ATLANTA — The man who has been running the Atlanta division of the DEA is now in charge of the day-to-day operations of the DEA worldwide.
On Tuesday, he only spoke one-on-one with Channel 2 investigative reporter Mark Winne about his plans to crack down on drugs and he is also talking about the controversial immigration round-up.
“When we continue to have 100,000 people a year dying from fentanyl and other drug overdoses, we have to evaluate what have we been doing,” said Robert Murphy.
“Is it working? Is there a better way to do it?” Winne asked Murphy.
“All things are on deck,” Murphy said.
Murphy said last month he arrived in Washington as the new No. 2 for the Drug Enforcement Administration worldwide.
“I’ve been appointed to the principal deputy administrator of the United States Drug Enforcement Administration. So, I am in charge of all day-to-day operations of DEA in 69 countries throughout the world, over 334 offices,” Murphy said.
He told Winne that his No. 1 mission will be shaped by what he learned in roughly a decade as the special agent in charge of DEA’s Atlanta Field Division: Stop the cartels based in Mexico importing poison into our communities.
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The DEA said 5,000 pills disguised as the popular oxycodone seized in Fulton County recently contained fentanyl -- the deadly synthetic opioid suspected of killing thousands of people in the US last year -- and it came from a cartel based in Mexico.
“Does metro Atlanta remain the East Coast hub for drug cartels based in Mexico?” Winne asked Murphy.
“No doubt. Absolutely remains. It’s absolutely for a number of reasons,” Murphy said. “The same reasons to attract for business: you have highway systems, the transportation systems. You have money. You know, neighborhoods, you can blend in.”
“You and I rode along the U.S.- Mexico border with the Border Patrol. Horse patrol. We flew over the so-called federal highway in Texas. Correct?” Winne asked Murphy.
“That’s correct. And the sad thing about that, Mark, is we still, from 2019, I would say the beginning of this crisis, we’ve had 100,000 people a year dying. We saw the threat arising,” Murphy said.
But Murphy said for now, the DEA’s No. 1 priority has been set by the White House.
“Making sure that we round up all the criminal illegal aliens that are in our streets causing havoc and public safety, and making sure they’re deported,” Murphy said.
Murphy said the DEA assists other federal agencies with the immigration arrests. Many, but not all, involving targets of DEA investigations.
“We’re evaluating them,” Murphy said.
“Is it worth continuing investigations or is it just better to deport them now? Are there safeguards in place to make sure the innocent don’t get swept up with the serious criminals?” Winne asked Murphy.
“Yes. I mean, Homeland Security … You know, we’re not the experts on the immigration side. We’ve been given the authorities and we’re assisting,” Murphy said.
“The immigration roundup taking away from the big, complex, ongoing cases DEA normally works?” Winne asked Murphy.
“No, it’s enhancing it,” Murphy said. “We can wear multiple hats.”
Winne also contacted immigration attorney Pam Peynado on Tuesday who said she doesn’t have any clients she knows of that were arrested by DEA but she has had several detained after traffic infractions and the immigrant community are very fearful about what’s going to happen to them and their families and she’s never seen detentions at the level that they are now.
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