Ed Orgon has been in law enforcement for nearly three decades, first as a local police officer before joining the Drug Enforcement Agency. His career has taken him all over the country, fighting the seemingly never-ending war on drugs.

He took over the Buffalo DEA office in February, just months before Buffalo's deadliest summer in the last decade. 

"I compare it to a smaller Detroit because Detroit had similar gun violence," said Orgon, DEA Buffalo Office Resident Agent in Charge.

Some 25 people, including a 17-month-old, were killed in Buffalo between June and August. The next deadliest summer was in 2009, when there were 23 homicides.

"Guns and gang violence and drugs go hand-in-hand. More than half or maybe 70 percent of investigations we do, we come up with guns,” Orgon said. “We did an investigation back at Canalside back in the summer. Two assault weapons, two hand guns, $200,000, and 150 grams of heroin fentanyl.”

He said the key to reducing the violence is stopping the flow of drugs into the area.

Fatal overdoses hit a high in Erie County in 2016 when 301 people died. That number dropped to 251 last year. Through September of this year, 96 ODs have been confirmed, with another 82 pending review by the medical examiner's office.

"The collaboration between all the agencies is probably one of the best I've seen in my career,” Orgon said. “I'm not sure if anything needs improvement. I think we need to concentrate on the treatment and demand reduction part. If it's not broken, you don't have to fix it. But you have to keep on it.”

While it can be discouraging to see spikes in violence, like this summer, Orgon said it’s important to keep trying.

"You can't give up. You just have to keep marching forward," he said.