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A watchdog group has asked the Justice Department’s inspector general to open an inquiry into alleged retaliation inside the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Albuquerque office. The nonprofit Empower Oversight says a DEA contractor who supported whistleblower Special Agent David Howell was punished for speaking up. If true, this is more than office politics — it’s a test of whether federal law protects people who shine light on dangerous choices about fentanyl enforcement.
Empower Oversight asks DOJ OIG to investigate
Empower Oversight sent letters to Assistant Inspector General M. Sean O’Neill asking the DOJ Office of the Inspector General to investigate claims that Kevin Small, a senior financial investigator working as a DEA contractor in Albuquerque, faced retaliation. The complaint says Small supported SA David Howell after Howell revealed that agents monitored large fentanyl shipments instead of seizing them. Empower says Small was warned, given stricter hours, blocked from assignments, and pressured until he decided to resign.
What the allegation actually says
The core allegation is short and sharp: a supervisor allegedly told Small, “If you support David Howell, we’re through.” That phrase, reported by Empower Oversight, is stamped across the complaint. The claim is not just petty — it says supervisors locked down access to case files and limited who could enter the wire room, effectively sidelining someone who raised concerns about public safety and case conduct.
Why this matters
This is not a paper-pushing dispute. Howell’s disclosures accused the DEA of letting fentanyl pills flow to communities to build bigger cases — a policy he said “poisoned our community to make cases.” If contractors or agents who back whistleblowers are then punished, future insiders will think twice before reporting conduct that could cost lives. That chilling effect matters in the fight against fentanyl, which kills people in communities already under strain.
What must happen next
The OIG should acknowledge the request and open a formal review. The DEA and the U.S. Attorney’s Office also owe the public straight answers about supervisory conduct in Albuquerque. Empower Oversight is asking for a serious, independent look — and the country should want one too. If federal agencies protect whistleblowers, they protect communities; if not, they protect a cover-up.
