Pop singer Britney Spears voluntarily checked herself into a rehab treatment facility on Sunday, April 12, her rep confirmed. This happened just hours after she posted a video to Instagram — in which she could be seen slapping her own butt while dressed in a thong — just five weeks after she was arrested on suspicion of DUI.
The 44-year-old singer has a scheduled court date of May 4. 
Spears was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol (DUI) in Ventura County, California, on March 4, as The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/britney-spears-arrested-manager-calls-incident-inexcusable">reported</a>. She was released the next day.
Her rep released a statement at the time, calling it an &#8220;unfortunate incident&#8221; and saying that it was &#8220;completely inexcusable.&#8221;
&#8220;Britney is going to take the right steps and comply with the law and hopefully this can be the first step in long overdue change that needs to occur in Britney’s life. Hopefully, she can get the help and support she needs during this difficult time,&#8221; the statement said. &#8220;Her boys are going to be spending time with her. Her loved ones are going to come up with an overdue needed plan to set her up for success for well being.&#8221;
The pop star shares two sons, Sean Preston, 20, and Jayden James, 19, with ex-husband Kevin Federline.
Spears was previously charged with a misdemeanor hit-and-run in 2007, which was later dismissed. She was hospitalized for a psychiatric evaluation the following year and was subsequently placed under a conservatorship overseen primarily by her father. That arrangement lasted 13 years before a judge terminated it in November of 2021, following the fan-led “Free Britney” movement. 
Since the conservatorship ended, the “Toxic” singer has remained active on social media — where a number of posts have drawn concern from fans, such as posting videos of herself dancing, often scantily clad and sometimes with knives. 
In recent months, Spears has been taking aim at her family in Instagram posts, claiming they’ve treated her poorly. Following her DUI arrest, she shared a post of herself spending time with her two sons, including a trip she took with them on a yacht in late March.

Britney Spears

Britney Spears Heads To Rehab After Posting Another Wild Video, DUI Arrest

Alcohol

Celebrities

Drugs

Entertainment

Today on &#8220;Dystopia Now,&#8221; we take a look at something called the Enhanced Games, where nearly 40 athletes compete while doped up on performance-enhancing substances. You can catch them at Resorts World Las Vegas in late May.
A Legion of Doom-worthy coalition of tech billionaires is funding the Enhanced Games, including Peter Thiel, the Winklevoss twins, Saudi prince Khaled bin Alwaleed Al Saud, and Donald Trump Jr. According to their materials, it’s &#8220;a diversified revenue model designed to capitalize on the growing global demand for sports entertainment, performance enhancement and longevity products.&#8221;
As Richard Dawson said in &#8220;The Running Man,&#8221; “Without further ado, it’s time to start running!”
A major driver behind the Enhanced Games is German tech billionaire Christian Angermayer, the author of the Next Human Agenda. He is <a href="https://christianangermayer.substack.com/p/the-future-is-enhanced">pushing the games</a> as &#8220;a significant economic driver for the biotech pharma industry in the years ahead.&#8221;
 If the Enhanced Games sounds suspiciously like an advertisement for Compound V, the superhuman-making substance in &#8220;The Boys,&#8221; it should. This isn’t a sports gambit — it’s an advertisement for the “longevity” industry, based on big tech’s obsession with expanding the human lifespan and human vitality. 
The problem is, Compound V can create metahumans like Homelander, who is a total psychopath but is essentially evil Superman, but it can also create people with the power to shoot octopi out of their butts, or some such thing. We know that these substances aren’t steroids or cocaine, but we don’t know much else about them, or about their long-term effects. The Enhanced Games is promising sprint records, but A-Train, the super-sprinter on &#8220;The Boys,&#8221; has extreme heart issues and a dependency on Compound V.
Some athletes — who are either being paid very well, desperate for glory, or both — don’t seem to care. Greek swimmer Kristian Gkolomeev broke a 50-meter freestyle world record in an Enhanced Games trial last year, making a million dollars in the process. As Forbes <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/josipamajic/2026/04/06/pro-doping-enhanced-games-raise-12-billion-before-a-single-race/">reported</a> this week, “Irish swimmer Max McCusker, also an Olympian, said publicly that his decision to join was a &#8220;no-brainer&#8221; after earning less than $10,000 across four years of professional swimming.”
<div id="attachment_1076275" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1076275" class="size-large wp-image-1076275" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/04/Enhanced-Games-II-1024x549.jpg" alt="Screenshot: Enhanced Games/YouTube.com" width="1024" height="549" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/04/Enhanced-Games-II-1024x549.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/04/Enhanced-Games-II-300x161.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/04/Enhanced-Games-II-768x411.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/04/Enhanced-Games-II-1536x823.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/04/Enhanced-Games-II.jpg 1960w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Screenshot: Enhanced Games/YouTube.com</div>
So what&#8217;s the endgame? Clearly, life expansion is a mantra of the day, slotting in alongside at-home helper robots, personalized flight, Mars colonization, and the AI singularity. We seem to be heading toward a bifurcated, Gattaca-like future, with “optimized” people at the top of the pyramid and a vast mass of suboptimal people at the bottom, Elois performing feats of strength at Resorts World for an audience of barely human Morlocks.
All this reminds me of the opening credits of the “Six Million Dollar Man,” “Gentlemen, we can rebuild him. We have the technology. We have the capability of making the world’s first bionic man. Better than he was before. Better. Stronger. Faster.” (Of course, today, six million is rounding error).
This future is actually kind of appealing, even interesting. We should at least try to see if the current billionaire obsession with hyperbaric cold plunges and blood transfusions and liquid megavitamins and genetic manipulation works. My own program of fish-oil pills, probiotics, not eating like crap, and standing on my head a few times a week seems to be working just fine, but I haven’t really started into the peak of my decline yet.
The real test of Enhanced Games technology won’t be how it affects super-swimmers or Olympic sprinters, who are already close to Peak Personhood. When they start injecting nootropics into people like me, to see if they can make the Substack posts a little snarkier and the decision-making at the $400 No-Limit Hold Em poker tournaments a little smarter, then we’ll see how well it works. Just remember that, sure, there are a lot of super-people in &#8220;The Boys.&#8221; But most of them end up with exploding heads.
* * *
Neal Pollack, “the greatest living American writer,” is the author of 12 semi-bestselling books of fiction and nonfiction and is a three-time “Jeopardy!” champion.

