Edition O'027

Drug News Roundup

Sunday, September 20, 2026 · 12 stories

Covering reporting published since the Sept 19 edition, roughly Sept 18-20, with the Catonsville, Maryland indictment and the Paraná, Brazil highway seizures running back to incident dates of Sept 17 where reporting lagged. A new SOUTHCOM/JTF-WHEM lethal strike on Sept 19 killed four people; same-day wire tallies (USNews, local10, The Hindu via AP) put the campaign's running total at 69 strikes and at least 231 deaths, which is the figure used below rather than arithmetically adding to the prior edition's carried 69/230 count, since independent trackers' cumulative strike counts have varied by a few in past editions and today's post-strike figures are the freshest available. Several candidate stories were dropped as stale on verification: a Buncombe County, NC 'largest fentanyl seizure in BCSO history' story recirculating this week was actually an April 16 incident; an Upshur County, TX meth/fentanyl ring dismantling was from a January case; a Garfield Heights, OH gun-and-drug stop and an Oregon 110,000-plant marijuana raid were both over a week outside the window; a Paranaguá, Brazil 226-kg cocaine seizure was from March; a Santa Catarina/São Paulo 521-kg Brazilian cocaine case was from Sept 5-6; and a Bolivian FELCN Uyuni marijuana find and a Chilean La Serena 10-kg marijuana interception were both too thin (no confirmed weight or below the size bar) to carry. Colombia's own same-day figures were internally inconsistent — a single Guaviare naval operation reported 975 kg of cocaine, more than the government's separate nationwide 24-hour tally of 900 kg of cocaine — so only the specific, sourced Guaviare figure is counted in today's tally rather than the vaguer aggregate. A Panama Chiriquí seizure of 5,529 packages is included without a seizures entry because Panamanian authorities did not confirm the drug type or weight, despite outlets estimating roughly 5.5 tonnes of cocaine from typical package sizes.

1National / Federal (US)

SOUTHCOM kills four in a Caribbean go-fast boat strike as the campaign's toll passes 230 dead

Caribbean Sea4 killed

On Sept 19, under U.S. Southern Command, Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere struck a go-fast vessel it said was operating along established narco-trafficking routes in the Caribbean, killing four people SOUTHCOM called "narco-terrorists." Wire tallies published alongside the strike put the campaign's running total at 69 strikes and at least 231 deaths since it began about a year ago; congressional critics have questioned the legal authority for killing suspected traffickers at sea rather than interdicting them, and the UN human rights office has previously said the strikes breached international law.

SourceSOUTHCOM / Local10

Pixel-art scene: vessel struck and destroyed at sea — vessel struck and destroyed at sea

West Baltimore laundromat fronted a $25 million Mexico-to-Maryland cocaine and fentanyl pipeline, six charged

140 kg cocaine, 12 kg fentanylCatonsville, Maryland6 charged

An indictment unsealed this month accuses George Robinson, 58, of Catonsville, of running a drug operation that moved 50-to-150-kilogram cocaine shipments from Mexico by flatbed truck to a West Baltimore laundromat and warehouses in Halethorpe; the DEA-led case, built on eight to nine months of surveillance before Robinson's arrest, recovered more than 140 kilograms of cocaine, about 12 kilograms of fentanyl and roughly $1.5 million in cash across properties tied to Robinson and co-defendant Cori Grant. Prosecutors called it among the largest such seizures they had handled in more than two decades; Robinson and five others have pleaded not guilty and remain jailed pending trial.

SourceThe Baltimore Banner

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: 140 kg cocaine, 12 kg fentanyl — 14 × 10 kg cocaine · 24 × 500 g fentanyl

Anniston, Alabama meth dealer known as 'Poo Nanny' gets 10.5 years after three DEA-monitored buys

Anniston, Alabama1 sentenced

A federal judge sentenced Quinton Montral Gunn, 45, of Anniston to 126 months in prison on Sept 18 after he pleaded guilty to three counts of distributing methamphetamine to a DEA confidential source in controlled buys carried out in 2023 and 2024. DEA Special Agent in Charge John Scott said dealers who "flood our neighborhoods with methamphetamine" are "reserving a spot in federal prison"; the case was built with help from the 7th Judicial Circuit's Major Crimes Unit.

