David Howell spent 19 years as a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent, believing he was working to protect Americans from the deadliest drug threat in modern history. Then he says his own agency made a calculation that put thousands of lives at risk — and he became convinced the consequences were deadly.
The Associated Press reported this month that DEA agents permitted hundreds of thousands of fentanyl pills to be distributed across New Mexico as part of an investigative strategy aimed at building toward larger federal prosecutions against drug cartels. The decision, according to internal records reviewed by AP journalists Jim Mustian and Joshua Goodman, allowed a massive shipment of 74,000 pills to reach streets already devastated by overdose deaths.
Background
The case centers on a fentanyl shipment that DEA agents tracked in 2023 at an Albuquerque mobile home park. Federal investigators gathered such detailed intelligence that their investigative report documented the exact delivery: 74,000 pills, manufactured in Mexican cartel labs and designed to mimic legitimate painkillers. The White House has designated fentanyl as a "weapon of mass destruction."
The DEA's own "One Pill Can Kill" campaign warns that just two milligrams — an amount that would fit on the tip of a pencil — is enough to kill the average adult. Counterfeit pills often contain unknown concentrations of the synthetic opioid, making each dose essentially a game of Russian roulette.
Howell, who had served as the assistant special agent in charge at DEA's Albuquerque division, told AP reporters he believed the decision not to seize the drugs was "akin to providing one fentanyl pill to each person at a football stadium." At the time, fatal overdoses were hitting historic peaks across the country.
The Investigation
Howell filed a formal whistleblower complaint in late 2023 with the Office of Special Counsel, a government agency that protects federal employees who expose wrongdoing. He submitted DEA reports, emails and text messages — including one exchange where colleagues discussed witnessing a 100,000-pill transaction but choosing not to stop it.
The OSC took the unusual step of finding "substantial likelihood of wrongdoing" and requesting the Justice Department investigate. The DOJ's Office of Professional Responsibility, an internal affairs office, examined the case in 2024 and reached a different conclusion: that DEA and the U.S. attorney's office in Albuquerque had made reasonable decisions allowing drugs to go unseized, and that their inaction posed no "specific danger to public health."
Howell and other critics dispute that finding, arguing investigators overlooked whether the agency permitted massive amounts of deadly fentanyl to flood communities.
The Charges
No criminal charges have been filed against any DEA agents. Federal officials who spoke with AP defended the strategy as a legitimate law enforcement tool.
Alex Uballez, the U.S. attorney in Albuquerque at the time, acknowledged that authorities sometimes "walk" drugs — allowing shipments to continue circulating — in pursuit of catching an ultimately "bigger fish." He said this approach can save more lives than attempting to interdict every shipment by focusing resources on dismantling entire trafficking networks.
The DEA released a statement asserting that "public descriptions suggesting that DEA knowingly permitted fentanyl to reach communities are false and fundamentally mischaracterize the facts." Spokesperson Amanda Wozniak wrote that "investigative decisions at issue were lawful, reasonable under the circumstances and consistent with Department guidance."
Key Takeaways
- A DEA whistleblower alleges federal agents in New Mexico allowed hundreds of thousands of fentanyl pills to be distributed rather than seized during a 2023 investigation
- Internal records show agents tracked but did not stop a shipment of 74,000 pills at an Albuquerque mobile home park
- The Justice Department's internal affairs office found in 2024 that DEA made "reasonable decisions," though the whistleblower's complaint remains pending
- DEA has defended its use of investigative techniques that allow some drugs to circulate while building larger cases against cartels
What's Next
Howell's whistleblower case continues through administrative channels. Congressional investigators have expressed interest in examining DEA's policies regarding drug seizure decisions. The DOJ's Office of Professional Responsibility findings may be subject to review as the case progresses.
The broader policy debate over how federal agents balance public safety risks against long-term investigative goals is expected to continue, particularly as fentanyl deaths remain a national crisis. The records uncovered by AP journalists would not have been released under Freedom of Information Act requests.