A top regional DEA agent said Wednesday in Billings that targeted enforcement and harsher sentences at the federal level are sending a strong message to drug traffickers and helping to decrease fatal doses.

Learn more about their enforcement: Fentanyl overdoses trending down while carfentanil becomes more common in Montana

Cesar Avila is the DEA Assistant Special Agent in charge of the Rocky Mountain Region that includes Colorado, Utah, Montana and Wyoming. He spoke with local media about recent enforcement efforts and trends.

The DEA's most recent enforcement initiative, Operation Fentanyl Free America, took more than 9,300 pounds, or four and half tons, of fentanyl off the streets nationwide.

"The lethal doses are decreasing. So that tells us the cartels are either reformulating or

See Full Page