Natalie Kitroweth

It is always a pleasure, Michael.

It is always a pleasure, Michael.

It's weird being on the mic as a guest, but here we are.

It's weird being on the mic as a guest, but here we are.

I know. I was kind of wondering how you were going to handle that.

I know. I was kind of wondering how you were going to handle that.

So I'm the bureau chief here in Mexico City. And for a really long time now, I've been obsessed with the fentanyl problem. Obviously, we know that in the United States, fentanyl has just been a scourge for years. It is killing tens of thousands of Americans every year. And much of the fentanyl that ends up on the street is made in Mexico.

So I'm the bureau chief here in Mexico City. And for a really long time now, I've been obsessed with the fentanyl problem. Obviously, we know that in the United States, fentanyl has just been a scourge for years. It is killing tens of thousands of Americans every year. And much of the fentanyl that ends up on the street is made in Mexico.

Mexico is a huge producer of fentanyl, not just in the U.S., but worldwide. And so I wanted to get into that manufacturing operation. This is a synthetic opioid. It's not grown in fields like heroin, you know, cocaine. These are natural drugs. Fentanyl is made from chemicals in labs.

Mexico is a huge producer of fentanyl, not just in the U.S., but worldwide. And so I wanted to get into that manufacturing operation. This is a synthetic opioid. It's not grown in fields like heroin, you know, cocaine. These are natural drugs. Fentanyl is made from chemicals in labs.

And to understand how these little pills end up in the hands of Americans every single day, I found it extremely important to see with my own eyes exactly how it's made step by step.

And to understand how these little pills end up in the hands of Americans every single day, I found it extremely important to see with my own eyes exactly how it's made step by step.

Yeah. I mean, it wasn't easy. These are, as you said, illegal labs. This is happening underground. This is clandestine. You know, how do you break into a network that is run by cartels, by powerful organizations that are responsible for death and destruction across the country?

Yeah. I mean, it wasn't easy. These are, as you said, illegal labs. This is happening underground. This is clandestine. You know, how do you break into a network that is run by cartels, by powerful organizations that are responsible for death and destruction across the country?

No, but I mean, you should. You have to if you want to understand this thing, right? And yes, there are risks, obviously, but there's no way to really get inside this business without seeing it for yourself. And so my colleague Paulina Villegas and I started making trips to Sinaloa. Sinaloa is a state in the northwest of Mexico.

No, but I mean, you should. You have to if you want to understand this thing, right? And yes, there are risks, obviously, but there's no way to really get inside this business without seeing it for yourself. And so my colleague Paulina Villegas and I started making trips to Sinaloa. Sinaloa is a state in the northwest of Mexico.

It is a major hub of global fentanyl production, and it's the home base of one of the most dangerous and powerful criminal organizations in the world, the Sinaloa cartel. We knew that we had to make inroads in this state in order to get into a lab because these are the guys that really dominate production, according to U.S. law enforcement. So we started to go there. We started reporting.

It is a major hub of global fentanyl production, and it's the home base of one of the most dangerous and powerful criminal organizations in the world, the Sinaloa cartel. We knew that we had to make inroads in this state in order to get into a lab because these are the guys that really dominate production, according to U.S. law enforcement. So we started to go there. We started reporting.

We made contacts within the cartel. We did interviews. We talked to leaders. We talked to cooks, meaning the people who actually make the fentanyl. And I mean, there were so many obstacles that kept preventing us from getting into a lab. We had an inroad here. It was shut down. An inroad there. It had just been busted. And then finally, in the middle of December, we got in.

We made contacts within the cartel. We did interviews. We talked to leaders. We talked to cooks, meaning the people who actually make the fentanyl. And I mean, there were so many obstacles that kept preventing us from getting into a lab. We had an inroad here. It was shut down. An inroad there. It had just been busted. And then finally, in the middle of December, we got in.