.S. reps Tom Tiffany, Michael Guest, Brian Fitzpatrick, Clay Higgins, Nicole Malliotakis, Josh Brecheen, Don Bacon, Pat Fallon and Ralph Norman joined Burchett’s legislation as original cosponsors.
“There are people dying left and right due to fentanyl overdoses, and lots of them are kids or teenagers,” said Burchett in the press release. “We have got to stop this epidemic, and I think that making an example out of drug traffickers would be a good start.”
According to statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, fentanyl and fentanyl analogues are responsible for a majority of drug overdose deaths. In the 2020 fiscal year, 57,834 people died from fentanyl and more than 71,238 died from fentanyl in the 2021 fiscal year.
In 2021, Border Patrol agents seized 11,201 pounds of illegal fentanyl at the U.S.-Mexico border and 14,700 pounds in 2022.
According to a March 19 Twitter post by Troy Miller, Acting Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, in the first five months of FY23, Border Patrol agents and CBP officers seized over 208,000 pounds of narcotics nationwide, including 59,156 pounds of meth, 55,843 pounds of marijuana, 21,291 pounds of cocaine, 11,039 pounds of fentanyl and 751 pounds of heroin.
The Drug Enforcement Agency recently issued a press release saying that the Sinaloa and Jalisco drug cartels are the main suppliers of illegal fentanyl in the United States and that defeating them is a “top operational priority.” The DEA recently concluded a year-long operation investigating these cartels and their U.S. networks that resulted in 3,337 arrests and the seizure of nearly 44 million fentanyl pills and more than 6,500 pounds of fentanyl powder.
