Surge In Fentanyl Seizures Break More Records In Montana

It's absolutely crazy the amount of fentanyl being pulled off of the streets here in Montana.

A press release from the Montana Attorney General's office highlighted the staggering amount of fentanyl seized in Montana this year.

According to Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen, the anti-drug task force seized 150% more fentanyl in the first quarter of 2024 compared to the first quarter of 2023.

Fentanyl Seizures In Montana

The Rocky Mountain High-intensity Drug Task Force pulled 163,184 units of fentanyl off the streets.

That is compared to 65,142 during the same time frame in 2023.

The total fentanyl seized in 2023 was 398,000 dosage units.

For comparison, 188,823 dosage units were seized in 2022, and 60,557 dosage units were seized in 2021.

Rocky Mountain High-intensity Drug Task Force

The RMHIDTA Montana task forces comprise the Montana Department of Justice's Narcotic Bureau and Montana Highway Patrol criminal interdiction teams.

So far this year, the RMHIDTA has seized 31.7 pounds of cocaine, 129.33 pounds of methamphetamine, and 116 weapons.

From January 1 through June 4, MHP reports seizing 31,000 fentanyl pills, $89,000, nine firearms, and 87.6 pounds of methamphetamine.

MHP recently trained three of its drug-detecting canines to detect fentanyl to help further the Patrol get the dangerous drug off Montana streets.

The State Crime Lab preliminarily reported 22 overdose deaths involving fentanyl so far this year – in 2023, there was a total of 80.

This number does not reflect the entire statewide total, as the crime lab only verifies deaths that involve an autopsy.

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