HELENA — The Montana Department of Justice is providing an update on the state’s fight against illegal drugs, including drug seizures and overdose trends for quarter 2 of this year.
Montana drug task forces have already seized hundreds of pounds of illegal drugs this year.
Watch the full breakdown below:
“It is here, and this is not just a big city problem,” Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen said.
The fentanyl numbers stand out. Data shows about 144 fentanyl dosage units seized so far this year, along with around 10 pounds of the drug. That's down from the totals reported in recent full years.
“In 2024 we were at an absolute high watermark for fentanyl seizures in Montana. Fentanyl was out of control,” Knudsen said. “We saw a 70 percent drop in fentanyl seizures between 24 and 25, so that is the good news. Those numbers are holding steady.”
“In that amount, though, we have seen an increase in the percentage of it being in a powdered form rather than in a pill form, and with that have seen a higher ratio of overdose risk,” Steve Crawford, the Montana DCI Narcotics Bureau chief, added.
The DOJ also reports more than 190 pounds of methamphetamine seized so far in 2026.
“I am aware of large multi-pound seizures and ongoing investigations, so meth remains a top drug threat,” Crawford said.
That's already more than half of the 304 pounds seized during all of 2025.
“When we look at the demographics of that, there is not really a demographic. All age groups, all ethnicities, gender does not really play a role,” Knudsen added.
Meth is not the only drug with an upward trend. “We are on track to double our cocaine seizures from last year,” Knudsen said.
The state stresses these figures come from six Montana task forces, including DOJ Narcotics Bureau agents and Montana Highway Patrol criminal interdiction teams. They are not a statewide total of every drug seized by every law enforcement agency, but officials say they help identify broader trends.
