In an effort to reduce crime and "Make America Healthy Again," the Trump administration announced the success of Operation Vape Trail, a multi-agency effort to remove illegal and dangerous vaping products from American neighborhoods.
In a press release, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) hailed the week-long operation as a success that removed not only millions of illegal vape pens and cartridges from our communities, but also seized over one hundred firearms.
From September 15-19, a total of 23 DEA domestic field divisions carried out the coordinated enforcement that also saw 106 people arrested.
Here's more from the DEA press release:
The DEA Laredo District Office, with the assistance of the Laredo Police Department, executed a search warrant inside one shop in which investigators uncovered a 25-foot-deep tunnel leading to what appeared to be a concealed room behind the business—highlighting the extreme measures taken to hide illegal operations. Cocaine and marijuana were also seized during the search.
The DEA Galveston Resident Office, in conjunction with the U.S. Marshals Service and Harris County Constables Office Precinct 2, seized 70,000 THC cartridges, 30,000 packages of THC edibles, 15 pounds of marijuana, and eleven firearms inside a home.
Upon receiving multiple complaints about vape shops selling to minors, DEA’s Little Rock District Office seized nearly 200 pounds of marijuana and more than 50 firearms in two separate investigations. Two people were arrested.
Townhall spoke to someone with knowledge of the operation who said "China is flooding the market" and that government officials were "shocked" by the expansive network of the illegal vape business -- a network that includes tunnels, guns, millions in cash, and ties to cartel activity and possibly even human trafficking.
On September 10, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. stood before a large bust of illegal vaping products in Chicago:
The Chinese are getting richer while our children get sicker. We’re putting an end to that.
— Secretary Kennedy (@SecKennedy) September 15, 2025
We are targeting illegal Chinese vapes and we will stop them from poisoning our children. Just last week, I stood with @AGPamBondi after law enforcement seized 50 truckloads of illegal… pic.twitter.com/jzx7heqkcA
"Between August 1 and August 14 in partnership with the ATF, FDA did purchases at distributors in five different states: in Illinois, New Jersey, North Carolina, Arizona, and we did more in California and Florida...the result is today we are doing raids, these kinds of operations across the country," Kennedy said. He noted that the FDA had confiscated "50 truckloads" of such materials and emphasized that most of them came from China. Authorities confiscated 4.7 million illegal vaping products with an estimated retail value of $86.5 million.
Kennedy also said the Trump administration was putting the vaping industry on notice. "This will not be tolerated anymore. There's a new sheriff in town. Her name is Pam Bondi, and we are going to target these Chinese vapes and stop them from poisoning our children."
Operation Vape Trail is part of a larger, multi-agency push to get illegal and dangerous vaping products out of the hands of children. In a September 15 press release, HHS released its "Youth Vaping Resource Guide" to "combat the ongoing youth vaping epidemic." HHS noted that "Despite recent declines in use, e-cigarettes remain the most commonly used tobacco product among middle and high school students, with more than 1.6 million youth reporting current use in 2024" and added, "Up to 85% of e-cigarette devices and pods sold in U.S. retail outlets are illegal products. Federal enforcement efforts have seized millions of unauthorized devices, but illegal sales persist, threatening the health of young people nationwide."
The DEA said that these illegal products often contain "addictive substances such as synthetic marijuana, synthetic cathinones, and hydroxymitragynine, also known as 7-OH or synthetic kratom." Cathinones are more commonly known as "bath salts" and are designed to mimic cocaine, while synthetic kratom is an opioid-like substance that can cause "stimulant effects" in low doses and "sedative effects" in higher doses.
Rick Marianos with the Tobacco Law Enforcement Network (TLEN) also spoke to Townhall about Operation Vape Trail. He said the illegal vape market is "not a mom and pop" operation but one that is "evolving so fast" that law enforcement, politicians, parents, and schools were not prepared for the influx of these devices or the increase in crime that came along with it. He noted there's been a 1000% increase in vape store robberies over the last three years, related to the vast amounts of cash generated by the illegal vape business. He also likened the presence of these products in vape shops to "licensed dope spots."
In a letter addressed to President Trump, Vice President Vance, AG Pam Bondi, and Secretary Kennedy, TLEN praised the administration's work on Operation Vape Trail:
On behalf of the Tobacco Law Enforcement Network, we commend your administration for the decisive enforcement action that resulted in the largest seizure of illegal e-cigarettes in U.S. history, intercepting 4.7 million units valued at more than $86 million.
This was not just another bust; it was the strongest signal yet that the era of complacency toward the illicit vape trade is over. It demonstrated that when the federal government takes bold action, it can choke off criminal supply chains before they reach our children and our communities.
In our April 15 letter, we warned that illicit e-cigarettes had reached epidemic proportions, flooding our nation’s schools and neighborhoods with brightly packaged, candy-flavored devices designed to entice our children.
That April 15 letter called for five steps to break up the illegal vape industry, including prosecuting large-scale importers and distributors, securing the border and allowing CBP to seize shipments, building regional enforcement hubs to break apart distribution networks, launching street-level inspections and sweeps to clean up communities, and expedited authorization of "legitimate alternatives" for adult use.
Marianos emphasized the importance of education and professional development among law enforcement, politicians, and schools to raise awareness about the seriousness of the situation and said the Trump administration has "come to grips with the threat." Marianos also said that politicians need to "make changes to support law enforcement efforts," including grants to cover expenses such as overtime for investigations into illegal vaping.
But Marianos added that this problem is one we're "not going to solve overnight."