{"id":138279,"date":"2026-07-09T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-09T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/montezuma-county-detective-sergeant-receives-dea-award-amid-disbandment-of-narcotics-investigatio\/"},"modified":"2026-07-09T08:00:00","modified_gmt":"2026-07-09T14:00:00","slug":"montezuma-county-detective-sergeant-receives-dea-award-amid-disbandment-of-narcotics-investigatio","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/montezuma-county-detective-sergeant-receives-dea-award-amid-disbandment-of-narcotics-investigatio\/","title":{"rendered":"Montezuma County detective sergeant receives DEA award amid disbandment of narcotics investigation team"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"Montezuma
Montezuma County Sheriff's Office Detective Sgt. Victor Galarza was presented an Outstanding Service Award from the Drug Enforcement Administration. (Courtesy ofVictor Galarza)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Longtime Montezuma County Sheriff\u2019s Office Detective Sgt. Victor Galarza was recently awarded the Outstanding Service Award from the Drug Enforcement Administration for his work as a member of the Montezuma-Cortez Narcotics Investigation Team.<\/p>\n

Galarza will also be presented the Medal of Valor and his second Meritorious Service Award from the sheriff\u2019s office in December.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday, I received recognition from the DEA and my counterpart, SA J. Scott, for outstanding service, which has been a true honor,\u201d Galarza told The<\/em> Journal<\/em>. \u201cServing as a DEA task force officer for the past eight years has been a privilege and an incredible way to serve Montezuma County.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite his love of the work he\u2019s done in the county for the past 15 years, Galarza announced that he is leaving Cortez following the disbandment of the Montezuma-Cortez Narcotics Investigation Team due to cuts to the sheriff\u2019s office\u2019s budget.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been the greatest honor of my life to serve with Sheriff Nowlin, and for almost 15 years, serving the people of Montezuma County,\u201d Galarza said. \u201cHowever, with that said, due to the budget cuts \u2026 they\u2019ve cut the legs right out from underneath it (MCNIT), and we could no longer afford to have the Montezuma-Cortez Narcotics Investigation Team.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Montezuma
Montezuma County Sheriff\u2019s Office Detective Sgt. Victor Galarza was awarded the Outstanding Service Award from the Drug Enforcement Administration for his work as a member of the Montezuma-Cortez Narcotics Investigation Team. (Courtesy of Victor Galarza)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Galarza, who is also fluent in Spanish, has received one other Meritorious Service Award and three Distinguished Service Awards.<\/p>\n

During his time on the task force, Galarza and his partners, first Cortez Police Department\u2019s Detective Tom Quinnett and then Detective Trevor Robertson, worked on several record-setting investigations in collaboration with agencies such as the DEA, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Land Management and others.<\/p>\n

2025\u2019s Operation<\/a> Wild<\/a> Mustang<\/a>, which started in October 2023 and ended summer 2025, is the largest county narcotics investigation to date. Fifteen people were charged or convicted, and 14,154 grams of methamphetamine, 4,083 counterfeit fentanyl pills, 525 grams of fentanyl powder and 71,406 grams of cocaine worth more than $11 million were seized, along with $13,326 and 11 firearms.<\/p>\n

\"More
More than 3 pounds of meth and more than 1,000 fentanyl pills are pictured following a MCNIT operation. (Courtesy of MCNIT)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Following Operation Wild Mustang, Cortez Police Chief Vernon Knuckles nominated the team for Colorado Drug Investigators Association\u2019s 2025 Drug Task Force of the Year.<\/p>\n

Operation<\/a> Hot<\/a> Summer<\/a> Nights<\/a> shut down a drug trafficking operation in Cortez in 2024, with eight people convicted and sentenced. Meth and fentanyl were the drugs seized in that operation.<\/p>\n

The most recent operation<\/a> made public came to its conclusion in May after a six-month investigation that led to the seizure of meth and fentanyl with an estimated street value of $1.4 million.<\/p>\n

Just last<\/a> year<\/a> alone, MCNIT seized drugs worth more than $13.3 million. In the report, 88 pounds of meth, 168 pounds of cocaine, 23,370 counterfeit fentanyl pills, and nearly 10 ounces of fentanyl powder were seized.<\/p>\n

These numbers marked a sharp increase from 2024, with a 1,874% jump in fentanyl powder. In 2024, only 2.5 grams of cocaine powder was seized, but 76,298 grams (168 pounds) was seized in 2025.<\/p>\n

Galarza also recounted personally suffering a fentanyl overdose during evidence collection during one operation, requiring doses of Narcan and hospital treatment.<\/p>\n

He has often called Cortez a \u201chub\u201d for drugs, with more than nine drug organizations operating in the county. Many if not all of those organizations have connections to the Mexican drug cartels, he said.<\/p>\n

He even spoke on the subject of cartels on a recent episode of the DINESH Podcast with Dinesh D\u2019Souza. The episode is titled \u201cInside the Cartels.\u201d Along with being part of drug bust operations, Galarza has helped train various law enforcement agencies across the U.S. and Canada.<\/p>\n

Despite MCNIT\u2019s successes, the sheriff\u2019s office was forced to end the team following a series of cuts to their budget, which has reportedly been cut incrementally by the Montezuma County Commissioners over the past few years.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re not going to be able to do the large importation cases that he (Galarza) and the Cortez PD detective have done over the years,\u201d Sheriff Steve Nowlin said. \u201cMy resources have been cut by the commissioners, and it\u2019s just the way that it is. I can\u2019t provide the public safety that we once did, which is really sad.\u201d<\/p>\n

The cuts have also caused other deputies to leave for other agencies.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m losing certified deputies, good people to other agencies on a regular basis. I just lost a patrol sergeant to the Telluride Marshall\u2019s office, I lost a couple officers to the Cortez Police Department and to the Mancos Marshall\u2019s office, just because they pay better and have better benefits,\u201d Nowlin said.<\/p>\n

The Cortez police detective formerly working with Galarza in MCNIT will now join the Southwest Drug Task Force based in Durango, which will serve both La Plata and Montezuma counties, Galarza said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe job of government is to provide safety and security for its people,\u201d Galarza said. \u201cI can tell you, as a law enforcement officer in Montezuma County, we don\u2019t have the ability to do that at this point. They have cut our legs right from underneath us.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said experienced deputies are leaving the sheriff\u2019s office just like him because of the budget cuts.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe best career I\u2019ve ever had was being a narcotics officer here in Cortez, but now I can\u2019t do that. The only reason I stayed is because of the love of the job. Now, well, there\u2019s no job,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The sheriff\u2019s office attempted to supplement some of their lost funds through Ballot Issue 1A, collective bargaining, in 2024, but the issue was struck down by county voters with a 55.9% \u201cno\u201d vote. Beginning in 2025, the issue would have increased taxes by an estimated $8,123,002, followed by a 1% raise in retail sales taxes \u2013 and excluding farm and property taxes \u2013 to better fund the sheriff\u2019s office, Montezuma County Detention Center and MCNIT.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re still continuing to do the best that we can with what we have, and always will, as long as I\u2019m the sheriff \u2026 until January,\u201d Nowlin said.<\/p>\n

A new sheriff will be elected in November.<\/p>\n

bduran@the-journal.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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