Snapchat under surveillance Snapchat has been investing in its law enforcement team as it receives a substantial number of requests for user data (Photo illustration by STR/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
NurPhoto via Getty Images
Alleged fentanyl dealers in Arizona spied on over Snapchat — something that would be impossible on WhatsApp or Signal.
In 2021, the FBI started running wiretaps in Tucson, Arizona, on what agents believed to be founding members of the Southside Murda Gang Killas — “a violent Bloods hybrid criminal street crew,” according to the bureau, known for smuggling people, guns and drugs over the Mexican border into Arizona. Investigators targeted Snapchat conversations between Bryan Moreno-Aguilar and two associates. Agents said they intercepted audio messages in December in which Moreno-Aguilar’s account appeared to ask for help with stashing supplies — allegedly narcotics. In one audio message, the owner of an account the FBI believed to be controlled by Moreno-Aguilar said, “I just need someone … a stash house where I can put my shit away.”
Later, the FBI intercepted video sent via Snapchat in which a suspect was counting out “what agents believe to be approximately 1,000 counterfeit M30 pills on a table,” according to a search warrant. M30 pills often contain the dangerous opioid fentanyl. (Moreno-Aguilar has been charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute fentanyl, though there’s no record of his arrest or a contact listed for his legal representation. He remains innocent until proven guilty.)
Included in a search warrant unsealed earlier this year, the Snapchat surveillance operation offers a rare insight into how police can intercept
