Snap 02-22-07

Methamphetamine Awareness and Prevention Project of South Dakota

METH Awareness And Prevention Project of South Dakota

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February 22, 2007

In Montana – A jury convicted a California man who was indicted on federal drug and firearms charges after a traffic stop. The 24-year-old was found guilty of possession of Meth with intent to distribute, possessing a firearm and being a felon in possession of a firearm. Police originally pulled him over for expired tags, then discovered outstanding warrants for the suspect. After a drug dog alerted police to the car’s trunk, a search turned up drugs and the handguns. The suspect was taken to an emergency room and treated for a drug overdose; tests showed he had taken Meth, ecstasy and cocaine. When he is sentenced in May, he faces a mandatory five to 40 years in prison and a $2 million fine on the drug count, a mandatory consecutive five years on the firearms in furtherance of trafficking count, and 10 years and a $250,000 fine on felon in possession count.

In Oregon - A police drug-sniffing dog uncovered Meth under the car seat of a suspected drug dealer during a traffic stop. Officers had heard that a suspect was delivering drugs regularly, and were out searching for the man when they found and stopped him. The police dog quickly found 48 grams of Meth under the car’s seat. The 24-year-old man was arrested and charged with delivery and possession of Meth and first-degree child neglect. He had his girlfriend’s two-year-old child in his car when police made the traffic stop. Police went to his girlfriend’s home and took two other children into state custody. The 31-year-old woman is charged with three counts of first-degree criminal mistreatment.

In Nebraska - A 38-year-old woman was charged with possession of Meth when a police officer was serving her with a warrant for failure to appear on another charge. When the officer asked her if she had anything illegal in her purse, she admitted to having marijuana in her bag. After further questions, she told the officer there were also a needle, crystal Meth and a spoon.

In Arizona – State patrol officers stopped a car for unsafe lane usage and then, with the driver’s consent, searched the vehicle. Officers found eight fire extinguishers, each containing approximately two pounds of Meth, in the side panels of the car. The driver of the car, a 25-year old man, was arrested on charges of Meth possession and related charges.

In Ontario, Canada – Consequences from a November Meth lab explosion continue to reverberate for a business district. Business owners who rented units over a city block haven't been able to enter the building since the explosion and fire ravaged it. Two businesses have not been able to operate at all since the fire. The air quality is severely compromised and everything inside the buildings is laced with at least 35 major volatile organic compounds. In addition to the toxic chemical contamination there is structural damage to the building. 20 units are contaminated and seven units are so heavily contaminated they will be demolished. In addition to the standard remediation of Meth labs, all the brick walls will be power washed and sealers applied to the surfaces. Authorities also plan to apply a shellac sealant over everything. The entire process involving demolition and rebuild could take six months.

In Pennsylvania - 12 people were arrested by the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office involving a Meth trafficking organization. The 17-month-long investigation, known as “Operation Broken Glass”, focused on the distribution and sale of as much as $500,000 worth of Meth in just one county. The alleged leader of the ring, a 43-year-old man, reportedly received bulk quantities of Meth from sources in California – as much as one-pound packages of Meth once or twice a month. He then supposedly distributed the Meth through a network of mid-level and street-level dealers. He, along with two co-defendants, allegedly were selling as much as two ounces of Meth every day, and even allegedly discussed setting aside a portion of their drug proceeds in a special fund to pay for a lawyer in the event that any of them were arrested. During the investigation, undercover agents made 13 controlled buys from a number of people allegedly supplied by the three.

In Minnesota - A 44-year-old woman faces a possible felony charge after police found drug paraphernalia in the motel room her family was living in. Police originally went to the motel to speak to a guest about possible controlled substances. They spoke with a 16-year-old boy, but the woman was not present. Police seized drug paraphernalia they found. Officials are seeking a charge of Meth-related crime involving children for the possible use of the drug in the presence of children.

In California – A 39-year-old man and a 35-year-old woman were arrested after a deputy discovered Meth and a Meth pipe in the woman’s possession. When the man was patted down for weapons, the deputy felt what he thought to be a Meth pipe in his pocket. Moments later, the suspected pipe could not be found. The man explained that he swallowed the five to six inch glass pipe. Later at a hospital, attendants discovered the pipe in a sharps container after it had been passed from a body cavity.