SourceDEA / WBRC

Pixel-art scene: prison sentence handed down — prison sentence handed down

2Local US Arrests

DeKalb County, Georgia police intercept 735 pounds of California marijuana and nine guns

735 lbs cannabis (333 kg)DeKalb County, Georgia

DeKalb County police task force officers seized about 735 pounds of marijuana shipped in from California, along with five rifles and four handguns, during a Sept 19 search at a delivery site in the county. No arrests had been announced as the investigation continued.

SourceDeKalb County Police Department

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: 735 lbs cannabis (333 kg) — 13 × 25 kg ≈ 333 kg cannabis

Fort Pierce, Florida raid on a three-time felon turns up 4.5 kilos of fentanyl and cocaine

4.5 kg fentanyl, 303 g cocaineFort Pierce, Florida1 arrested

St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office investigators, backed by SWAT and the U.S. Marshals Service, searched the South 24th Street home of Tony Saunders, 48 — a three-time convicted felon on federal probation — on Sept 19, recovering about 4.5 kilograms of fentanyl, 303 grams of cocaine, marijuana allegedly laced with MDPV and a quantity of oxycodone pills, along with equipment investigators tied to narcotics preparation. Saunders faces trafficking charges in fentanyl, cocaine and MDPV, plus cocaine-manufacturing and evidence-tampering counts.

SourceSt. Lucie County Sheriff's Office / Hoodline

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: 4.5 kg fentanyl, 303 g cocaine — 9 × 500 g fentanyl · 303 g cocaine

3South America

Colombian forces seize 975 kg of cocaine off a Guaviare riverboat and kill a Clan del Golfo commander in Antioquia

975 kg cocaine (Guaviare)Guaviare & Antioquia, Colombia6 arrested, 1 killed

Colombia's Navy, Army and Police intercepted a boat on a river route near San José del Guaviare on Sept 18-19, arresting two people and seizing 975 kilograms of cocaine, while a separate Army operation in El Bagre, Antioquia, killed a Clan del Golfo commander known as "alias Isaías" — described as having 16 years in the organization — and arrested four more suspects. President Abelardo de la Espriella's government said the two operations were part of a broader 24-hour sweep that captured 42 people nationwide and seized more than 3.3 tonnes of marijuana, cocaine and coca base combined.

SourceInfobae Colombia / La FM

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: 975 kg cocaine (Guaviare) — 10 × 100 kg ≈ 975 kg cocaine

Brazilian highway police pull nearly two tonnes of marijuana, cocaine and hashish from three Paraná trucks

1.73 t cannabis, 106 kg cocaine, 5.5 kg hashishParaná, Brazil3 arrested

Brazil's Federal Highway Police stopped three trucks on Paraná highways over Sept 17-18, finding roughly 1,582 kilograms of marijuana hidden in a false floor under a refrigerated chicken load on BR-369 near Cambé, 106 kilograms of cocaine packed into a truck's fuel-tank compartment on BR-277 near Candói, and 152 kilograms of marijuana plus 5.5 kilograms of hashish stashed inside spare tires on BR-163 near Terra Roxa. A driver was arrested in each of the three stops.

SourcePRF / Plantão 190

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: 1.73 t cannabis, 106 kg cocaine, 5.5 kg hashish — 7 × 250 kg cannabis · 11 × 10 kg ≈ 106 kg cocaine · 6 × 1 kg ≈ 5.5 kg hash

4Rest of World

Mexican forces dismantle four synthetic-drug labs in Michoacán and Guerrero under cartel gunfire

10+ t precursor chemicalsMichoacán & Guerrero, Mexico

Mexico's security secretary Omar García Harfuch said federal, state and military forces raided and disabled four clandestine drug-production labs near Carácuaro, Michoacán, and in Zirándaro and Coahuayutla de José María Izazaga, Guerrero, on Sept 19, seizing more than 10 tonnes of precursor chemicals. Agents came under gunfire from suspected cartel members during the raids but continued until the labs were dismantled; no arrests or drug-type identification were announced.

