Mexican Cartels Dominate Global Fentanyl Drug Trade Aided by Chinese Money Launderers, DEA Head Testifies

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee heard from law enforcement officials on Feb. 15 about the trafficking of fentanyl—an opioid-class substance that’s extremely lethal—into the United States via the southern border.
In his opening remarks to the panel, National Drug Control Policy Director Dr. Rahul Gupta noted that 46 million Americans struggle with substance abuse. One of the most dangerous drugs is fentanyl.
A U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) chemist checks confiscated powder containing fentanyl at the DEA Northeast Regional Laboratory in New York on Oct. 8, 2019. (Don Emmert/AFP via Getty Images)
The National Institute on Drug Abuse reported that 70,601 people died from fentanyl overdose in 2021….}