Law officers count wins, but face new challenges in meth battle

Cold pills that contain an ingredient for methamphetamine are harder to get, and fewer labs are making the illegal drug. Now, authorities warn, smugglers are bringing more of the drug into the U.S. from Mexico. FILE PHOTO


By JOHN HOPKINS, The Virginian-Pilot
© April 13, 2007

RICHMOND - As Virginia and other states crack down on clandestine methamphetamine laboratories in their backyards, smugglers are bringing more of the drug into the country from Mexico.

Thousands of vehicles move across the southern border every day, said Tony Soto, director of the Gulf Coast High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area program. And the United States doesn't have the resources to monitor them all.

"It's just a daunting task," he said.

Scott Burns, the White House deputy drug czar, said the number of U.S. meth labs declined from about 17,500 in 2004 to about 8,000 in 2005. Figures from 2006 were not yet available, he said. Now, two-thirds to 80 percent of the meth supply is imported, Virginia Attorney General Bob McDonnell said.

The two were among the attendees at a National Methamphetamine Trafficking Conference on Thursday in Richmond. The National Association of Attorneys General hosted the all-day conference.

It drew the attorneys general from Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, Georgia and Florida, along with experts on meth trafficking.

The traffickers, primarily Mexican distributors, are transporting cocaine and meth into cities such as Atlanta, said Steven Whipple, group supervisor of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency. Not only are the two drugs being shipped together, but more young people are mixing them, according to experts.

Meth has many names, including "speed" and "ice." The drug causes mood changes and anxiety. Long-term users suffer chronic fatigue, paranoia and delusional thoughts. When smoked, meth produces a high lasting 12 to 14 hours.

The effects on a user include increased heart rate, high blood pressure and risk of stroke.

Tougher laws and regulations have made it more difficult to buy the legal ingredients used to make the drug. In Virginia, for example, anyone buying cold and allergy medicines containing pseudoephedrine, a key ingredient in meth, must show identification and sign a register. But not all states have such legislation, and the absence of such laws "is killing us " in the effort to control the drug, Burns said.

There are positive signs in Virginia.

"We are encouraged by the progress of law enforcement in the effort to detect clandestine methamphetamine laboratories and data reflecting a decline in locally produced methamphetamine," McDonnell said. "However, we realize that in any effort to confront the dangers of methamphetamine, a comprehensive approach must be taken."

That comprehensive approach includes the private sector. Companies such as eBay, Target and Southern States work with law enforcement to combat those who would use the businesses to obtain ingredients.

E Bay has about 60 items it will not allow to be sold, according to Jack Christin Jr., senior regulatory counsel for eBay Inc. Those items include red phosphor us, alcohol and prescription drugs.

"If you feel like our policies don't go far enough, we need to hear from you," Christin told government leaders at the conference.

On one occasion, the DEA used information provided by eBay to track down an illegal drug producer based on that person's pattern of buying iodine online, Christin said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Reach John Hopkins at (757) 222-5221 or john.hopkins@pilotonline.com.

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