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Crime Bosses Caught in Phoenix Operation
Deputy Attorney General David W. Ogden, along with U.S. Attorney Dennis K. Burke and other federal and local officials, unveiled the new Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) Strike Force site in Phoenix, Arizona.
The Phoenix Strike Force is housed in the offices of the DEA Phoenix Division and functions as a cohesive unit by bringing together representatives of partner agencies to focus on specific investigative targets. The OCDETF Strike Force is a collaborative law enforcement approach to combat the Sinaloa Cartel’s vicious drug trafficking operations.
“OCDETF Strike Forces, like the one here in Phoenix, reflect the kind of collaborative law enforcement approach that allows us to most effectively combat the Sinaloa Cartel that contribute to violence and other crime in neighborhoods here and across this country,” said Ogden. “Now in its 27th year, the OCDETF program has been a model of interagency coordination, innovation, and teamwork.”
The Phoenix Field Division formed an OCDETF Strike Force in August 2008 that focuses completely on investigations of command and control elements of the Sinaloa Cartel and Arizona-based distribution cells associated with the Cartel.
Since its inception, the Phoenix Strike Force has indicted a Sinaloa Cartel associated CPOT and RPOT, conducted over 80 wire taps of Sinaloa Cartel related Drug Trafficking Organizations, and has been directly or indirectly responsible for the seizure of over $150 million dollars in U.S. currency, associated assets, and financial instruments. In addition, information provided by the Phoenix Strike Force has led to the seizure of over $29 million in cash and assets in Mexico and 93 arrests in the United States.
“DEA is successfully striking back at the Mexican Cartels that use Phoenix as a major transshipment point for their drug trafficking operations,” said DEA Acting Administrator Michele M. Leonhart. “In coordination with the Calderon Administration, we are targeting and arresting major drug traffickers impacting Arizona, disrupting their operations both in Mexico and the United States.”
Defendant: Sinaloa Cartel
Criminal Charges: Drug Trafficking
City and State: Phoenix, Arizona
Exact Date: 2008
Sentence or Outcome: $150 million seized, 93 arrests made
Dollar Amounts: $150 million, $29 million
Key Facts
- State: Federal
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Organized Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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