On Thursday, September 8, 2022, detectives with the Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) Vehicle Theft Task Force (VTTF), the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office (YCSO) and Prescott Valley Police Department (PVPD) arrested 39-year-old Todd Dawkins, of Prescott, on numerous felony and misdemeanor charges related to the illegal sale of stolen catalytic converters in the last 18 months.

While serving a search warrant on Dawkins’ property, investigators also seized approximately 350 catalytic converters (worth over $250,000).

On Friday, September 16, 2022, Dawkins was indicted on numerous charges related to fraudulent schemes and artifices, trafficking in stolen property, illegal control of an enterprise and money laundering.

VTTF is comprised of city, county, state 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 Wednesday, September 14, 2022, an Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) trooper initiated a traffic stop on the driver of a Ford Fusion sedan on northbound Interstate 19 at kilometer 80, near Sahuarita, AZ.

During the traffic stop, the trooper observed multiple indicators of criminal activity. A subsequent search of the vehicle led to the discovery of 52 pounds of suspected fentanyl pills concealed within a compartment built into the vehicle's rocker panels. The suspected fentanyl was being smuggled from Nogales, Mexico, to Tucson.

The suspect driver, 28-year-old Andres Ramirez-Sanchez of Douglas, Arizona, was arrested and booked into the Pima County Jail on charges including possession, transportation, and sale of narcotic drugs.

On Friday, September 23, 2022, Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) troopers responded to a U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) inspection checkpoint on State Route 85 at milepost 18, near Gila Bend, after a USBP canine alerted to a vehicle at the inspection.

A search of the suspect vehicle, a white Chevrolet Malibu sedan, revealed an aftermarket compartment in the vehicle containing approximately 26.4 pounds of suspected fentanyl pills, 1.7 pounds of an unknown drug, and .3 pounds of a brown powdery substance.

If you haven’t already, please talk to your loved ones - especially kids and teens - about the dangers of taking unknown pills. Pills laced with potentially deadly amounts of fentanyl are now seen in many colors – not just blue – and may be labeled “M30” to resemble commonly prescribed oxycodone tablets.

On Wednesday, October 5, 2022, an Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) trooper initiated a traffic stop on the driver of a black Ford sedan on Interstate 8 eastbound at milepost 16, near Yuma. During the traffic stop a vehicle search was conducted, and troopers located 52 pounds of suspected fentanyl pills and 16 pounds of suspected fentanyl powder concealed in the sedan’s fuel tank.

The driver, 21-year-old Michelle Gonzalez Rodriguez, a resident of Mexicali, Mexico, was arrested and booked into the Yuma County Jail on charges including possession and transportation of narcotic drugs for sale.

The passenger, 20-year-old Dayanara Gonzalez Rodriguez, a resident of Hemet, CA, was also arrested and booked into the Yuma County Jail on charges including possession and transportation of narcotic drugs for sale.

The suspected fentanyl was being smuggled from Mexicali, MX, to the Phoenix area.