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Terrorist Organizations or Criminal Cartels?

Mar 13, 2023

In this episode, Michael speaks with Kevin Ofchus - a former Supervisory Special Agent with the U.S. DEA and is now CEO of Host Nation Perspectives of Southwest Asia, as well as Associate Fellow at Narrative Strategies.  His projects have covered a wide range of areas focused on countering Afghan insurgency and violent extremism via intelligence and counter-intelligence, threat finance, counter-terrorism, rule of law initiatives, and post-conflict stabilization.

This is part two of a two-part series with Kevin.

Join us as we delve into the growing problem of fentanyl production and distribution in Mexico.  We explore the current state of the epidemic and discuss the various opinions on whether these cartels should be designated as terrorist organizations.  We also examine the role of congressional action and political will in tackling this issue, and the need for a more robust international presence to combat the production and distribution of fentanyl.  This podcast is a must-listen for anyone interested in understanding the complexities of the opioid crisis and the challenges facing Mexico as it attempts to address the problem.

Key topics: 

  • Fentanyl production in Mexico
  • Should cartels be classified as terrorist organizations?
  • Congressional action and political will in the fight against fentanyl

 



 

Views expressed in this material are opinions of the host and the guest, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Rigaku Analytical Devices.

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To make sure you never miss an episode of The Opioid Matrix, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, the website, or your favorite podcast player here: https://plinkhq.com/i/1625927161?to=page  
Michael W. Brown is the global director of counter-narcotics technology at Rigaku Analytical Devices. He has a distinguished career spanning more than 32 years as a Special Agent for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). He served as the country attaché in India and Myanmar; During his tour in Myanmar, he provided foreign advisory support for counter narcotic enforcement that, to date, has resulted in the interdiction of over US$250 million in precursor chemicals and implementing the regions first use of Raman spectroscopy to degrade the supply chain for narcotics production. He was also part of a special specialized counter narcotics unit operating in the jungles of South America tasked with locating and destroying drug labs and narcotic supply chains. Most recently he was the DEA Headquarters staff coordinator for the Office of Foreign Operations for the Middle East-Europe-Afghanistan-India. Michael is a graduate of the United States Ranger Training Battalion and has a master’s degree in interdisciplinary technology and management from the University of Eastern Michigan. Contact him at michael.brown@rigaku.com

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