-from khqa.com-

By Chad Douglas

In 2007, it had 1285 busts…more than double the number two state - Indiana.

The good news is in 2005, Missouri had 2252 busts, so things are getting better.

But officials say there’s still a long way to go.

How big of a problem is meth in this area these days?

“It’s still a problem. I believe the pseudoephedrine law can take credit for some of the decrease in meth labs in our area,” says Tim Forney with the NEMO Task Force.

Each of the tri-states has some form of a pseudoephedrine law. That’s why you can no longer buy many cold medicines over the counter. But, meth makers may find ways around those laws.

“Slowly it seems they may be. But I think the law is still effective. We don’t see as much cooks cooking meth as we did before or as frequency as they did before,” adds Forney.

Forney also says his agency’s seen a drop in meth lab intelligence, meaning agents aren’t tracking as many labs as they have in the past.

“But with that, we also saw an increase in the sale of other drugs like marijuana, cocaine, and an increase in ecstasy,” says Forney.

In all, this is good news because making meth poses a harm to other people too because of the danger it takes to make it. And meth is more addictive and it deteriorates the body faster than other drugs.

After looking at the statistics for Missouri, I noticed Marion County had the most busts in our viewing area with 16.

-from wlbt.com-

The Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics made 16 arrests Tuesday morning in Crystal Springs. One of the suspects is 66 years old, another is a Parchman inmate.

The drug round up followed a year long investigation into street level drug sales. Officers were able to identify 35 people. Those arrested face felony sale, conspiracy and possession charges involving crack, cocaine, marijuana, and the prescription drug oxycodone.

Lytonia Bailey, Robert Bladridge, Luther Buckley, Jemario Dabney, , Vincent Haley, Jr., Maurice Jackson, Michael Jackson, Darrell Picket, Jarrod Porter, Michael Powell, Robert Williams, Jr., Rayfield Willis, Kendric Maurice Smiley, Joe Sewart, and 66 year old Wllace Watson were taken to the Copiah County jail. Necko Smith is a Parchman inmate charged with selling crack.

-from chicagotribune.com-

By Emma Graves Fitzsimmons

A major Joliet drug ring was shut down Tuesday as federal and local officials arrested nine alleged dealers, including a 71-year-old man believed to be the Chicago-area representative of an international drug cartel, officials said.

Authorities were still searching for three men who evaded arrest at the end of the two-year investigation dubbed “Operation Warehouse.”

Joliet police worked with the FBI, using cell-phone wiretaps and undercover operations, to bring charges against the 12 accused of selling crack cocaine.

“With these arrests, there will be a considerable reduction in the distribution of drugs in Joliet,” Police Chief Fred Hayes said at a news conference.

At least 80 federal and local officers worked together to topple the drug operation, which was allegedly led by Barry V. Ware, 46, of the 800 block of Horseshoe Drive in Joliet, authorities said. Ware is an alleged gang member who has caused problems in a neighborhood known as “the Hill” for a decade, Hayes said.

Another target was Gregorio Rodriguez, 71, of the 1000 block of Charlesworth Street in Joliet. The federal complaint alleges that Rodriguez is the local representative of an international cartel responsible for importing large quantities of drugs into Will County.

“These guys aren’t exactly spring chickens,” said Robert Grant, special agent-in-charge of the Chicago office of the FBI.

Also charged in the federal criminal complaint were Melvin L. Holmes, 43; LaQuinta Nate Moffett, 30; Bobby E. Mitchell, 48; Gerald T. Lindsey, 40; Jermaine McCann, 37; Terry Peten, 40; Devon Tyler, 39; and Howard Blankenship, 38. All live in Joliet.

The three men at large as federal fugitives are Ware, Kevin Waddell, 33, and Gary L. McDonald, 44, officials said. Grant said the men are the subject of a national manhunt and warned that they could be armed and dangerous.

The complaint charges the suspects with conspiracy and distribution of a controlled substance. They were expected to appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Maria Valdez in Chicago on Wednesday to be formally charged.

The 102-page complaint details dozens of phone calls between several people — a group that police said Ware had established as “a close network of highly trusted individuals.”

Authorities said they also relied on five informants to assist in surveillance operations and a wiretap of two cell phones belonging to Ware. Nine vehicles were seized.