SourceInfobae Mexico

Pixel-art scene: clandestine laboratory destroyed — clandestine laboratory destroyed

Las Piñas buy-bust nets a high-value shabu dealer with 30 kilos worth 204 million pesos

30 kg methamphetamineLas Piñas City, Philippines1 arrested

Philippine National Police's Drug Enforcement Group, working with the anti-drug agency's regional office, arrested a 40-year-old woman described as a high-value target in a Sept 19 buy-bust in Las Piñas City, recovering roughly 30 kilograms of methamphetamine hydrochloride, known locally as shabu, valued at about 204 million pesos. PNP chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. called the arrest a significant blow to the drug supply; she faces charges under the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act.

SourceSunStar

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: 30 kg methamphetamine — 30 × 1 kg meth

Thai police end a 100-km highway chase with 612,000 meth pills seized in Chumphon

612,000 meth pillsChumphon, Thailand3 arrested

Central Investigation Bureau officers and highway police pursued a pickup truck for about 100 kilometers along Highway 41 in Chumphon province on Sept 19 before it crashed into another vehicle. Officers arrested three suspects — the driver and two men accused of scouting and coordinating the route — and recovered 612,000 methamphetamine pills packed in sacks, along with the pickup and a lookout vehicle.

SourceThe Pattaya News

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: 612,000 meth pills — plus the tablets

Panamanian navy intercepts 5,529 packages of suspected drugs off Chiriquí, two Colombians held

5,529 packages (type/weight unconfirmed)Chiriquí, Panama2 arrested

Panama's National Aeronaval Service stopped a boat in Pacific waters south of Punta Burica, Chiriquí, in the early hours of Sept 18, seizing 5,529 packages of an unidentified substance and arresting two Colombian crew members. Authorities did not confirm the drug type or total weight, though officials noted that similar Panamanian seizures are typically cocaine packaged in roughly one-kilogram bricks.

SourceNewsroom Panama

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: 5,529 packages (type/weight unconfirmed) — all 529 packages

5Ongoing Stories with New Developments

Ecuador's nightly curfew turns up 1.6 tonnes of cocaine dynamited out of a Manta hideout

1.6 t cocaineManta, Ecuador

Building on the Guayas/Manabí/Los Ríos/El Oro curfew reported in yesterday's edition, Ecuadorian police used explosives on Sept 19 — the curfew's third night — to break into a buried storage site in Manta, Manabí, recovering 55 sacks holding 1,353 packages of cocaine that Interior Minister John Reimberg valued at about $64 million. It was the curfew campaign's largest single seizure so far; no arrests were announced in connection with the find.

SourceInfobae / ABC Color

Pixel-art scene of the seized items: 1.6 t cocaine — 16 × 100 kg cocaine

2026 Running Tally

Total weight intercepted across every story covered so far this year, through Sep 20, 2026. Counts seizures only — sentencings and indictments are not double-counted — and resets to zero each 1 January. Earlier years are kept below.

