Florida The largest fentanyl bust in Polk County history, according to officials, involved the arrest of eight suspects and the seizure of 64 pounds of fentanyl worth at $4.5 million.
The Polk County Sheriff’s Office High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force oversaw two distinct multi-agency undercover investigations that resulted in the arrests and seizures.
The investigations focused on significant drug trafficking networks associated with the Jalisco New Generation Cartel and the Sinaloa Cartel.
The activities, according to Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd, demonstrate the ongoing threat presented by global drug trafficking groups.
When fake fentanyl pills that looked like blue oxycodone tablets were found to have traveled from Sonora, Mexico, through Phoenix, Arizona, and into Florida in July 2024, the first investigation—which was centered on the Sinaloa Cartel—began.
About 17 pounds of fentanyl pills were seized after detectives organized shipments to Polk County.
Undercover cops bought over nine pounds of fentanyl tablets from Regina Lynn Headspeth in Lakeland on April 28, 2025.
Headspeth was later caught in Arizona when the money used in the transaction was discovered during a traffic stop in Phoenix. Adrian Francisco Munguia, another suspect, was taken into custody after he transported nine pounds of fentanyl from Daytona Beach to Polk County.
About 29 pounds of fentanyl were seized and six people were arrested as a result of the second investigation, which focused on the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.
According to authorities, in order to evade discovery, some of the pills were concealed inside phony automobile batteries. Adalberto Diaz once brought a kilogram of fentanyl to Polk County from Georgia.
Later, while trying to transfer further quantities, he and his daughter, Alejandrina Diaz, were taken into custody.
Authorities stressed that the arrests and seizures show how dangerous international cartels are to communities and how law enforcement is still committed to stopping the spread of harmful substances.