enhanced games

The Enhanced Games And The Billionaire Dream Of Superhumans

DW Opinion

Humor

Las Vegas

Olympics

Performance Enhancing Drugs

Sports

Steroids

Swimming

Technology

Television

Track and Field

A woman known as the &#8220;Ketamine Queen&#8221; was sentenced Wednesday to 15 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to charges connected to the death of “Friends” actor Matthew Perry. 
Jasveen Sangha, 42, pleaded guilty last September to one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises, three counts of distribution of ketamine, and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death or serious bodily injury. 
Perry’s family had pushed for a harsh sentence ahead of the hearing. 
&#8220;The pain you&#8217;ve caused to hundreds, maybe thousands, is irreversible,&#8221; the actor’s stepmother, Debbie Perry, <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/celebrity/articles/matthew-perrys-stepmother-says-ketamine-094451974.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> in a victim impact statement. &#8220;There is no joy&#8230; No light in the window. They won&#8217;t be back.&#8221; 
&#8220;You caused this&#8230; You who has talent for business enough to make money chose the one way that hurts people,&#8221; the actor’s stepmother continued. &#8220;Please give this heartless woman the maximum prison sentence so she won&#8217;t be able to hurt other families like ours.&#8221;
Prosecutors said Sangha sold 51 vials of ketamine to Perry through his assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-cdca/pr/north-hollywood-drug-dealer-who-sold-ketamine-killed-actor-matthew-perry-sentenced-15">according</a> to the U.S. Attorney&#8217;s Office for the Central District of California.
They also accused Sangha of continuing to sell drugs even after learning that the ketamine she sold had contributed to Perry’s death.
&#8220;She didn&#8217;t care and kept selling,&#8221; the attorneys wrote in a memorandum. &#8220;[The] Defendant&#8217;s actions show a cold callousness and disregard for life. She chose profits over people, and her actions have caused immense pain to the victims&#8217; families and loved ones.&#8221;
Prosecutors further said Sangha had opportunities to stop but &#8220;simply chose not to,&#8221; and alleged that she later exchanged texts with her associates to try to distance herself from Perry’s death.
Perry was found unresponsive, face down in a hot tub at his Pacific Palisades home on October 28, 2023. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s office determined he had drowned, with ketamine listed as a contributing factor. The level of ketamine found in his system was close to a range used for general anesthesia, The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/doctor-to-plead-guilty-in-connection-with-friends-actor-matthew-perrys-ketamine-overdose-death">reported</a>.
Four other defendants pleaded guilty in connection with the case, <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-cdca/pr/north-hollywood-drug-dealer-who-sold-ketamine-killed-actor-matthew-perry-sentenced-15">including</a> Dr. Mark Chavez and Dr. Salvador Plasencia. Plasencia, 44, is serving a 30-month prison sentence, while Chavez, 55, was sentenced to three years of probation, eight months of home detention, and ordered to perform 300 hours of community service.

Matthew Perry

‘Ketamine Queen’ Learns Fate In Matthew Perry Case

California

Crime

overdose

Sharks are getting a contact high as they swim through tropical waters, thanks in part to drug runners and careless tourists.
The buzz is real: Sharks swimming off the coast of Bermuda tested positive for cocaine, according to a new <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0269749126001880?via%3Dihub">study</a> published in the journal Environmental Pollution. 
The apex predators of the sea have also ingested other substances from humans, including caffeine and over-the-counter painkillers, the study noted. It’s all believed to be part of aquatic pollution generated by people on vacation. 
“Pharmaceuticals and illicit drugs are increasingly recognized as contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) in marine environments, particularly in areas undergoing rapid urbanization and tourism-driven development,” the researchers wrote in the study.
Caffeine was the most commonly found substance in the 85 specimens tested around the remote island of Eleuthera in the Bahamas. The study also detected acetaminophen and diclofenac, the active ingredients in Tylenol and Voltaren, as the next most common substances.
One of the sharks, a baby lemon shark in a nursery creek, tested positive for cocaine. Researchers said it was due to the animal biting down on discarded samples of the drug to determine what it was.
“They bite things to investigate and end up exposed,” study author Natascha Wosnick <a href="https://www.sciencenews.org/article/cocaine-sharks-drugs-bahamas-eleuthera">told</a> Science News of the findings. “It’s mostly because people are going there, peeing in the water and dumping their sewage in the water,” she told the outlet.
Sharks from other areas have tested positive for cocaine in the past, though none have tested positive in the Bahamas until this most recent study.
The topic of cocaine crazed animals was the hook of the 2023 film “Cocaine Bear” directed by Elizabeth Banks. The film was loosely based on true events that occurred in 1985 when a 175-pound black bear died of a cocaine overdose in Georgia after consuming a duffel bag of drugs dropped by a smuggler.
Animals messing around with other toxic human substances have been making headlines lately. A viral <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DWTrK09kub4/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&amp;igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==">video</a> of a squirrel chewing on a vape device in London started making the rounds online, which led to conversations about wild critters being attracted to the fruity-smelling devices. 
“In the old days, you’d see lots of discarded cigarette butts, but I don’t remember squirrels running around with them,” Craig Shuttleworth, a red squirrel expert in the U.K., <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/23/squirrel-seen-vaping-in-london-park/">told</a> The Telegraph of the phenomenon. “It would be reasonable to assume that a vape would be more attractive than a normal tobacco product that’s not fruity.”
Unfortunately, the exposure to nicotine is harmful to squirrels and other wildlife.

