Jeff Sessions Announces Operation Synthetic Opioid Surge

CONCORD, NH — U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Thursday announced a massive law enforcement operation targeting opioid distribution networks in 10 metropolitan areas across the country, including New Hampshire — once referred to by President Trump as a "drug-infested den."

Sessions unveiled the initiative, called Operation Synthetic Opioid Surge, during a speech at U.S. District Court in Concord, New Hampshire.

"I am ordering our prosecutors in 10 districts with some of the highest overdose death rates — including this one — to systematically and relentlessly prosecute every synthetic opioid case," Sessions said. "We can weaken these networks, reduce fentanyl availability, and save lives. We are going to arrest, prosecute, and convict fentanyl dealers and we are going to put them in jail. When it comes to synthetic opioids, there is no such thing as a small case."

The operation will also target these nine other metro areas:

• Maine
• Pennsylvania: Western District
• Ohio: Northern District
• Ohio: Southern District
• Tennessee: Eastern District
• Kentucky: Eastern District
• West Virginia: Southern District
• West Virginia: Northern District
• California: Eastern District

In October, Trump visited New Hampshire and declared opioid abuse a national public health emergency. Sessions cited federal data that showed New Hampshire overdose deaths tripled in 2016 compared to 2013. Last year, New Hampshire's overdose rate was 39 per 100,000 people — the third-highest rate in the country, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Federal New Hampshire U.S. Attorney Scott Murray has been targeting opioid dealers — in March, a Manchester man was sentenced to 20 years in prison for heroin trafficking.

"The opioid crisis has had a devastating impact on New Hampshire, taking promising young lives and damaging our communities," Murray said in a statement. “I am grateful to the Attorney General for his ongoing commitment to assist our state’s efforts to respond to this issue. Through Operation S.O.S., we will be able to enhance our aggressive efforts to identify and prosecute those who are distributing fentanyl and other deadly opioids in the Granite State."

Murray said he will focus his attention on Manchester and Nashua in Hillsborough County — the county with the highest number of opioid deaths in the state.

Sessions credited local prosecutors for focusing on charging fentanyl dealers, including several from Lawrence, Massachusetts — which he called a "sanctuary city." In April, federal agents in New Hampshire announced the biggest fentanyl bust in the state's history. Dozens were arrested, including many from Lawrence.

Trump made his "drug-infested den" comment to Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto last year as he spoke about winning the New Hampshire primary.

"I won New Hampshire because New Hampshire is a drug-infested den," Trump said.

Previous:

• Largest Fentanyl Bust In NH History: Dozens Arrested
• In NH, Trump Declares Opioid Abuse National Public Health Emergency
• NH Overdose Death Rate 3rd-Highest In U.S.: Feds
• Trump: I Won NH Primary Because State Is 'Drug-Infested Den'

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