ATF-Led Portland Operation Seizes 97 Firearms, 195 Pounds of Drugs

Federal agents seized 97 firearms and about 195 pounds of illicit drugs in a five-week Portland metro operation, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon announced Tuesday, October 27. ATF’s Seattle Field Division put out the release from Portland, Oregon, and it counts 17 arrests so far.

The release calls the effort a coordinated federal law enforcement operation. It ran from August to September 2026. The U.S. Attorney’s Office and ATF, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, worked with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and local law enforcement partners. Agents used data to identify high-risk locations, then carried out investigative work that led to the seizures.

The drugs included methamphetamine, cocaine, crack cocaine and fentanyl. The release gives one combined drug weight and does not describe the firearms by type. It lists no charges.

Seventeen individuals had been arrested, and the release words the figure as “to date.” It lists their names but no charges.

A photo with the release is captioned as ATF on scene at a search warrant in Portland.

Jonathan Blais, Special Agent in Charge of the ATF Seattle Field Division, said removing trafficked firearms and dangerous drugs from Portland’s streets means “we have made a meaningful difference” for the residents, students and visitors to the community. He thanked the law enforcement and prosecutorial partners who joined ATF, and said the agency remains committed to measurable results.

Robert A. Saccone, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Seattle Field Division, said, “Drug trafficking and violence go hand in hand, putting innocent lives and entire communities at risk.” He said DEA is committed to reducing violence in America’s most affected cities. DEA will keep working with federal, state and local partners under Fentanyl Free America to cut the fentanyl supply chain and its availability.

The release lists 17 participating agencies. On the federal side are the U.S. Attorney’s Office, ATF, DEA, the FBI, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Marshals Service and the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) Program. Police departments from Portland, Gresham, Salem, Scappoose and the Port of Portland took part, along with Hillsboro police and its Westside Interagency Narcotics Taskforce (WIN).

In Multnomah County, the district attorney’s office, the sheriff’s office and the parole and probation department took part. The Washington County Sheriff’s Office joined through its Community Violence Reduction Team.

The count of 17 arrests is as of the October 27 release, which gives no court dates.