Albuquerque, NM (KKOB) — According to three current and former DEA agents and government records reviewed by the Associated Press, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration permitted hundreds of thousands of fentanyl pills to hit the streets of New Mexico between 2023 and 2025. Alex Uballez, who served as U.S. attorney in New Mexico from 2022 through last year, said authorities at times allowed drug shipments to go unseized as part of a broader effort to gather intelligence and build cases against major drug traffickers. The DEA’s agent manual describes taking drugs off the street as “the usual course of action,” but adds “there may be instances where the investigative objectives can be better achieved by not doing so.” Agents and experts, however, said the tactic amounted to a gamble with public safety that potentially imperiled communities in and around Albuquerque .
