Overview

• More than 74,000 Americans died of synthetic opioid overdoses in 2023, prompting the FBI to classify the fentanyl crisis as its top national security threat.
• Patel has established direct collaboration with Indian law enforcement to trace the flow of Chinese-made precursors and to dismantle transit networks.
• US indictments have charged multiple Indian chemical manufacturers, including Vasudha Pharma Chem Limited, with conspiring to ship fentanyl precursors to Mexico and the United States.
• Mexican cartels have adapted to stricter southern border controls by processing precursors in Vancouver for distribution across the northern US border.
• The FBI has redeployed over 1,500 agents from headquarters to field offices to intensify local enforcement against fentanyl trafficking.