Feds: San Diego Region—‘Epicenter’ of Fentanyl Trafficking Into US

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Otay Mesa commercial facility seized more than 3,100 pounds of methamphetamine, fentanyl powder, fentanyl pills and heroin as part of the second largest methamphetamine bust along the southwest border in the history of the agency in San Diego, Calif., on Oct. 9, 2020. DEA

SAN DIEGO—Federal authorities said Aug. 11 that fentanyl trafficking and drug seizures are on the rise in the San Diego region, which they described as “an epicenter” of fentanyl trafficking into the United States.

Law enforcement in San Diego and Imperial counties seized 5,091 pounds of fentanyl from October of 2021 to this June, which is around 60 percent of all fentanyl that has been seized at ports of entry across the nation during that same time span, according to statistics released by Border Patrol officials and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.