Baby lemon shark

The Buzz Is Real: Baby Shark Tests Positive For Cocaine

Atlantic Ocean

Cocaine

Sharks

The following is an edited transcript excerpt of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-1924-upsets-that-rocked-the-first-round-of-midterm-primaries-explained?elementPosition=2&amp;row=0&amp;rowHeadline=Recent+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel">The Michael Knowles Show</a>.
* * *
Scientists are using DMT (dimethyltryptamine), a powerful hallucinogenic drug, to allow people to communicate with the seemingly alien creatures they see when they do the drug. I wish I were making this up.
If you&#8217;ve ever had a friend who&#8217;s done DMT — or shrooms or acid for that matter — and then have them describe what they see, they may claim to see little gray weirdo aliens that all sound eerily similar. 
The title of the article in <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/some-people-see-aliens-while-on-dmt-researchers-want-to-find-out-what-they-can-teach-us/">WIRED</a> reads, “Some People See Aliens While on DMT. Researchers Want to Find Out What They Can Teach Us”
I agree with the first sentence. I think the second sentence would not follow from the first sentence. It&#8217;s probably not a good idea.
The subtitle reads, “A new psychedelic retreat calling itself a “SETI for the mind” aims to establish two-way communication with the nonhuman entities people encounter while tripping on DMT.”
What could go wrong?
From <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/some-people-see-aliens-while-on-dmt-researchers-want-to-find-out-what-they-can-teach-us/">the article:</a>
<blockquote>The idea had been suggested six years earlier in a paper by neurobiologist Andrew Gallimore.</blockquote>
So, these are not just some weirdo entrepreneurs. These are not just some journalists — he&#8217;s a neurobiologist.
<blockquote>The ethnobotanist Terence McKenna&#8230;</blockquote>
Boy, howdy, there are just so many specializations in science today, aren&#8217;t there? What do you want to be when you grow up, Sally? “I want to be an ethnobotanist.” Whatever that is.
<blockquote>— one of the more gifted articulators of the psychedelic experience — famously described these entities as “self-transforming elf machines&#8221; and “jeweled, self-dribbling basketballs from hyperspace …” McKenna likened them to playful leprechauns, but others, like Bilton, have also met more sinister beings: “dark, evil motherfuckers—horrible things,” as he describes them.</blockquote>
Okay. Tell me more. I&#8217;ve never done psychedelics.
<blockquote>The thread connecting most perceived DMT entity encounters is an overwhelming sense of technological sophistication and godlike power. “I was confronted with what seemed to me to be the undeniable hand of some kind of intelligence,” Gallimore said of his first DMT trip during his recent appearance on Joe Rogan’s podcast, “a supremely advanced, ancient, and yet highly technological intelligence.”</blockquote>
Is this sounding familiar to anyone? If you&#8217;ve done psychedelics it might be sounding familiar because you&#8217;ve experienced it. If you are familiar with religion — Christianity in particular — this might be sounding familiar, and it might not be sounding good.
<blockquote>Gallimore argues that whatever is happening to the brain during a DMT trip, it’s not mere “hallucination”—a term he uses somewhat derisively. He makes the case that DMT unlocks a realm ordinarily cut off to our senses and populated by unfathomably advanced nonhuman entities.</blockquote>
So right off the bat, there are two options. These things can be one of two things. 
They can either be, to use the language of the scholastics: “ens reale” or “ens rationis.”
They can be mind-independent beings — that is, things that have a reality in themselves outside of your own conceptions — or they can be figments of your imagination, things that we come up with in our heads.
Now the whole premise here is that we need to communicate with these things. That very phrase tells us that if these things matter at all — if we&#8217;re going to do any of this stuff, have the weird science summer camp DMT trip — then they can&#8217;t just be figments of our imagination. Because you can&#8217;t communicate with something that is not in itself a cognitive power.
Otherwise you&#8217;d just be talking to yourself. But you don&#8217;t need a DMT trip to talk to yourself. You can have a conversation in your own head.
<h3><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-1924-upsets-that-rocked-the-first-round-of-midterm-primaries-explained?elementPosition=2&amp;row=0&amp;rowHeadline=Recent+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel">WATCH: The Michael Knowles Show on DailyWire+</a></h3>
The only way to communicate is to involve two cognitive powers. I can&#8217;t communicate with my tumbler. I can&#8217;t communicate with this piece of paper. I can communicate with another person — because he or she has cognitive power.
So right off the bat, we are assuming these things are real — but they&#8217;re not physical. They&#8217;re not visible ordinarily. They&#8217;re purely intelligence. Pure intelligence with which we might communicate, but only if we do things that are bad and sinful, like lose our minds on drugs.
That is a demon.
That&#8217;s a long way of saying, that&#8217;s a demon.
Invisible, nonphysical cognitive powers are spirits. That&#8217;s what a spirit means. Spirits can be angels. They can be demons. There are other kinds of spiritual realities.
Now, the ones we invite in to communicate when we are doing bad things — when we are sinning — they&#8217;re not the good ones. They&#8217;re the bad ones. They&#8217;re demons.
I am not a guy — I’ve said this many times — who sees demons under every rock. I know that&#8217;s very popular now. I&#8217;ve had conversations with exorcists. I acknowledge spiritual reality. But I take the C.S. Lewis approach: you don&#8217;t want to think about demons none of the time, because then you might leave yourself open to danger. But you also don&#8217;t want to think about demons all the time, because then you&#8217;re obsessing over spiritual darkness instead of focusing on God.
So you should think about demons a little bit of the time. This is one of those times.
Do not go do a bunch of drugs with a bunch of hippie scientists and try to talk to demons. It&#8217;s a bad idea.
What is it you desire that would impel you to go do this? There are plenty of people who take psychedelics and want to talk to the aliens — which are demons. Either they&#8217;re hallucinations, in which case the whole thing is pointless, or they&#8217;re demons.
What would impel you?
Because you want to learn something about yourself or about the world?
Well, if you want to learn something — if you want to learn the truth — you should speak to God, who is the truth, the way, and the life. Christ says that. You would want to speak to the true source and summit of all being, rather than demons whose defining characteristic is that they&#8217;re evil and they lie.
Why else would you want to do it?
I&#8217;ll tell you why. And to be fair to the drug users, the reason they want this is because they recognize we are partly spiritual creatures. They recognize we don&#8217;t comprehend all the truth.
They want knowledge.
But if you want that, the reason you would go do drugs with scientists instead of going to church, reading the Bible, praying, or receiving the sacraments — the difference is this: those things promise the truth on God&#8217;s terms, while drugs promise the truth on your terms.
You want to increase your personal agency. You want to become like a god yourself rather than submit your will and reason to God, who is omnipotent and omniscient.
That&#8217;s why it&#8217;s just a reiteration of the original sin in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve had everything. They were walking with God. It was paradise. But they wanted paradise on their own terms.
And when you try to make paradise on your own terms, it turns into hell.
So, have I made my point clear? Don&#8217;t do drugs and try to talk to demons. This should go without saying, but we&#8217;re living in a very confused age.

