Sign up for Smart 911 Emergency Notifications. 208 0 obj <>stream An investigation by the Northwest Montana Drug Task Force, FBI and the Flathead County Sheriff's Office has left a local woman behind bars facing federal drug charges. For added context, the state crime lab reported just four fentanyl overdose deaths in 2017. Drug Task Force Lincoln County is a member of the Northwest Montana Drug Task Force. This poison is killing Montanans," Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen said, according to the press release. The mission of the Missouri River Drug Task Force is to provide a collaborative federal, state and local law enforcement effort to identify, target, and address those involved in drug trafficking, manufacture, and/or violence. Man gets 11 years for trafficking meth, fentanyl to Montana "As 2022 comes to an end, the Drug Enforcement Administration is announcing the seizure of over 50.6 million fentanyl-laced, fake prescription pills and more than 10,000 pounds of fentanyl powder this calendar year," the DEA noted in a December press release. The Missoula Prescription Drug (Rx) Task Force was created in 2014 in response to growing concern about the rise in prescription drug misuse and overdose in Missoula County. DEA. For over two years, Wooley served as commander of the Eastern Montana High-Intensity Drug Task Force, or HIDTA, working undercover and in sometimes less than ideal conditions, to gain information that could dismantle and take down drug organizations coming into Montana. The City/County Special Investigations Unit is comprised of detectives and patrol officers/deputies from both the Billings Police Department and the Yellowstone County Sheriffs Office. The surge in fentanyl seizures reported by the RMHIDTA task force doesn't even account for the total amount of the deadly drug that has been interdicted in Montana since 2019, just the drug seizures made by the state Department of Justice's narcotics bureau and Highway Patrol participants in the task force. Missoula drug task force sees big numbers in 2022 Investigation of the drug trafficking organization began in September of 2013, when law enforcement agents with the FBI and Eastern Montana High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force (HIDTA . 2023 Blaze Media LLC. Drug trafficking affects everyone in our community, directly or indirectly families, children, businesses, the court system, law enforcement, corrections, first responders, schools, hospital. Get the facts about drugs and just think twice. Setting the Record Straight on East Palestine, Greenies and Commies Partner For Propaganda, Montenegros EU Membership Key to Opposing Russias Imperial Aspirations. Montana has four (4) major drug trafficking corridors: I-15 that runs north to the Canadian border and south to Idaho; I-90 that runs west to Idaho and east to Hardin, then south to Wyoming; I-94 that runs west to I-90 at Billings and east to North Dakota; and Highway 2 which runs west to Idaho and east to North Dakota along the northern tier of PDF Montana - Regional Information Sharing Systems This includes summons and complaints, subpoenas, writs of executions, child support, foreclosures, and many others. Lincoln County is a member of the Northwest Montana Drug Task Force. Knudsen has sued the Biden administration seeking to require the president to enforce the law and secure the southern border, but Biden and his cabinet continue to act as though the border is "secure" and under control. Patrick O'Leary and Toni Krause-Velasquez of Martin . Domestic Cannabis Suppression / Eradication Program, Red Ribbon Toolkit - Resources For Your Community, DEA National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, Intelligence Research Specialist Job Announcements, Schedule A Hiring Authority: Intelligence Research Specialist, Privacy Impact Assessment and Management Information Systems, Victim Witness Assistance Program Resources. Missouri River Drug Task Force | Gallatin County, MT STATE AGENCIES Eastern Montana Drug Task Force Montana Division of Criminal Investigation Montana Highway Patrol COUNTY AGENCIES Beaverhead County Sheriff's Office, MT Big Horn County Sheriiff's Office, MT Blaine County Sheriff's Office, MT Broadwater County Sheriff's Office, MT Carbon County Sheriff's Office, MT Cascade County Sheriff's Office, MT Meth, Heroin Addiction Continues to Strain Community A Montana man was sentenced Thursday to four years in federal prison following his guilty plea to growing marijuana, announced U.S. Attorney Michael W. Cotter, District of Montana. Drug Enforcement Agency on DEA website. Most of our homicides are methamphetamine-related, the majority of our officer-involved shootings are methamphetamine related.. "This poison is killing Montanans.". Drug Unit (CCSIU/HIDTA) | City of Billings, MT - Official Website Montana Task Force Announces 10,800% Increase in Fentanyl Seizures Today, hes moved on from that position and is able to speak candidly and openly about the drug scene in Billings. Sign up! Arrests In Arcade NyIf you know their whereabouts, contact the Erie Since the Montana Meth Project made headlines in the early 2000s, law enforcement has increasingly confiscated more drugs in the region. Copyright Townhall.com/Salem Media. Montana's Drug Superhighway: How traffickers conceal carloads - KRTV Responding to Outstanding Warrants. During a search, our guys are looking for anomalies, things that are unusual, he said. But as the Eastern Montana Drug Task force makes progress in taking down drug operations, Wooley said law enforcement is still seeing an