Retired FBI Agent Reflects On Opioid Crisis

Episode SummaryOur last episode explored addiction from the perspective of loved ones. In this episode, we are looking at the opioid crisis from the point of view of a retired FBI agent, Aaron Weeter, who spent 25 years specializing in drug-related crimes. From his frontline perspective, we learn how the opioid epidemic of the 90s spread to become the fentanyl epidemic we have today. For the visually-minded who prefer to listen and read or for those who need closed captioning, watch the transcript video here: https://youtu.be/oXq6XJ_z-HIAbout Aaron WeeterBeginning in 1998, Aaron served for over 23 years as a Special Agent in the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Washington, D.C. Field Office.  He served for twenty years as a case agent and three years as a supervisor investigating matters primarily involving white-collar/financial crimes in the areas of healthcare fraud and prescription drug diversion and distribution.  During this time, Aaron also worked on a variety of national/office-wide cases including the 9-11, D.C. Sniper and January 6th investigations among others.  Aaron is a licensed Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and a Certified Fraud Examiner.  He retired from the FBI in late 2021 and recently started a fraud consulting business.  Much of Aaron's FBI investigative work focused on the illegal distribution of pharmaceutical narcotics and other controlled substances by physicians, pharmacists and street-level dealers.  He opened his first "pill case" in early 1999 in the early stages of what would become the pill epidemic and through dozens of cases thereafter, had a window into the evolution of the pill epidemic and its influence on the current fentanyl epidemic gripping the U.S.  More to Watch and ReadChasing the Dragon: The Life of an Opiate Addict - a documentary made by the FBI & DEADr. Feelgood: Dealer or Healer? - a documentary about Dr. William Hurwitz, a Virginia physician who served nearly five years in prison for drug traffickingAnonymous Sister - a documentary where director Jamie Boyle explores her family's collision with the opioid epidemicAll the Beauty and the Bloodshed - a documentary about artist and activist Nan Goldin and her personal fight to hold the Sackler family accountable for the opioid overdose crisisDemon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver - a novel that shows the devastating impact of the opioid epidemic on a young boy in AppalachiaDopesick: Dealers, Doctors, and the Drug Company that Addicted America by Beth Macy - the definitive account of America's opioid epidemicRaising Lazarus: Hope, Justice, and the Future of America’s Overdose Crisis by Beth Macy - a sequel to DopesickDopesick - Hulu limited series remake of Beth Macy's book Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty by Patrick Radden Keefe - a book that describes the Sackler family and their