127 t 27 editions · 55 places · 14 substances

United States

Puerto Rico1 substance3.3 t

cocaine3.3 t

Texas5 substances1.6 t

methamphetamine1.4 t
cocaine251 kg
heroin16 kg
cannabis1.8 kg
mdma640 g

California5 substances1.3 t

methamphetamine1.2 t
fentanyl43 kg
cocaine9.5 kg
heroin1 kg
mdma68 g

Illinois2 substances686 kg

khat532 kg
cocaine154 kg

Georgia4 substances344 kg

cannabis334 kg
carfentanil9.1 kg
methamphetamine450 g
fentanyl110 g

New York3 substances284 kg

cocaine277 kg
fentanyl7.6 kg
fentanyl/heroin250 g

Maryland2 substances152 kg

cocaine140 kg
fentanyl12 kg

Indiana1 substance126 kg

cocaine126 kg

Pennsylvania1 substance113 kg

cannabis113 kg

Florida4 substances43 kg

cannabis20 kg
cocaine10 kg
fentanyl9.5 kg
methamphetamine4.2 kg

Minnesota2 substances28 kg

methamphetamine27 kg
cocaine883 g

Kentucky2 substances20 kg

methamphetamine20 kg
fentanyl60 g

Mississippi5 substances17 kg

cannabis9.5 kg
methamphetamine4.8 kg
cocaine3 kg
mdma140 g
fentanyl25 g

North Carolina2 substances10 kg

cocaine8.2 kg
cannabis1.8 kg

South Carolina2 substances7.9 kg

fentanyl4.1 kg
methamphetamine3.8 kg

Wisconsin3 substances6.7 kg

cannabis4.5 kg
cocaine1.8 kg
methamphetamine370 g

Missouri2 substances6 kg

cocaine3.5 kg
fentanyl2.5 kg

Virginia3 substances5.6 kg

methamphetamine5.3 kg
cocaine190 g
fentanyl170 g

North Dakota2 substances5.6 kg

methamphetamine5.4 kg
cocaine155 g

West Virginia3 substances4.8 kg

methamphetamine3.6 kg
fentanyl909 g
cocaine233 g

Tennessee3 substances4.7 kg

fentanyl2.2 kg
methamphetamine2 kg
cocaine500 g

Alabama3 substances3.3 kg

methamphetamine2.3 kg
cocaine1 kg
fentanyl21 g

Nebraska2 substances2.4 kg

methamphetamine2.4 kg
cocaine17 g

Massachusetts2 substances2 kg

fentanyl1.7 kg
cocaine316 g

Ohio3 substances2 kg

cocaine2 kg
fentanyl10 g
heroin3 g

International

Mexico4 substances21.0 t

methamphetamine19.2 t
cannabis1.8 t
fentanyl19 kg
heroin7.7 kg

Brazil4 substances19.9 t

cannabis16.9 t
cocaine2.9 t
coca base84 kg
hashish45 kg

Spain2 substances17.3 t

hashish11.3 t
cocaine6.1 t

Colombia4 substances17.0 t

cocaine10.7 t
cannabis5.5 t
coca base684 kg
heroin15 kg

Ecuador2 substances12.3 t

cocaine11.4 t
cannabis900 kg

Nigeria3 substances7.0 t

cannabis7.0 t
methamphetamine2 kg
cocaine350 g

Portugal1 substance5.3 t

hashish5.3 t

Chile2 substances5.1 t

cannabis5.1 t
cocaine7.2 kg

France1 substance3.9 t

cocaine3.9 t

Indonesia1 substance2.6 t

methamphetamine2.6 t

Romania3 substances1.6 t

hashish1.3 t
cannabis228 kg
cocaine114 kg

Argentina3 substances1.3 t

cannabis946 kg
cocaine321 kg
mdma52 kg

Venezuela1 substance905 kg

cannabis905 kg

Peru2 substances698 kg

cocaine448 kg
coca base250 kg

Pakistan4 substances508 kg

hashish301 kg
heroin202 kg
opium2.4 kg
methamphetamine2 kg

Sri Lanka1 substance463 kg

methamphetamine463 kg

Uruguay2 substances408 kg

cocaine305 kg
coca base103 kg

Bolivia1 substance405 kg

cocaine405 kg

South Africa1 substance341 kg

cocaine341 kg

Costa Rica1 substance312 kg

cocaine312 kg

Thailand1 substance166 kg

methamphetamine166 kg

India5 substances154 kg

methamphetamine72 kg
cannabis45 kg
amphetamine17 kg
mdma14 kg
heroin5.7 kg

Hong Kong2 substances141 kg

cocaine76 kg
ketamine65 kg

Afghanistan1 substance101 kg

opium101 kg

Malaysia3 substances98 kg

methamphetamine86 kg
mdma11 kg
ketamine630 g

Philippines1 substance34 kg

methamphetamine34 kg

Ireland2 substances26 kg

cocaine22 kg
cannabis4 kg

Italy1 substance17 kg

methamphetamine17 kg

Canada5 substances15 kg

mdma6.9 kg
fentanyl3.1 kg
cocaine2.5 kg
methamphetamine2.2 kg
cannabis479 g

South Korea2 substances1.8 kg

methamphetamine1.2 kg
ketamine500 g