Abstract Mental Health PTSD Psilocybin mushroom treatment concept with human silhouette with brain and health management elements, symptoms, issues, science, treatment

Scientists Are Convincing Drug Addicts To Talk To Demons

Bible

Michael Knowles

Opinion

Psychedelics

Americans are being asked by the State Department to remain sheltered in place in parts of Mexico due to civil unrest following the successful killing of Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes on Sunday.
Cervantes was killed by the Mexican army with “complementary information” provided by the United States, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/chaos-erupts-in-mexico-after-cartel-boss-el-mencho-killed-by-special-forces?topStoryPosition=undefined&amp;author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=1&amp;rowHeadline=Top+Stories&amp;rowType=Top+Stories&amp;title=Chaos+Erupts+In+Mexico+After+Cartel+Boss+%E2%80%98El+Mencho%E2%80%99+Killed+By+Special+Forces" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Daily Wire</a> reported.
The State Department’s travel alert specifically notes that Americans in the Mexican states of Jalisco, Baja California, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Michoacán, Oaxaca, Nuevo León, Tamaulipas and Quintana Roo State “should shelter in place until further notice.” The states contain major tourism hubs such as Puerto Vallarta, Guadalajara, Cancún, as well as Playa del Carmen and Tulum, among other major cities.
“Due to ongoing, widespread security operations and related road blockages and criminal activity in many areas of Mexico, U.S. citizens should shelter in place until further notice,” the U.S. Department of State Consular Affairs posted to X on Sunday afternoon.
“Roadblocks have impacted airline operations, with some domestic &amp; int’l flights canceled in both Guadalajara &amp; Puerto Vallarta. Taxis/ride shares are suspended in Puerto Vallarta. Seek shelter and remain in residences or hotels,” the post added.
Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs, Mora Namdar, posted that &#8220;the Trump Administration has no higher priority than the safety and security of U.S. citizens&#8221; and to &#8220;keep family and friends advised of your location and well-being.&#8221;
She is encouraging Americans in Mexico to join the Smart Traveler Enrollment program, monitor the department&#8217;s social media and to contact the phone numbers listed on the <a href="https://mx.usembassy.gov/security-alert-update-ongoing-security-operations-u-s-mission-mexico-february-22-2026/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">security alert</a> if needed.
The security alert also recommends that Americans stay away from crowds and “areas around law enforcement activity,” check local news, and “be aware” of their environment.
The alert also noted that employees at the American consulate in Tijuana are having to shelter in place, and those who work at the consulate in Monterrey are being asked to stay in the region. The Daily Wire reported that cartel members throughout the country were setting fire to buses and even blocking roads.
Southwest Airlines issued a travel alert for Puerto Vallarta, and American and United Airlines issued alerts for Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta. Some airlines are offering options for rebooking if someone’s flight is affected by the situation. In 2024, an estimated 870,000 American &#8220;residents&#8221; traveled to Puerto Vallarta and a million visiting Guadalajara, as Mexico was considered the &#8220;largest outbound market&#8221; for Americans leaving the U.S., according to the <a href="https://www.trade.gov/feature-article/us-outbound-travelers-characteristics-2024?utm_source=chatgpt.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">International Trade Administration</a>.

