Biggs Hosts Trump’s Drug Czar In Arizona As Overdose Deaths Rise

Biggs Hosts Trump’s Drug Czar In Arizona As Overdose Deaths Rise

by | Jun 3, 2026 | News

By Staff Reporter |

The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) paid a visit to Arizona last week.

Sara Carter, director of the ONDCP, came to address Arizona’s unique situation with its ongoing drug crisis. Arizona was one of few states to experience an increase in drug overdose deaths rather than a decrease in 2025. Not only that: Arizona had the most drug overdose deaths last year.

While drug overdose deaths decreased 31% nationwide, Arizona experienced a 30% increase in drug overdose deaths.

Republican Rep. Andy Biggs (AZ-05) hosted Carter’s visit to Arizona, and Republican Rep. Eli Crane (AZ-02) joined the pair for meetings according to a press release from Biggs. These meetings were also attended by Drug Enforcement Administration officials, tribal partners, local law enforcement, and Angel Families. 

Angel Families include all family members of individuals victimized or killed by criminal illegal aliens. Nearly all of the Angel Families in attendance last week were those whose loved ones fell victim to the crimes and violence resulting from drug cartel activity. 

Eight of those families testified at a roundtable hosted at the Arizona State Capitol on Friday. These families claimed that the deaths of their loved ones were preventable through stricter immigration enforcement policies. 

Among those to testify were Mary Ann Mendoza, who recounted how her son, Mesa police officer Brandon Mendoza, was killed in 2014 by an illegal alien drunk driver who had a criminal record dating back to 1994 and was living as a fugitive at the time of the crash. 

Doug and Patricia Quets shared how their adult son Nicholas Quets, a Marine veteran, was murdered by Sinaloa cartel members in 2024. 

Fernando Basurto explained that his grandson, Fernando Jose Basurto Jr., was about to graduate high school and had plans to enter the Air Force when he was murdered by a criminal illegal alien in 2016, who had been released shortly prior to the murder. Basurto said that former Sen. Martha McSally initially soured him on Congress because she refused to see their family to discuss Fernando Jose’s murder.

Patti Fox testified alongside her adult daughter, Carissa Aspnes, who was struck and severely disabled by an illegal alien running a stop sign in 2025. Carissa — a second-generation American on her grandmother’s side, a legal immigrant from Thailand — suffered a traumatic brain injury and now requires full-time care. Fox said local investigators initially covered up the fact that Carissa’s assailants were illegal aliens who entered the country under the Biden administration. 

Karen Griffin explained that her teen son, Tyler Griffin, passed away in 2020 after taking a pill he believed to be Tylenol, but was actually laced with fentanyl.  

Similarly, Anne Fundner shared that her 15-year-old son, Weston Fundner, passed away in 2022 after taking pills laced with fentanyl.

Carter promised to incorporate those suggestions from Friday’s roundtable into legislative proposals and policies put forth by the Trump administration. 

Attendees included Reps. Quang Nguyen (R-LD-1), Nick Kupper (R-LD-25), and Lisa Fink (RLD-27); Sen. Carine Wrner (RLD-4); Maricopa County Supervisor Debbie Lesko; Queen Creek Mayor Julia Wheatley; and Art Del Cueto, formerly president of the National Border Patrol Council.

As part of its mission to address the drug crisis, ONDCP has taken a special focus on Arizona’s increase in drug overdose deaths, especially those involving fentanyl. It is the belief of the Trump administration, and Biggs and Crane, that the border policies of former President Joe Biden are to blame for Arizona’s ongoing drug crisis. 

Carter commended Arizona as taking steps to fight back against the drug crisis. 

“These communities know firsthand the devastating impact of illicit drugs,” said Carter. “President Trump and his administration will continue to fight for our citizens until every American is free to live a safe and healthy life, free from the scourge of illicit drugs.”

Earlier this month, ONDCP released a 200-page National Drug Control Strategy for 2026. 

Under this administration, Trump has signed legislation classifying fentanyl-related compounds as Schedule I drugs; designated cartels as foreign terrorist organizations; designated illicit fentanyl and its core precursor chemicals as weapons of mass destruction; and signed legislation expanding the border wall and increasing deportations. 

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Mesa Police Commemorate Officer Slain By Drunk, High Illegal Immigrant

Mesa Police Commemorate Officer Slain By Drunk, High Illegal Immigrant

by | May 14, 2024 | News

By Staff Reporter |

On Sunday, Mother’s Day, the Mesa Police Department commemorated 10 years since the death of Sergeant Brandon Mendoza.

At 32 years old and with 13 years on the force, Mendoza was slain while returning from work by a drunk illegal immigrant driving the wrong way on the freeway. His killer, Raul Silva-Corona, had a lengthy criminal record and was driving without a license at the time of the accident. Silva-Corona was high on meth and his blood-alcohol content was .24 percent, three times the legal limit.

Mendoza died the day after Mother’s Day that year. Mendoza was survived by his parents, siblings, and extended family. It was Mendoza’s dream since childhood to become a police officer, according to his obituary and subsequent interviews with his mother, Mary Ann Mendoza.

Silva-Corona’s criminal record dated back for nearly 20 years to 1994, when he was arrested for burglary and assaulting an officer in Colorado. Silva-Corona skipped out on his sentencing hearing, avoiding detection until 2012 when Border Patrol discovered him in Arizona and transported him back to Colorado. Instead of imprisonment or deportation, Colorado sentenced Silva-Corona to probation and freed him. 

Mendoza’s mother, Mary Ann, would later become a vocal supporter of former President Donald Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigration, a sharp departure from predecessor Barack Obama and successor Joe Biden. Mary Ann appeared frequently on Trump’s 2016 campaign trail.

“Every person who’s here illegally is going to have a sob story about their family being ripped apart,” said Mendoza in 2017. “Unfortunately, I don’t have a lot of sympathy for them if they’ve committed a crime. My family’s already been ripped apart.”

After her son’s death, Mary Ann petitioned Obama to ban illegal immigrants from registering vehicles. She also founded Angel Families, a national support and advocacy group for families of individuals killed by illegal immigrants. Mendoza’s organization is engaging in a class action lawsuit against the Biden administration over not enforcing immigration laws. 

Mary Ann was a guest speaker for the 2016 Republican National Convention (RNC). 

“Every one of the crimes [Silva-Corona] committed had laws that should’ve resulted in jail time, but it didn’t happen. Instead, I had my son’s life stolen from me by a man who was three times the legal limit drunk, was high on meth, and drove for over 35 miles the wrong way on four different freeways, and he had no business being in this country,” said Mary Ann. “His death has left a large void in many people’s lives. This is a good cop’s story, cut short.” 

Mendoza was one of the first officers to volunteer to wear a body camera. 

Mary Ann was the guest of Congressman Andy Biggs for the 2020 State of the Union address. 

The City of Mesa honored Mendoza’s memory in 2015 through the renaming of its baseball field at Guerrero Rotary Park, “Mendoza Field.”

AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.