DEA Seizes Thousands of Fentanyl Pills and Pounds of Meth in NYC Drug Busts
DEA and New York authorities seized over 8,800 counterfeit fentanyl pills and 891 grams of cocaine in Brooklyn, arresting one suspect. In a separate operation, agents recovered 20 pounds of methamphetamine and $50,000 in cash. The busts are part of efforts to disrupt synthetic drug shipments into New York City.
Federal and state authorities have announced significant drug seizures in New York City, including thousands of counterfeit pills containing fentanyl and multiple pounds of methamphetamine. The Drug Enforcement Administration's New York Enforcement Division, working with the New York Attorney General's office, arrested and indicted Azer Arslanouk, 36, of Ocean Township, New Jersey, for illegally selling fentanyl and cocaine in Brooklyn, New York.
The investigation seized more than 8,887 counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl and over 891 grams of cocaine, worth approximately $100,000. The indictment, unsealed in Kings County Court, charges Arslanouk with 31 crimes for trafficking narcotics. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of up to 20 years in prison.
"Counterfeit pills laced with fentanyl continue to be a lethal threat to those unsuspecting users who think they are taking a legitimate pharmaceutical pill," said a DEA New York Enforcement Division official. "This operation, which included the removal of over 8,500 fentanyl pills off our streets, undoubtedly saved lives."
The investigation spanned 30 months and included hundreds of hours of physical surveillance, court-authorized cellphone GPS information, covert cameras, and undercover operations. Authorities revealed that from December 2024 to January 2025, Arslanouk engaged in four separate drug sales, including cocaine and counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl. He was storing and selling the cocaine and fentanyl pills out of a storefront at 9 Lake Street in Gravesend, Brooklyn, using encrypted messaging apps to communicate with buyers about his narcotics sales.
In a separate operation, the DEA New York Enforcement Division's Tactical Diversion Squad carried out a bust on Feb. 17 that recovered approximately 20 pounds of methamphetamine and about $50,000 in cash, with one person taken into custody. The agency described the operation as part of a broader push to disrupt synthetic-drug shipments into the city and cut into high-volume meth trafficking.
Tactical Diversion Squads pair DEA agents with local investigators and federal partners to target both controlled-substance diversion and trafficking. Putting a diversion squad on a meth seizure signals how those teams are now used to hit synthetic stimulant flows that feed local markets, not just pill mills or prescription fraud.
The seizure aligns with what federal officials describe as a national pattern. DEA assessments say nearly all methamphetamine sold in the United States today is manufactured in Mexico then shipped into domestic markets, and the agency has warned that meth is increasingly mixed with other synthetic drugs. The DEA's 2025 National Drug Threat Assessment notes that synthetic drugs and "drug cocktails" complicate enforcement and raise overdose risks for users who often do not know exactly what they are taking.
The Feb. 17 meth seizure is not the only big haul DEA New York has touted recently. In December 2024 the office announced a separate takedown that netted more than 85 pounds of cocaine and fentanyl along with roughly $420,000 in cash. According to DEA New York, that earlier case grew out of a months-long wiretap and task force investigation.