Marco Rubio

Americans Asked To ‘Shelter In Place’ As Cartel-Related Violence Spills Into Mexican Tourist Hubs

Americans Asked To 'Shelter In Place' Amid Unrest In Mexico's Tourist Hubs

Cartels

Mexico

Travel

Chaos swept across parts of western Mexico on Sunday following the killing of one of the country’s most feared cartel leaders in a military operation that officials say was carried out with U.S. cooperation.
Mexican special forces killed Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes, the longtime head of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), during an operation in Tapalpa, Jalisco, according to the Mexican government. Oseguera was widely regarded as one of the most powerful drug traffickers in the world.
According to the <a href="https://x.com/EmbamexEUA/status/2025664020431151423">Mexican Embassy in the United States</a>, the United States provided “complementary information” to Mexican authorities as part of bilateral coordination.
Following the operation, cartel members engaged in violent acts in parts of Jalisco, Michoacán, and Guanajuato, setting buses on fire and erecting roadblocks in multiple cities, <a href="https://x.com/PabloLemusN/status/2025589614463823889">according to</a> Jalisco Governor Pablo Lemus Navarro. In response, Lemus Navarro announced that schools throughout the state would be closed.
The U.S. State Department <a href="https://x.com/TravelGov/status/2025636042007605353">urged</a> American citizens to shelter in place if they are in Jalisco State — including Puerto Vallarta, Chapala, and Guadalajara &#8212; as well as Tamaulipas, parts of Michoacán, Guerrero, and Nuevo León.
Additional footage appeared to show fires in the parking lot of a Costco in Puerto Vallarta, a coastal city popular with American tourists that draws millions of visitors each year.
Derek Maltz, former acting administrator of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration until May, told The Daily Wire that Oseguera had long been the top cartel target for the United States.
“Obviously, El Mencho has been like public enemy number one for many years. He’s built up this global enterprise with the CJNG,” Maltz said. “We&#8217;ve been sharing intelligence against Mencho for a long time. And we share intelligence daily with our counterparts in the embassy in Mexico.”
Maltz added that the DEA, together with the Department of Homeland Security, FBI, and others are working with their Mexican counterparts “every day to go after these cartel leaders.”
Oseguera was one of Mexico’s most wanted men. The Mexican government had offered a 30 million peso reward — roughly $1.7 million — for information leading to his arrest. The United States had posted a $15 million reward, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2026/02/22/americas/mexico-kill-drug-mencho-latam-intl">reported CNN</a>.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has previously <a href="https://www.dea.gov/cartels">described</a> the cartel as among the “most powerful and ruthless criminal organizations” operating inside Mexico, calling it a key supplier of illicit fentanyl and cocaine to the United States. The DEA added that the group’s facilitators and associates operate in nearly all 50 U.S. states.
In 2022, the United States Department of Justice charged Oseguera with leading efforts to manufacture and distribute fentanyl for importation into the United States. The CJNG was later designated a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the Trump administration.
Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau <a href="https://x.com/DeputySecState/status/2025648742049947797">celebrated</a> the news on X.
“I’ve just been informed that Mexican security forces have killed ‘El Mencho,’ one of the bloodiest and most ruthless drug kingpins,” Landau wrote. “This is a great development for Mexico, the U.S., Latin America, and the world. The good guys are stronger than the bad guys.”
The Mexican government said various aircraft from the Air Force and the Special Immediate Reaction Force of the National Guard participated in the raid. During the operation, military personnel reportedly came under attack.
“In defense of their physical integrity, they repelled the aggression,” the embassy said. Four CJNG members were killed at the scene. Three others, severely wounded, died during an airlift to Mexico City, including Oseguera. Several additional suspects were arrested.
Authorities also seized armored vehicles and heavy weaponry, including rocket launchers capable of downing aircraft and destroying armored vehicles. Three Mexican security personnel were injured.
“From day one, President Trump and this administration has made it clear that if you’re selling drugs and moving poisonous substances into America, you’re going to be held accountable,” Maltz said. “He declared the cartels as terrorists; he’s declared fentanyl a weapon of mass destruction. So he’s doing everything to put American citizens first.”
He added that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has been highly cooperative with the Trump administration, sending 92 high-level Mexican cartel leaders and gang leaders to America to face justice.
“That has never happened in the history of our war against the cartels,” Maltz said.

Mexican cartel leader ‘El Mencho’ killed in military operation

Chaos Erupts In Mexico After Cartel Boss ‘El Mencho’ Killed By Special Forces

Claudia Sheinbaum

Drug Cartels

Trump Administration

World

Mexican drug lord Nemesio Oseguera, commonly known as &#8220;El Mencho,&#8221; has been killed in a military operation, a government source familiar with the operation told Reuters on Sunday.
An ex-police officer, Oseguera was the shadowy leader of the powerful Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), an outfit that took its moniker from the western state of the same name that is home to Mexico&#8217;s second city, Guadalajara.
Over a relatively short period of time, the CJNG morphed into a continents-spanning criminal enterprise rivaling his former allies in the Sinaloa Cartel, the gang of captured kingpin Joaquin &#8216;El Chapo&#8217; Guzman, now in a U.S. prison.
The news of Oseguera&#8217;s death followed a federal security operation in the state of Jalisco&#8217;s city of Tapalpa, according to a post by governor Pablo Lemus Navarro on X.
After the operation, multiple vehicles were set on fire throughout Jalisco and other states, according to media outlets and officials.
Alfredo Ramirez Bedolla, the governor of the state of Michoacan, wrote on X that he had received reports of state highways being blocked as a result of the operation in Jalisco.
Oseguera&#8217;s death comes as the Trump administration has ratcheted up the fight against drug cartels and distributors in the western hemisphere. The United States, under Operation Southern Spear, has killed approximately 145 suspected drug runners in 42 strikes in the Pacific and Caribbean since September of 2025.
In January, the United States executed an operation to capture Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro and his wife. The operation was considered extremely successful, with zero U.S. military fatalities, according to the Trump administration. The raid also featured a weapon President Trump described as the &#8220;<a href="https://nypost.com/2026/01/24/us-news/trump-reveals-to-the-post-secret-discombobulator-weapon-was-crucial-to-venezuelan-raid-on-maduro/">discombobulator</a>,&#8221; which allegedly &#8220;made [enemy] equipment not work.&#8221; The president said he couldn&#8217;t go into further detail on the weapon.
Additionally, Oseguera&#8217;s death follows the capture of Ovidio Guzmán López, the son of infamous drug trafficker El Chapo, in 2023 by Mexican authorities. Guzmán López was eventually extradited to the United States to stand trial where he <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/joaquin-guzman-lopez-son-el-chapo-and-leader-sinaloa-cartel-pleads-guilty-federal-drug">pleaded guilty</a> to drug charges, according to the Department of Justice.
“The Sinaloa Cartel is a terrorist organization that has spent decades destroying American families through brutal violence and deadly drug trafficking,” said Attorney General Pam Bondi. “[The] guilty plea from El Chapo’s son is a major victory against the Sinaloa Cartel and underscores the Trump Administration’s historic, aggressive campaign to dismantle terrorist organizations that target the American people.”
(Reporting by Emily Green and Lizbeth Diaz; Editing by Christian Plumb)

