Secretary Terry Cole, Virginia's Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security, told the Senate Finance and Appropriations Public Safety Subcommittee in Richmond that state and local partners have carried out a series of coordinated operations that produced large fentanyl seizures, launched a human‑trafficking surge and highlighted new homeland‑security threats posed by drones.

Cole briefed the panel on Operation Free, which he said began as a 30‑day coordinated statewide enforcement and public‑education surge and later expanded into a 45‑day effort that included more jurisdictions and out‑of‑state partners. "Just in the Commonwealth, during those 45 days, we seized 574 pounds of fentanyl," Cole said, adding that the amount is "enough fentanyl to kill every Virginian at least eight times over." He credited local, state and federal partners and said an Operation Free 3.0 is planned for the coming months.

The secretary also described a separate, 45‑day human‑trafficking operation led by the Virginia State Police in partnership with the Human Trafficking Institute and other agencies. Cole said the task force has 136 active human‑trafficking cases and that, so far in 2024, 47 victims were identified and offered services. The operation combines education, enforcement and victim services and Cole praised public‑private partners, including trucking authorities that donated billboard space for outreach.

Cole described an Office of First Responder Wellness established in the secretariat and implemented with the Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS), the Virginia State Police (VSP) and fire programs. He said DCJS received two Justice Assistance Grants totaling more than $1,000,000 for wellness work, and that the office and partners have held 45 in‑person and virtual trainings reaching about 550 first responders; he noted an inaugural statewide wellness conference in Norfolk with about 350 attendees.

On recruiting and retention, Cole said VSP has seen an applicant increase of roughly 50 percent for basic academy class 144 and a 34 percent rise in applicants with bachelor's degrees, but he warned that recruiting for the Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) remains difficult because of long hours and assaults on staff.

Cole warned the committee about an increase in sophisticated criminal networks and new homeland‑security risks. He said the Homeland Security Bureau within VSP will try to break down information silos between state, federal and private partners to better track foreign surveillance and drone incursions. "The last drone we had was carrying a 17‑pound payload that ran into the fence," Cole said, describing a recent correctional‑facility incident in which contraband was delivered by drone; he said some drone‑related material cannot be discussed publicly.

Senators asked follow‑up questions during the presentation. Sen. Dave Marsden raised a separate concern about guns stolen from vehicles; Cole responded that many thefts came from unsecured vehicles and suggested expanded public education for owners about secure storage. Sen. Gazala Hashmi asked for more data after Cole referenced incidents involving Chinese nationals photographing critical infrastructure; Hashmi said she was concerned about the potential for public statements to fuel anti‑Asian bias and asked for a private briefing with more detail. Cole agreed to follow up privately.

The secretary credited Major Richard Boyd and Deputy Secretary Marcus Anderson for leading Operation Free and Deputy Secretary Lisa Wahlberg for the human‑trafficking initiative. Committee members also asked the administration to provide more detail about the use of approximately $3,000,000 in redirected violence‑reduction funds that Cole said had been allocated to first‑responder wellness.

Cole concluded by urging continued multiagency coordination on fentanyl, trafficking and homeland‑security threats and said the state will press federal partners for better situational awareness around drone incursions and foreign surveillance.

The subcommittee did not take any formal votes during the presentation; members requested follow‑up data on redirected grant funds, domestic‑terrorism trends and additional information about reported infrastructure surveillance.