On the morning of Monday, February 20, 2023, an Arizona State Trooper initiated a traffic stop on the driver of a commercial motor vehicle on Mariposa Road east of Interstate 19 in Nogales, Arizona.

During the commercial vehicle inspection, the trooper observed several indicators of criminal activity. A subsequent search of the commercial vehicle led to the discovery of the following concealed within the semi-trailer:

• Approximately 1,035 pounds of suspected methamphetamine
• Approximately 173 pounds of suspected fentanyl pills (about 784,000 pills)
• Approximately 21.75 pounds of suspected cocaine

The driver, a 38-year-old male from Nogales, Sonora, was booked into the Santa Cruz County Detention Center on charges including possession and transportation of a narcotic drug for sale and possession and transportation of a dangerous drug for sale.

The street value of the methamphetamine seized is estimated at just over $1 million, while the estimated value for the fentanyl seized is approximately $3.1 million. The estimated street value of the cocaine is approximately $197,000.

This marked the second major drug seizure by Arizona State Troopers in a four-day period.

On Thursday, February 16, 2023, troopers seized 286 pounds of suspected fentanyl pills – about 1,297,000 pills – following a one-vehicle crash on Interstate 10 in Sacaton. The driver of the vehicle involved was hospitalized with life-threatening injuries. The estimated street value of the fentanyl seized in that incident was approximately $5.1 million.

In total, troopers have stopped the flow of more than an estimated two million fentanyl pills into Arizona communities within the past week.

On Monday, February 27, 2023, at approximately 3:22 p.m., Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) Trooper Berry was driving southbound on State Route 101 near Talking Stick Way when he witnessed a Ford pickup truck sideswipe several vehicles before stopping beside the highway.

As Trooper Berry pulled over and approached the pickup, he realized the lone male driver was experiencing a medical emergency. Trooper Berry was unable to open the locked driver’s side door, and the pickup truck suddenly began to accelerate down a dirt embankment away from the highway. He jumped back in his patrol vehicle and followed as the pickup crossed both lanes of traffic on 93rd Street, drove through a parking lot, then headed towards a baseball field at Salt River Fields.

Recognizing the imminent danger to the driver and anyone nearby, Trooper Berry quickly deployed his Grappler Police Bumper, successfully securing one of the truck’s rear tires and bringing it to a safe stop in front of the baseball field.

Trooper Berry helped get the driver safely out of the vehicle and provided basic first aid until medical personnel arrived and transported him to a hospital.

We’re proud of Trooper Berry’s quick thinking and sound use of tactics, which brought a potentially deadly situation to the safest possible resolution.

On Monday, March 6, 2023, at about 5:38 p.m., an Arizona State Trooper stopped the driver of a Chevrolet Cruz sedan for a moving violation on Interstate 17 northbound near milepost 277, near Camp Verde. During the stop the trooper observed several indicators of criminal activity. The trooper conducted a search of the vehicle and found approximately 24.5 pounds of suspected fentanyl pills, 2 pounds of suspected fentanyl powder, and 6.5 pounds of suspected methamphetamine hidden inside.

The driver, 27-year-old Nelder Perez Gonzalez, of Rifle, Colorado, was arrested and booked into the Yavapai County Jail on charges including possession and transportation of a narcotic drug for sale, and possession and transportation of dangerous drugs for sale.

From Tuesday, March 21, 2023, through Wednesday, March 22, 2023, the Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Task Force (CVETF) held its annual “Operation Full House” detail at the Ehrenberg Port of Entry and on Interstate 10 near the Arizona/California state line.

Operation Full House is a two-day enforcement operation focused on zero-tolerance commercial motor vehicle (CMV) enforcement and education. Commercial vehicle inspectors from the Arizona Department of Transportation, AZDPS, and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration participated in the detail with a focus on CMV driver and vehicle safety, hazardous and collision-causing violations by CMV operators, and passenger vehicles operating unsafely around commercial vehicles.

During the operation, inspectors completed 348 inspections and recorded 1,116 driver-vehicle examination report violations. Inspectors noted 45 hazardous moving violations,7 hazmat violations, and placed 80 drivers and 104 vehicles out of service.

The CVETF is comprised of AZDPS Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Bureau troopers and Arizona Department of Transportation Enforcement and Compliance Division officers. The mission of the Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Task Force is to ensure safe, secure, and efficient commercial transport across Arizona.

On March 8, 2023, Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) troopers attempted to stop a green Ford F-250 pickup truck being driven by 30-year-old Luciano Kristoff. The vehicle was observed traveling at a high rate of speed on State Route 90 in Huachuca City. Unbeknownst to the state trooper, Kristoff had reportedly stolen the vehicle from its owner at a local business in Sierra Vista.

