Multi-agency task force makes 41 arrests during drug-focused operation, seize 81 potentially fatal doses of fentanyl

Forty-one people were arrested in the Mat-Su Borough (MSB) during a two-day operation led by the Alaska State Troopers Mat-Su Narcotics Team and High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) task force with assistance from dozens of law enforcement officers from local and federal agencies, according to a press release from the Department of Public Safety (DPS). The task force officers focused on crime suppression and cracking down on drug trafficking during the May 15 and 16 operations.

In total, investigators seized $24,615 in suspected drug proceeds, 23 grams of methamphetamine, 2.7 grams of fentanyl – the equivalent of 81 potentially fatal doses, 33 doses of suboxone and 11 grams of heroin.

In addition to illicit substance seizures, the operation resulted in arrests for drug distribution, firearms offenses, possession of child pornography and eluding. Multiple offenders were also remanded on outstanding arrest warrants.

“Operations like this make Alaska safer by taking dangerous drugs off our streets and ensuring that offenders are being held accountable,” said Alaska State Trooper Colonel Maurice Hughes. “Alaska State Troopers and our law enforcement partners take crime seriously and offenders should know that we will continue to relentlessly pursue justice. More operations like this are planned for the future across Alaska.”

The operation was led by the Mat-Su Narcotics Team and HIDTA task force with assistance from the Wasilla Police Department, Palmer Police Department, Alaska State Troopers’ B-Detachment Patrol and Judicial Services, Anchorage Airport Interdiction Team, Anchorage Police Department, Fairbanks Area Narcotics Team, Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Marshals Service, U.S. Border Patrol, Department of Corrections PED and Probations, Alaska Criminal Intelligence Center and MATCOM Dispatch.

The Alaska Department of Public Safety maintains a statewide list of active warrants online, if you have an active warrant, you can turn yourself in at any police or state trooper office. To see the list of active warrants visit: www.dps.alaska.gov/ast/warrants