Murkowski presses federal law enforcement on Alaska trafficking, missing Indigenous people

Sen. Lisa Murkowski pressed top federal law enforcement officials on missing and murdered Indigenous people, northern-border drug trafficking and Alaska's lack of a federal detention facility during a U.S. Senate budget hearing for the Justice Department's law enforcement agencies.

The exchange came during a Senate Appropriations Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies Subcommittee hearing on the fiscal year 2027 budget requests for the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Marshals Service and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. C-SPAN aired the hearing May 14.

Murkowski opened her questioning by pointing to May 5, the national day of awareness for missing and murdered Indigenous people. She said Alaska's numbers justify words such as epidemic and crisis.

Murkowski cited Urban Indian Health Institute figures showing 229 missing Indigenous people in Alaska, including 88 murdered people and 149 people on the missing list. She said 75 percent of Alaska women who are missing or determined to have been murdered are Alaska Native women.

Native women feel unsafe in their home community, they feel unsafe in their villages and they feel most unsafe in the biggest village, which is Anchorage, Murkowski said, according to the C-SPAN closed-caption transcript.

Murkowski asked FBI Director Kash Patel to help Alaska identify law enforcement gaps. She said federal agencies, tribal partners and the state have cooperated, but Alaska's combination of a small population, large land mass and disproportionate violence against Indigenous women requires more support.

Patel said the FBI had launched what he called a first-of-its-kind operation focused on crimes on tribal lands, including Alaska. He said one major problem is communication gaps.

Patel said the FBI completed a pilot program on the Navajo reservation using Starlink communications and would bring similar capabilities to tribal lands for investigations.

Murkowski said communication among law enforcement is only part of the problem. Families also need better communication when a loved one is missing or killed.

Murkowski then turned to drug trafficking. She asked DEA Administrator Terrance Cole whether federal law enforcement was keeping focus on the northern border while also watching the southern border.

Cole said the DEA is watching Canada and plans to open two more offices there in fiscal year 2027. He also cited DEA work with the U.S. Postal Service to intercept packages bound for Alaska.

"In April we did an enforcement work at 10 kilos of fentanyl, multiple packages going into Alaska, and five kilos of methamphetamine domestically going into Alaska as well," Cole said, according to the caption transcript.