Kristoff fled from the attempted traffic stop and a pursuit ensued. As the pursuit approached the United Sates Border Patrol checkpoint on State Route 90, Kristoff lost control of the vehicle, resulting in a multi-vehicle crash with several vehicles waiting in line at the checkpoint. Kristoff sustained serious injuries and was transported to Banner University Medical Center in Tucson, where he was admitted in critical condition.

On March 18, 2023, Kristoff walked away from the hospital against the advice of medical practitioners.

Earlier today, March 29, 2023, Kristoff was found hiding in a vehicle that was stopped by the Tucson Police Department for an unrelated matter. Kristoff was taken into custody and transported to the Cochise County Jail, where troopers booked him on charges of aggravated assault, endangerment, and felony flight in connection to the events of March 8th.

Public safety agencies in Pima and Pinal counties will participate in an agency interoperability tabletop exercise at the Pima County Emergency Communications and Operations Center on Wednesday, July 26, 2023, from 1 p.m. – 4 p.m.

The tabletop exercise will look at uses of interoperable radio communication, particularly in relation to large, multi-agency events requiring coordination between agencies. The goal of the tabletop exercise is to further establish consistent communication guidelines and evaluate emergency preparedness protocols.

Agencies participating in the exercise include:

• Arizona Department of Public Safety
• Marana Police Department
• Oro Valley Police Department
• Pima County Sheriff’s Department
• Pinal County Sheriff’s Office
• Tucson Fire Department
• Tucson Police Department
• Tucson Water
• United States Border Patrol
• Valley Emergency Communications Center

The Pima County Office of Emergency Management and the Arizona Division of Emergency Management will provide evaluators for the exercise.

Members of the media are invited to attend a media availability prior to the event. An RSVP should be sent to: [email protected]

Media Availability

Date: Wednesday, July 26, 2023

Time: 12:30 p.m. – 1 p.m. MST

Location: 3434 E. 22nd Street, Tucson, AZ 85713

AZDPS Representatives: Warren Trent (Public Information Manager) and Raul Garcia (Public Information Officer)

Questions related to this event can be directed to the AZDPS Public Information Office: [email protected]

On Wednesday, March 29, 2023, Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) Vehicle Theft Task Force (VTTF) detectives served a residential search warrant on a property in Wittmann. The warrant followed an investigation into several stolen vehicles observed on the property.

During service of the search warrant, detectives arrested one suspect and recovered six stolen vehicles, including:

• 2022 Polaris Razor
• 2016 Polaris Sportsman
• 2023 C&M flatbed trailer
• 2013 Sandstorm travel trailer
• 2014 Arctic Cat UTV
• 1999 Ford F350 pickup truck

The suspect, 22-year-old Juan Manuel Chavez Espinoza, was booked into the Maricopa County Jail on charges including four counts of theft of means of transportation.

The VTTF is comprised of city, county, state, and federal law enforcement agencies participating in a concerted effort to identify, apprehend, and prosecute individuals and criminal organizations that profit from the theft of motor vehicles and related crimes.

The VTTF serves a vital mission on behalf of the Arizona Automobile Theft Authority (AATA) to reduce vehicle theft in Arizona by deterring criminal activity through effective and proactive enforcement, prosecution and public awareness programs. The VTTF is substantially funded by an annual grant from the AATA. 

On Thursday, April 13, 2023, an Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) trooper stopped the driver of a Chevrolet pickup truck for non-moving violations on eastbound Interstate 8 near milepost 47, in Wellton, AZ. The trooper noted indicators of criminal activity during the stop, and a drug detection canine was deployed and alerted to the vehicle. During the ensuing vehicle search, troopers discovered approximately 109.4 pounds of suspected fentanyl pills concealed within the vehicle.

The suspect driver, 21-year-old Juan Jose Rivera Jr., a resident of Phoenix, was arrested and booked into the Yuma County Jail on charges including possession and transportation of a narcotic drug for sale.

The estimated street value of the fentanyl pills seized is approximately $1.9 million. 

Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) state troopers and Navajo County Sheriff’s Office (NCSO) deputies worked together to stop and apprehend a homicide suspect traveling from New Mexico into Arizona on Monday, April 17, 2023.

The suspect, Tawann Richardson, 23, was the subject of an active homicide warrant out of Oklahoma and a felony parole violation warrant out of Texas.

On Monday afternoon, AZDPS was notified Richardson was believed to be traveling westbound on Interstate 40 in a black Toyota Camry with Oklahoma license plates. Dispatchers relayed the information to troopers in the area, and troopers observed the suspect vehicle traveling westbound on Interstate 40 in Holbrook at approximately 3:40 p.m.

A trooper initiated a traffic stop on the suspect vehicle, but the suspect continued driving westbound and a pursuit ensued. NCSO deputies successfully deployed tire deflation devices, and Richardson eventually lost control of the vehicle and came to a stop in the median near milepost 271. Troopers took Richardson and a female passenger into custody without further incident. Richardson was booked into the Navajo County Jail on the outstanding warrants and also faces a felony charge of unlawful flight from law enforcement.