Mexican Drug Lord ‘El Mencho’ Killed In Military Operation

The New York Times editorial board expressed concern this week that the massive marijuana craze in America might have some major side effects — besides drowsiness and the munchies.
The Times editorial board, which dedicated a series of articles to pushing for marijuana legalization over 10 years ago, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/09/opinion/regulate-legalized-marijuana.html">admitted</a> on Monday that some of its arguments for legalized weed have been proven wrong after states began allowing recreational and medicinal marijuana use. It seems that many talking points from the pro-marijuana legalization side are falling apart as research uncovers some brutal truths about America&#8217;s pot craze.
&#8220;In our editorials, we described marijuana addiction and dependence as &#8216;relatively minor problems.&#8217; Many advocates went further and claimed that marijuana was a harmless drug that might even bring net health benefits. They also said that legalization might not lead to greater use,&#8221; the Times editorial board wrote. &#8220;It is now clear that many of these predictions were wrong. Legalization has led to much more use. Surveys suggest that about 18 million people in the United States have used marijuana almost daily (or about five times a week) in recent years. That was up from around six million in 2012 and less than one million in 1992. More Americans now use marijuana daily than alcohol.&#8221;
Later, the editorial board added, &#8220;The unfortunate truth is that the loosening of marijuana policies — especially the decision to legalize pot without adequately regulating it — has led to worse outcomes than many Americans expected. It is time to acknowledge reality and change course.&#8221;
It&#8217;s rare for the Times to admit to so clearly pushing a narrative that turned out to be wrong. So, if America&#8217;s pot problem is becoming so evident that even the legacy media is pumping the brakes, how bad is it?
Addiction and other health issues stemming from marijuana use have spiked in the past decade as more states hopped on the pot bandwagon. As the Times pointed out, a large percentage of marijuana users aren&#8217;t just smoking a joint or two on the weekend; they&#8217;re consuming marijuana on a daily basis. According to <a href="https://www.yalemedicine.org/conditions/marijuana-use-disorder">research</a> from Yale Medicine, a staggering 30% of cannabis users &#8220;meet the criteria for addiction.&#8221;
This heavy reliance on marijuana comes with multiple potential health risks, including cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome, which gives users intense stomach pain and can cause vomiting. At least one recent study has also linked cannabis use to schizophrenia. The <a href="https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/young-men-highest-risk-schizophrenia-linked-cannabis-use-disorder">study</a>, published in &#8220;Psychological Medicine,&#8221; found that up to 30% of schizophrenia cases in young men can be linked to cannabis use disorder.
A <a href="https://fortune.com/well/article/marijuana-abuse-cannabis-use-disorder-workplace-absenteeism-sick-days/">study</a> conducted by UC San Diego School of Medicine and the New York University Grossman School of Medicine, meanwhile, found that employees who use cannabis regularly were more likely to miss work.
The advocacy group Smart Approaches to Marijuana has also <a href="https://learnaboutsam.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SAM-impact-report-2026-2027.pdf">pointed</a> to research showing that driving fatalities involving marijuana skyrocketed between 2000 and 2018. Kevin Sabet, the president and CEO of Smart Approaches to Marijuana, told The Daily Wire that legalization leading to increases in addiction was &#8220;absolutely predictable.&#8221;
&#8220;Despite the promises of the legalizers, federal data show that (just as the Times notes) legalization drives use, including youth use increases,&#8221; Sabet said. &#8220;This is true in the national aggregate and in individual state data. It’s not rocket science: If you make a powerful addictive drug easier to access (and send the signal that it’s OK to use in the process), more people are going to use it. That is what I and many other people who were aware of the danger warned would happen and it is precisely what did happen.&#8221;
Now that nearly half the country has legalized marijuana in some or all forms, Sabet said the best path forward is for &#8220;states to focus on making sure that people, and above all young people, know how dangerous and destructive marijuana is: a permanent investment in infrastructure meant to promote prevention and awareness.&#8221;
&#8220;And it’s beyond important to remember here what the Times piece truly reveals,&#8221; he added. &#8220;Namely, that while people may disagree about policies and execution, they are now all agreed on the same set of facts. And those facts show beyond doubt that marijuana is dangerous, addictive, and creating havoc across America.&#8221;
The data pointing to some of these issues was available when the Times editorial board began publishing its <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/07/27/opinion/sunday/high-time-marijuana-legalization.html?op-nav">series</a> arguing for federal legalization. In a 2014 <a href="https://www.nber.org/digest/oct14/consequences-legalizing-marijuana?page=1&amp;perPage=50">paper</a>, researchers Hefei Wen, Jason M. Hockenberry, and Janet R. Cummings found that marijuana legalization led to an increase in marijuana abuse and dependence. The 2014 paper also found that as legalization surged, so did the rate at which adolescents experimented with the drug.
Ironically, the Times editorial board&#8217;s shift on marijuana coincides with the federal government in the process of reforming how it regulates the drug. In December, President Donald Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-reclassifies-marijuana-at-federal-level-we-have-people-begging-for-me-to-do-this">signed</a> an order to open the door to reclassifying marijuana as a Schedule III drug, meaning marijuana would be in the same <a href="https://www.dea.gov/drug-information/drug-scheduling#:~:text=Schedule%20I%20drugs%2C%20substances%2C%20or,)%2C%20methaqualone%2C%20and%20peyote.">category</a> as drugs that have “a moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence.” For decades, the U.S. government has categorized marijuana as a Schedule I substance, which is defined as &#8220;no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.&#8221;
The U.S. government&#8217;s potential reclassification would not legalize marijuana at the federal level, but it could reduce the scale of marijuana-related offenses. As the president was considering the marijuana reclassification last year, nearly 50 organizations signed a letter urging Trump to keep marijuana classified as a Schedule I drug, arguing that marijuana &#8220;fits squarely&#8221; in the definition of a Schedule I drug, &#8220;a fact acknowledged in every scheduling review prior to 2023.&#8221;

