Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem stood inside a secured federal narcotics vault in Otay Mesa on Thursday, surrounded by towering stacks of seized drugs, as she outlined what she described as the results of President Donald Trump’s renewed border enforcement strategy.
Noem said 188,218 pounds of illegal narcotics have been seized along San Diego County’s U.S.-Mexico border during Trump’s tenure, calling the display clear evidence of intensified enforcement efforts.
“Trump has delivered the most secure border in American history,” she said, crediting Border Patrol agents and local law enforcement with intercepting cartel shipments before they reached American communities.
Inside the vault, Noem detailed the scope of the inventory: approximately 100,000 pounds of methamphetamine, 59,000 pounds of cocaine, and 7,400 pounds of fentanyl were confiscated in the San Diego sector.
She noted that a significant share of the narcotics were intercepted at official ports of entry, including San Ysidro, Otay Mesa, and Tecate, underscoring expanded inspection operations at legal crossing points.
Describing the display as “1.7 billion lethal doses of illegal narcotics,” Noem said the fentanyl and cocaine stored in the vault would be enough to kill the U.S. population multiple times over.
She gestured toward a nearby container and said it held enough fentanyl to cause 10 million deaths. She did not specify when each shipment had been seized.
Noem said fentanyl trafficking has declined 56 percent since Trump returned to office and implemented expanded enforcement measures.
She argued that intensified inspections, increased personnel, and a targeted focus on cartel networks have disrupted supply chains that previously fueled the nation’s opioid crisis.
According to the latest data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, agents seized 39,200 pounds of drugs in December 2025, compared with 41,400 pounds in December of the prior year.
Seizures commonly involve marijuana, methamphetamine, and cocaine, while fentanyl remains a primary enforcement priority, according to Inewsource.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in 2025 that overdose deaths declined significantly in 2024 compared with earlier years, estimating total opioid-related fatalities at approximately 55,000.
The Times of San Diego notes that federal officials pointed to coordinated enforcement and interdiction efforts as part of broader attempts to curb synthetic opioid distribution.
Noem attributed the narcotics trade to transnational criminal organizations and repeated President Trump’s designation of major cartels as foreign terrorist organizations, calling them “the ISIS of the western hemisphere.”
She said cartels profit from addiction and violence and argued that sustained border enforcement is essential to weakening their operations.
Border Patrol Chief Michael Banks, who joined Noem at the event, said the end of “catch and release” policies has strengthened overall border control efforts, though the focus of the appearance centered largely on drug interdiction rather than migration statistics, CBS 8 reported.
Outside the federal building, roughly 100 protesters gathered during the news conference.
Inside, the administration highlighted its record of narcotics seizures as clear proof that its border security measures are delivering results.
The event was livestreamed on the Department of Homeland Security website, with access restricted to invited media.
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