Latest news with #JonathanPullen
CBS News
02-05-2025
- CBS News
DEA sheds light on Colorado Springs bust, says they believe cartels are stockpiling fentanyl
The Drug Enforcement Agency is shedding light on concerning details surrounding a Colorado illegal nightclub raid after which more than 100 people who are believed to be in the country illegally were arrested. It happened on Sunday in Colorado Springs. DEA "There was drug trafficking. There was guns. There was prostitution. There was crimes of violence," explained Jonathan Pullen, special agent in charge for the DEA Rocky Mountain Division. According to Pullen, the illegal drugs at the party were supplied by the Sinaloa cartel, and the DEA is putting their foot on the gas when it comes to getting drugs off the streets, especially when it comes to fentanyl. "In fact, we've seized enormous amounts of fentanyl this year," Pullen said. "I actually thought we would seize less. I thought with the border being tighter, we'd see smaller seizures. I was wrong. We have seized so much fentanyl this year." Although deaths related to the drug have dropped significantly in the state and across the country, the presence of fentanyl has increased. "We think there may be some stockpiling happening on the U.S. side from the Mexican cartels, and that's why we're seeing such large amounts right now," Pullen said. This particular bust also included the arrest of more than 100 people thought to be in the country illegally, but Pullen says that wasn't the intent of the operation. "Quite frankly, we were there for the drug investigation," Pullen said. "We didn't ask the illegal immigrants to come." The Trump administration has given the DEA Title 8 authority, which mandates it involves Immigration and Customs Enforcement when encountering individuals suspected of being in the country illegally. It's something the previous administration didn't do but Pullen said has significantly helped. Now, suspected unauthorized individuals from nine different countries, including El Salvador, Venezuela, Honduras and Mexico will potentially face removal from the country. "Our choices previously were to wait 'till the investigation runs its course before we arrest everybody, so we don't tip the whole network off," Pull said. "In the meantime, that person's still selling fentanyl, and it's likely going to kill somebody. Now, we have the option to turn that person over to ICE if they're here illegally, and they can go back to their home country, and they're not selling fentanyl that's going to kill people in Denver anymore." A Fort Carson Army staff sergeant was also arrested on drug charges as part of the bust. Juan Gabriel Orona-Rodriguez was one of approximately 17 active-duty U.S. Army service members present.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
DEA: Fentanyl overdoses kill three people a day in Colorado
(COLORADO SPRINGS) — The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) spoke more about the impact fentanyl has had in Colorado throughout the years. On Tuesday, April 29, law enforcement and public health partners across the country recognized National Fentanyl Awareness Day. According to the DEA, overdose deaths involving synthetic opioids, excluding methadone, spiked from 2011 through 2021. Fentanyl is a potent synthetic drug that is 100 times more potent than morphine and 50 times more potent than heroin as an analgesic. Rocky Mountain Field Division (DEA RMFD) Special Agent Jonathan Pullen talked to FOX21 News on Tuesday and noted that the drug kills almost 100,000 Americans each year. 'In Colorado, five people overdose and die every single day in the state, three of those from fentanyl,' Pullen said. In December 2024, Colorado officially surpassed the previous record set in the state for fentanyl pills seized, totaling 2.7 million confiscated by the DEA RMFD. The previous record set in 2023 was 2.61 million fentanyl pills. 'Fentanyl is in every community,' Pullen said previously. 'It doesn't matter what race you are, what ethnicity you are, whether you come from a good neighborhood or a bad neighborhood, what kind of car you drive—fentanyl is in your neighborhood.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Yahoo
'My undercover agents are incredibly brave': DEA RMFD on what led up to underground nightclub operation in Colorado Springs