Marijuana USA

20 Million Americans Say They’re Always High, And Even Liberals Recognize The Craze Has Gone Too Far

Leftists

Marijuana

New York Times

Social Issues

U.S.

Controversial live-streamer Clavicular could be facing years in prison following an arrest on drug and forgery charges.
The streamer, whose real name is Braden Peters, was <a href="https://ktar.com/arizona-news/clavicular-arrested-scottsdale/5819599/">taken</a> into custody on February 7 in Scottsdale, Arizona. Peters, 20, was later charged with multiple offenses, including two felony counts, according to court records reviewed online.
During an initial court appearance, which was <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVWl-gK9y4Y">streamed</a> on Peters’ Kick channel by a friend who was present at the time, a judge determined there was probable cause to proceed on all charges. The hearing quickly circulated on social media as viewers watched the legal proceedings unfold in real time.
Court documents show Peters was booked on two Class 4 felony counts: possession of a forged instrument and possession or use of a dangerous drug. He also faces a Class 1 misdemeanor charge for a minor using false identification to gain entry into a liquor establishment.
At the hearing, Peters’ attorney challenged the forgery charge, arguing it failed to meet the legal threshold required under Arizona law. Defense counsel asserted that the statute requires intent to defraud, and claimed the alleged fake identification was merely discovered during questioning, not actively used to deceive anyone.
The defense also questioned the legitimacy of the search that allegedly led to the drug charge, arguing there was insufficient justification and that employees at the venue never claimed Peters presented false identification. Counsel further suggested Peters was acting as a promoter at the location, a claim they argued undermined the state’s case.
Despite those objections, the judge ruled that the circumstances surrounding the arrest were sufficient to establish probable cause on all counts. A status conference has been scheduled for February 23 at 8:30 a.m., with a preliminary hearing set for February 26 at the same time.
If convicted, Peters could face substantial prison time. Under Arizona law, a Class 4 felony carries a maximum sentence of 3.75 years for a first-time, non-dangerous offender. The misdemeanor charge carries a potential sentence of up to six months in jail, along with fines that can reach $2,500.
Should the court impose the felony sentences consecutively, Peters’ total prison time could reach 7.5 years, placing his maximum possible sentence near eight years, with the addition of any time imposed for the misdemeanor. If the sentences are instead ordered to run concurrently, the maximum prison term would be significantly lower.
Peters has built an online following around extreme physical discipline and self-improvement content — not all of it traditional. He has previously acknowledged a history of drug use, including admitting to methamphetamine use.
During an <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8qj9RNA938">interview</a> with Daily Wire host Michael Knowles, Peters said, &#8220;I do meth, yeah. Meth is very similar to &#8230; Adderall, but it&#8217;s got a little bit better psychoactive benefits &#8230; stimulants cause appetite suppression.&#8221; When pressed on why he was doing meth despite its negative effects, he replied, &#8220;I have enough willpower to be able to taper off of meth.&#8221;
Clavicular also drew public backlash last month for viral clips in which he and a circle of controversial online figures — including Nick Fuentes, Andrew and Tristan Tate, Justin Waller, and streamer Sneako — participated in live-streamed partying, which included the playing of a Ye song that has been widely condemned for its antisemitic lyrics.
He previously drew national attention in December after appearing to run over a supposed “stalker” with his Tesla Cybertruck during a livestream. Authorities later declined to file charges in that incident, though the platform temporarily banned his account.
This most recent bump against the law only adds to the deeply online saga surrounding the controversial streamer, whose career, if he&#8217;s convicted, may come to an abrupt, and lengthy, pause.

Clavicular

Cortisol Spike: Controversial Streamer Clavicular Arrested, Faces Two Felony Charges

