Working closely with federal, state and local law enforcement officers, the Drug Investigations Branch of the Attorney General's Department of Criminal Investigation is tasked with helping combat illegal drug use and abuse in Kentucky communities. The primary focus of this branch includes targeting:
- Illegal distribution, abuse, or unintended use of prescription drugs
- Individuals receiving prescriptions for the same drug from more than one doctor during the same time period or presenting false symptoms to multiple doctors in order to receive prescription medications.
- Physicians who routinely prescribe more of a drug than is required by the diagnosis; this usually indicates that a doctor or pharmacist is writing prescriptions for personal gain or non-medical purposes.
- Theft of prescription drugs.
- Illegal sale of prescription pain pills.
The Drug Investigations Branch has also been instrumental in the state-wide efforts to fight online and illegal out-of-state pharmacies.
Investigators from the Office of the Attorney General are assigned to the Appalachia HIDTA (High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area) Task Force and Operation UNITE (Unlawful Narcotics Investigations, Treatment and Education), an organization created in 2003 by Kentucky's 5th District Congressman Hal Rogers.