Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
News Release
Kansas City Field Division
For Immediate Release

April 7, 2010

www.atf.gov
Contact: Supervisory Special Agent Dave Lin
Kansas City Group II
(816) 559-0720

ATF NITRO Task Force Distributes Seized Assets

The Northwest Missouri Interagency Team Response Operation, more commonly known as the NITRO task force, is a joint law enforcement unit sponsored by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and was established in October of 2002 to address violent offenders and armed drug trafficking organizations operating in several northwest Missouri counties. Agencies that have partnered with ATF in this multi-jurisdictional effort include the Missouri police departments from Cameron, Maryville, Trenton, Bethany, and Chillicothe; as well as Sheriff’s departments from Grundy, Atchison, Livingston, Daviess, Harrison, and Worth counties; and the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

The ATF NITRO task force provides a strong federal law enforcement presence in northwest Missouri and has had tremendous success over the last eight years in dismantling armed drug trafficking organizations that plague these rural communities. The NITRO Task Force Board of Directors is comprised of representatives from the participating State, County and Local agencies and is responsible for administrative details of the task force as well as entering in to an agreement with ATF to provide resources, equipment and operational oversight for investigations.

During the course of several NITRO investigations, several hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash and assets have been seized and forfeited to the government. These forfeitures are then made available to the participating agencies through an equitable sharing agreement that allows confiscated drug proceeds and goods to be transferred to agencies for continuing law enforcement operations.

ATF and the NITRO Task Force Board of Directors are pleased to announce that approximately $90,000.00 has been distributed between the aforementioned participating agencies for their contribution and participation in the investigations resulting in the seizures.

As, a result of the cooperative efforts of the aforementioned agencies, the NITRO task force and the ATF, have indicted 83 defendants in Federal Court, seized approximately $300,000 in United States Currency and/or assets, approximately forty pounds of methamphetamine and other controlled substances, along with numerous firearms.

Tom Atteberry, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the ATF Kansas City Field Division of states, By working closely with the Sheriff’s and Chiefs, this ATF sponsored task force targets, investigates and arrests criminals, drug traffickers and armed violent offenders in the rural areas of Northwest Missouri that are wreaking havoc in small communities. NITRO has gleaned great success over the last 8 years by extracting big-time criminals and violent offenders from the small rural areas in northwest Missouri; this makes a tremendous and quick impact on crime reduction.
The Law Enforcement Agencies receiving sharing funds are as follows:

•Cameron, Missouri Police Department – $15,000
•Maryville Department of Public Safety – $12,000
•Grundy County Sheriff’s Department – $10,000
•Trenton Police Department – $10,000
•Atchison County Sheriff’s Department – $9,000
•Missouri State Highway Patrol – $8,000
•Daviess County Sheriff’s Department – $5,000
•Chillicothe, Missouri Police Department – $5,000
•Livingston County Sheriff’s Department – $5,000
•North Missouri Drug Task Force – $5,000
•Harrison County Sheriff’s Department – $2,000
•Worth County Sheriff’s Department – $2,000
•Bethany, Missouri Police Department – $2,000
The money received must be used for law enforcement purposes.

http://www.atf.gov/press/releases/2010/ ... ssets.html