increase. "Drug Enforcement Agency, 17 July, 2018, https://www.dea.gov/operations/state-and-local-task-forces Accessed 3 March, 2023. Officers of the Southwest Montana Drug Task Force reportedly had information that large quantities of dangerous drugs, including fentanyl, were being sold from the residence on the 500 block of W. Today's indictments are a result of an ongoing investigation of alleged illegal marijuana distribution in Montana being conducted by the following federal, state and local law enforcement agencies: the Drug Enforcement (DEA), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations, Criminal Investigation Division of the "Our narcotics agents and troopers are getting more fentanyl off the roads than ever before, but we need additional tools and resources to keep it out of our communities. During the search, police located a handgun on Starcevich that was stolen. ", Knudsen has called for designating drug cartels as terrorist organizations during an interview with Chris Cuomo on NewsNation, the Montana attorney general said that the cartels are "undermining our country" and "poisoning our citizens. These officers are assigned full time to the Eastern Montana High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force. ) or https:// means youve safely connected to the .gov website. Participating state and local task force officers are deputized to perform the same functions as DEA special agents. An explosive charge was used to safely gain access to the residence and Butte SWAT conducted a search of the interior. "Just this year alone, to date, there are over 120 pounds of. According to Knudsen, the Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (RMHIDTA) task force seized 206,955 dosage units of Fentanyl, roughly 10,800 percent more than in 2019 when the number of dosage units seized was 1,900. "Our narcotics agents and troopers are getting more fentanyl off the roads than ever before, but we need additional tools and resources to keep it out of our communities," Knudsen noted. The DEA Get Smart About Drugs program, provides information into understanding a teens world & signs of drug use and much more. The Missouri River Drug Task Force is a multi-agency task force that goes after major drug trafficking organizations in Gallatin, Lewis and Clark, Park, Meagher, Madison, Broadwater, and Sweet Grass counties. Located in a breathtaking Rocky Mountain setting, it is close to world-class downhill skiing, blue ribbon trout streams, Yellowstone National Park and a multitude of other outdoor activities in the pristine nearby wilderness areas. A lock ( Provisional task forces are supported by the operating budgets of DEA field division offices, without resources from DEA headquarters, and do not included state and local overtime. Task force officers are also learning that vehicles with aftermarket switches and compartments are also being used to cross the border into Mexico and come back up to Montana, likely several times. Phone: 406-297-3139 Their mission is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle local, regional, and international DTO operations using Local, State, and . Billings serves as the host agency for HIDTA ,but its a multi-jurisdictional task force composed of local officers from city, county and federal organizations such as the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and Homeland Security. Secure .gov websites use HTTPS The EMHIDTA task force partners local/state investigators with federal investigators, allowing the task force to conduct investigations globally. To: Interim Budget Committee Section D From: Steve Crawford, Narcotics Bureau Chief Date: December 6, 2021 Ref: Drug Task Force Funding Streams and Interagency Cooperation Overview During the Interim Budget Committee Section D meeting held on September 15, 2021, the members were briefed on current drug trends and criminal issues occurring in Montana. On October 12 at approximately noon, officers attempted to serve a search warrant to the residence. "The amount of illicit fentanyl coming across the southern border has skyrocketed. According to a media release from Butte-Silver Bow Sheriff Ed Lester, the standoff was sparked after officers attempted to serve a search warrant. The mission is to target, disrupt, and dismantle drug trafficking organizations and pursue street level interdiction through the cooperative effort of Local, State, and Federal Agencies.There are multiple resources available to the public that provide valuable information about the dangers of drugs.If you or someone you know is in need of help, please refer to the links below, or call the hotline below. Multijurisdictional drug task forces began in 1987, and significant changes occurred in the drug community between 1987 and 1992. Ryan Leaf arrested in Montana again; GPS implicates ex-NFL QB in crime In Montana, Attorney General Austin Knudsen announced on Friday that anti-drug task forces in Big Sky Country have seen an almost 11,000 percent increase in the amount of fentanyl seizures. DEA. Great Falls Crime Task Force. District (GSWMD), Big Sky Meadow Trails, Recreation & Parks Special District, Gallatin Local Water Quality District Board, Historic Preservation Board of Gallatin County, Human Resource Development Council Board of Directors, Investment Advisory Committee of Gallatin County, Streamline Advisory Board (Subcommittee of HRDC Board), West Yellowstone / Hebgen Basin Refuse District, Prescription Drug Take-Back Program Q & A. These task forces are staffed by over 2,200 DEA special agents and over 2,500 state and local officers.