(COLORADO SPRINGS) — An illegal underground nightclub had been a 'problem in Colorado Springs for quite a while,' according to Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Pullen of the Drug Enforcement Administration's Rocky Mountain Field Division (DEA RMFD), who further added that the operation in the early morning hours of Sunday, April 27, was 'months in the making.' During a press conference held after Sunday's operation, Pullen said throughout the investigation, it was learned that Tren de Aragua (TdA) and MS-13 members had been in the illegal club. 'I think the people of Colorado Springs should be extremely concerned about information regarding MS-13 and TdA members; in fact, we know that Sinaloa Cartel members were providing the drugs for that nightclub, so that should shock you,' he added. Pullen credited the bravery of his team, who gathered the information. 'My agents have been in that club undercover and witnessed these people,' he said. 'We are still trying to identify whether MS-13 and TdA were in there on Saturday night, Sunday morning.' According to Pullen, MS-13 or Mara Salvatrucha is an El Salvadoran gang by history, and is all across the United States. 'We don't have as large of a presence here in Colorado as they do on the East Coast… we see a lot more of the TdA, the Venezuelan gang, here in the Denver and Colorado Springs areas.' Pullen further explained that MS-13 and TdA are 'incredibly violent organizations.' In February 2025, both gangs were designated by the Department of State as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs). 'Here in the Denver area, we've seen kidnappings and robberies and shootings and homicides,' he said. 'These are not people you want to be your neighbors, and that's one of the reasons the federal government decided, 'we've got to get these people out of our country.'' Pullen said that in addition to MS-13, TdA, and the Sinaloa Cartel, another group was also identified through the investigation. 'On previous occasions at this nightclub, we've seen Bandidos motorcycle gang members inside.' He added that it's not unusual to see these groups working together. 'They are definitely going to work with each other if it's going to make them some money… or, if an MS-13 guy needs a gun and he can get it from a Venezuelan guy, guess what? He's going to do that.' Pullen said the underground nightclub had moved to various addresses before the location of Sunday's bust, which was near South Academy Boulevard and Airport Road. 'So, the DEA developed some information a number of months ago and we started doing our work,' said Pullen. 'We started doing some surveillance, we started building out an informant network, we started doing some undercover operations, some technical surveillance, and so, through all of that, we identified that there was drug trafficking going on, that there was crimes of violence going on, there was active-duty military members running security at this place, tons of calls of service for the police department to come out there, [and] overdoses happening.' Pullen gave an example of the depths some inside the club went to in order to avoid being caught. 'There was one guy a few weeks ago that overdosed, and they actually drove him down the street about a mile and dumped him out, and then they called 911, so they wouldn't bring any police to the nightclub,' he added. He also recounted another incident. 'My agents were out there two weeks ago, and a couple of guys were going to the club, and my agents on surveillance observed these people driving up and down the road shooting their pistols out the window of the car, so just an insane amount of criminal activity, and so we are really happy that we were able to do something about it,' Pullen said. Pullen said that a member of the community reached out after Sunday's operation. 'Yesterday morning, Monday, my office received a call from a neighbor who lived across the street from the nightclub, and he called the DEA office, thanking the men and women here for taking action there,' he recalled. 'He had been so concerned about the safety for himself and for his family, and in fact, he told his family: 'We are not going to that parking lot on the weekends because all of this nonsense happening over there, it's not safe,' so it was so important to the men and women of DEA and our law enforcement partners to get a call like that, to see that the work we are doing matters to the public.' During Sunday's operation, the DEA was assisted by 300 law enforcement personnel representing 10 other federal agencies and local partners, including the Colorado Springs Police Department (CSPD) and the El Paso County Sheriff's Office (EPSO). 'We have all these varying crimes occurring at this place, so we really, kind of, brought together a federal task force to look at the entirety of the criminal activity,' he said. Pullen also gave a personal nod to his team. 'My undercover agents are incredibly brave; they are going into this nightclub knowing that there is armed security there, who have committed acts of violence, and knowing that there are gangsters in there, knowing that there are drug sales going on in there, and so, there is a risk, an absolute risk, and so, I hope the people of Colorado Springs realize, that the men and women of the DEA and our law enforcement partners, we are serious about keeping Colorado Springs safe,' he said. Pullen said the undercover agents were able to capture critical intelligence during the investigation: 'We were able to get a number of how many people were there, how many armed security guards were there, [and] what drug dealers were inside.' He added that the DEA's message to the community remains the same: 'We are serious about keeping drug dealers out of your community; no level of drug dealing is acceptable to us in Colorado Springs, and I think this operation shows that.' He ended with this message to the community: 'I think some of the concerns of people about whether charges are going to be filed and the questions around immigration, look, there is criminal activity happening at this club, so the point for us is: What level of crimes of violence are you willing to accept in your community? What level of drug trafficking are you willing to accept in your community? What level of prostitution are you willing to accept in your community? I think it should be zero, and I think the people of Colorado Springs think that as well, so we are committed to keeping your city safer.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