Arizona

Courts

Former Canadian Olympic snowboarder Ryan Wedding, who is accused of running a billion-dollar multinational drug trafficking ring and carrying out multiple killings, pleaded not guilty in court on Monday.
Wedding made his first court appearance Monday since he was arrested in Mexico last week.
United States officials said Wedding had been hiding in Mexico for more than a decade. He was added to the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list last March when authorities offered a $15 million reward for any information leading to his arrest.
According to <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/olympic-snowboarder-accused-drug-smuggling-ring-heads-court-129575968">ABC News</a>, Wedding, who competed in the 2002 Winter Olympics, moved close to 60 tons of cocaine between Colombia, Mexico, Canada, and Southern California. Wedding is believed to have worked with the Sinaloa Cartel, which is one of Mexico&#8217;s most powerful drug rings.
FBI Director Kash Patel was there for Wedding&#8217;s arrest and described the snowboarder as a modern-day Pablo Escobar.
&#8220;Just to tell you how bad of a guy Ryan Wedding is, he went from an Olympic snowboarder to the largest narco-trafficker in modern times,&#8221; Patel said Friday. &#8220;He&#8217;s a modern-day El Chapo. He is a modern-day Pablo Escobar, and he thought he could evade justice.&#8221;
Per ABC, Mexican authorities said Wedding turned himself in at the United States Embassy in Mexico City last week, something Wedding&#8217;s defense attorney, Anthony Colombo, denies.
“He was arrested,” Colombo said. “He did not surrender.”
The defense attorney added that Wedding was in good spirits, but did say that this has been an overwhelming experience for his client.
Wedding was indicted in 2024 on federal charges of running a criminal enterprise, murder, conspiring to distribute cocaine, and other crimes. United States authorities claim in court papers that Wedding’s group obtained cocaine from Colombia and worked with Mexican cartels to move drugs by boat and plane to Mexico and then into the United States using semi trucks. The group would store cocaine in Southern California before sending it to Canada and other locations in the United States, per the indictment obtained by ABC.
Wedding is also accused of directing the killings of two members of a Canadian family in retaliation for a stolen drug shipment in 2023 and for ordering a killing over a drug debt in 2024. The news outlet reported Wedding was indicted on new charges of orchestrating the killing of a witness in Colombia to help him avoid extradition back to the United States.
In Canada, Wedding faces separate drug charges dating back to 2015.
Wedding is scheduled to be back in federal court February 11 with a trial set for March 24.
Wedding competed for Canada in the men&#8217;s parallel giant slalom at the Olympics in 2002. He finished 24th.

Credit: Tony Marshall/EMPICS via Getty Images

Former Olympic Snowboarder Pleads Not Guilty To Murder, Drug Trafficking Charges

Ryan Wedding

Two illegal immigrant truckers from India were arrested Saturday for allegedly hauling 309 pounds of cocaine inside a semi-truck they were driving through Putnam County, Indiana, The Daily Wire has learned.
Gurpreet Singh, 25, and Jasveer Singh, 30, were driving from Joplin, Missouri, when they were pulled over by Indiana State Troopers, who observed that their truck was drifting, <a href="https://x.com/angelaganote/status/2008194673597124716" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to FOX59. The troopers brought in a drug-sniffing K9, who helped them locate 140-kilogram packages containing approximately 309 pounds of cocaine that were concealed in the truck&#8217;s sleeper berth.
The cache of drugs is worth an estimated $7 million, according to reports.
During the traffic stop, the illegal immigrant pair presented the troopers with their California-issued commercial driver&#8217;s licenses.
In a statement shared with The Daily Wire, the Department of Homeland Security blamed Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom for the alleged drug smuggling attempt.
“Thanks to Gavin Newsom’s reckless policies, these two criminal illegal aliens were granted commercial licenses by the state of California and were arrested for trafficking a whopping 300 pounds of cocaine inside a semi-truck,” Assistant Homeland Security Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement shared with The Daily Wire.
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“Gavin Newsom and his fellow sanctuary politicians even refused to honor an arrest detainer on one of these criminal illegal aliens in December. Sanctuary policies put American lives at risk. ICE law enforcement lodged arrest detainers to ensure these drug traffickers are not allowed back into American communities,&#8221; she said.
Gurpreet Singh crossed the southern border illegally on March 11, 2023, near Lukeville, Arizona, and was released into the country under the Biden administration, DHS told The Daily Wire.
Jasveer Singh crossed the border illegally on March 21, 2017, near Otay Mesa, California. He was arrested in December 2025 in San Bernardino for allegedly receiving stolen property, but was released after sanctuary authorities in California refused to honor a federal immigration detainer.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement has since filed detainers with local authorities to ensure that they&#8217;re handed over for deportation rather than eventually released onto the streets after their latest alleged crimes, according to DHS.
During his latest encounter with police, Jasveer said he was employed as a truck driver, but that he hitched a ride with a different carrier for the latest trip, according to FOX59. He said he was instructed to haul an empty tractor-trailer to an Indian restaurant near Richmond, Indiana, to eat food and wait for his cargo load to arrive.
Meanwhile, Gurpreet said he hitched a ride from California to Joplin in a different truck before he met up with Jasveer as they headed to the same Indian restaurant, the outlet reported.
Jasveer also said that the truck lacked the required Electronic Logging Device that ensures drivers aren&#8217;t on the roads for longer than what is considered safe, according to FOX59.
The Trump administration has heavily scrutinized Newsom as it investigates the issuance of commercial driver&#8217;s licenses across the country to illegal immigrants following a string of fatal collisions.
California recently announced that it would delay its effort to cancel thousands of commercial driver&#8217;s licenses issued to foreign drivers.
The Trump administration instructed California to get it done by Jan. 5, threatening to withhold $160 million in federal funding if the state failed to make the deadline.
Newsom responded, saying their delay was a result of &#8220;federal mismanagement.&#8221;
&#8220;YOUR staff told CA DMV they were open to an extension 8 days ago. In fact, FMCSA agreed an extension made logistical sense and was reasonable (in a meeting on Dec. 18)! DMV relied on that guidance and acted accordingly,&#8221; Newsom wrote in a Dec. 31 X post.
&#8220;Only after the plan became public did your agency suddenly object,&#8221; he wrote.

Untitled design – 2026-01-05T153203.397

Illegal Immigrants Caught Hauling 300 Pounds Of Cocaine In Semi-Truck

illegal immigrant

Illegal Immigration

India

Indiana

Truckers

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