GREAT FALLS — Eleven people have been indicted following a six-month-long enforcement initiative led by the federal Drug Enforcement Administration, in cooperation with, federal, tribal and local enforcement, into drug trafficking on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation
The DEA initiative ran from approximately May to October and has resulted so far in the indictments of 11 people on various federal drug crimes, primarily involving methamphetamine and fentanyl, and firearms crimes.
The agency has not released the names of the suspects.
Montana's U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich, joined by representatives from the DEA, Blackfeet Law Enforcement Services, and Bureau of Indian Affairs, discussed the initiative during a news conference held at the Blackfeet Tribal Business Council offices in Browning on Thursday.
A news release states that the operation was aimed at combatting rising rates of drug-related violent crime and overdose deaths plaguing American communities. The initiative identifies "hot spots" to devote its law enforcement resources to communities where criminal drug organizations or networks are causing the most harm. The DEA, working in partnership with federal, tribal and local law enforcement agencies, identified the Blackfeet Reservation as a community for what it calls Operation Overdrive.
“Our office is well aware that the scourge of methamphetamine and fentanyl trafficking is devastating to Montana communities and disproportionally harming Indian Country, including the Blackfeet Nation. Drug traffickers attempt to move into reservations and enlist residents to deal drugs and collect the proceeds. Focused enforcement actions, like this operation on the Blackfeet Reservation, not only get violent drug dealers and suppliers off the street, but also send the message that traffickers have no safe place on Montana’s Indian reservations. The progress we’ve made with this operation would not have happened without the cooperation of our federal, tribal, and local law enforcement partners, for which I am sincerely grateful,” said Laslovich.
“DEA’s Operation Overdrive shows our commitment to areas of the country experiencing high drug cartel activity, and the violence and crime that comes with it,” said DEA Rocky Mountain Field Division Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Pullen. “I send our sincere thanks to the Blackfeet Reservation, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Montana, and commend our tribal, federal, state and local law enforcement partners for their hard work, dedication, and cooperation in bringing criminals to justice.”
Assisting DEA in the enforcement action were Blackfeet Law Enforcement Services, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Glacier County Sheriff’s Office, and FBI.