New York Post
29-04-2025
- New York Post
DEA finds deadly drugs peddled by migrant gangs at Colorado nightclub bust
Federal agents found 'pink cocaine' — a deadly drug cocktail favored by migrant gangs — during a raid on a Colorado underground nightclub where more than 100 illegal aliens were busted, they said. The major operation in Colorado Springs involving around 300 agents from the Drug Enforcement Administration, other federal agencies and the local sheriff's office also saw a number of weapons and other drugs uncovered. 'As you may suspect, when the cops showed up at the door, most of the drugs hit the floor,' DEA Rocky Mountain Field Division Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Pullen told FOX31. Advertisement According to the DEA, over 100 people in the country illegally have been detained at a underground nightclub in Colorado. X / @DEAROCKYMTNDiv This photo provided by the Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor in New York shows a bag of pink cocaine. AP 'We did find cocaine, looks like some pink cocaine,' he added. It is the first time pink cocaine, also known as Tusi, has been found in Colorado, the DEA said. Advertisement The drug usually contains no actual cocaine, but is rather a potentially deadly cocktail usually made up of ketamine, MDMA, methamphetamine, and caffeine — sometimes with deadly fentanyl mixed in. The Venezuelan migrant gang Tren de Aragua has been busted for trafficking the drug in the US, including in New York City migrant shelters.
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Yahoo
Suspected pink cocaine found in DEA operation at underground nightclub
DENVER (KDVR) — A major DEA operation at an underground nightclub led to more than 100 detained, with weapons and drugs uncovered in Colorado Springs. 'As you may suspect, when the cops showed up at the door, most of the drugs hit the floor. We did find cocaine looks like some pink cocaine,' DEA Rocky Mountain Field Division Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Pullen told FOX31's Nexstar partner station in Colorado Springs at a press conference. October 2024: What is the recreational drug 'pink cocaine'? The DEA said that pink cocaine is new to Colorado. FOX31 is speaking to experts about it and the risk this drug brings to the state. 'It's kind of a counterfeit version of what a drug that was first created in the 'seventies '70s and it's a whole family of drugs called 2C compounds,' Robert Valuck, the director of the Center for Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention at CU Anschutz, said. 'But ironically, pink cocaine almost never has cocaine in it. It's just a powder. It has ketamine, MDMA, methamphetamine and caffeine are the four most common things that are in it.' Valuck tells FOX31 the medical community is discussing the drug at national summits, considering it an 'emerging threat.' 'I call it a Russian roulette powder, you really don't know what you're getting,' Valuck said. 'It could have psilocybin in it or fentanyl in it. It can kill you. It could just be worthless and be a total waste of your time, money and effort because all it is is lactose. And sometimes people put caffeine powder in it because it's weak and cheap and it makes people think they bought something special.' In February, the DEA told FOX31 that Tusi is connected with the gang Tren De Aragua. Denver police chief, mayor react to South American gang presence in city 'No one knows what's in it except the person who made it and that could be with a cartel or it could be somebody making it in their basement, who knows where it came from. It's very dangerous because you don't know what it is,' Valuck said. 'A lot of the ways people are getting these drugs happen on social media. It happens with these encrypted chats,' said Steve Carlton, CEO and chief clinical officer of Porch Light Health. 'The transactions are happening over Venmo and these other means of transferring money. You don't even have to meet your drug dealer anymore to procure drugs. And with that in mind, you just you really you can't be too you can't feel too safe that you are buying what you think you're buying.' Carlton recommends that users implement a drug test kit to figure out substances before using them. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