The phone conversations cited in the complaint describe the men discussing the going rate for crack cocaine, meeting at gas stations to distribute the drugs and discussing whether the police were on to them, authorities said.

Joliet had a considerable drop in crime in over 15 years, but police became concerned in 2004 when there was a slight increase, Hayes said.

“That’s when we began to focus on gangs, guns and drugs,” he said.

-from twincities.com-

By Pioneer Press

The Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office has arrested one man in a pot bust that found more than 1,000 marijuana plants growing in a White Bear Lake home this morning.

A child found at the home was taken to Children’s Hospital to be checked, after officials became concerned about the high humidity and moldy conditions found in the home. There was no word on the infant’s condition, authorities said.

According to a briefing this afternoon outside the home at 3435 Michael Ave., investigators arrested a man in his mid-20s after the bust. Investigators found the marijuana growing in the basement of the home, which was outfitted with 40 lamps designed to help the plants grow.

Investigators would not say what led them to the house, which is tucked away in a residential neighborhood. Police say the home is valued at $300,000 to $400,000. It was sold in November, but officials said it looked like people were only there periodically.

The name of the man arrested was not released this afternoon. Officials did say they are talking with the U.S. Attorney’s office with the possibility of pursuing federal charges.

-from bonnercountydailybee.com-

SANDPOINT — Arraignments are pending for two Bonner County men accused of selling drugs from their apartment.

Avery Forest Auletta and Charles John Kingsland are charged with possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, trafficking by possession of marijuana and possession of methadone.

Auletta, 22, and Kingsland, 24, waived their right to preliminary hearings last month and were bound over to stand trial in 1st District Court. Auletta’s arraignment is scheduled for Feb. 25. Kingsland is expected to enter a written not guilty plea, according to court documents.

If convicted on the cocaine charge, the duo could be sentenced to life in prison. The marijuana charge carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and the methadone charge is punishable by up to seven years in prison.

The two were arrested after Sandpoint Police narcotics agents raided their South Lincoln Avenue apartment on Dec. 13, 2007, and discovered an undisclosed amount of coke, 4 pounds of pot and 20 methadone tablets.

Agents also found more than $13,000 in cash, which is currently the subject of civil seizure proceedings.

According to radio news reports, pot smoke emanating from the apartment kept setting off smoke alarms in the building, which was also occupied by a city police officer.

-from sfgate.com-

By Keith B. Richburg

U.S, Italian officials jubilant after series of major roundups

U.S. and Italian law-enforcement officials rounded up dozens of organized-crime figures Thursday, including the entire top leadership of New York’s notorious Gambino family, in what was described by authorities here as the biggest takedown of the Mafia in recent memory.

Sixty-two people were indicted in New York on charges ranging from murder and extortion to the theft of union pension funds, and as of Thursday morning, 54 of them were in custody. Those indicted include the Gambino family’s acting street “capo,” John “Jackie the Nose” D’Amico, and the under-boss and the consigliere.

D’Amico was not yet in custody. Several officials said he was believed to be on vacation.

Members of the Genovese and Bonanno crime families were also arrested, but most of those indicted and nabbed were from the Gambino family once led by John Gotti, who was known as “The Dapper Don” and “The Teflon Don.” The indictment names three Gambino family “captains,” three acting “captains,” and 16 family “soldiers” with numerous counts of racketeering and extortion, most of which carry prison sentences of up to 25 years.

“These charges strike at the very core of the Gambino family,” U.S. Attorney Benton Campbell said at a news conference .

The sweep is the result of a multiyear investigation that involved, among other things, an informant who infiltrated the Gambino family and provided authorities with hundreds of hours of tape-recorded conversations.

Authorities in Italy also announced a series of arrests of major Mafia figures in coordinated raids. The transatlantic operation was called “Old Bridge.” Italian magistrates signed more than two dozen arrests warrants, according to news agencies, and several top crime figures, mostly in Sicily, were in custody, the news agencies said.

Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi called the raids “a brilliant operation against organized crime,” according to the Reuters news agency.

The indictment unveiled at the federal court in Brooklyn details a web of organized crime stretching back three decades, including seven murders from as far back as the 1970s.

The indictment also documents the links between the Mafia and the construction industry in New York, describing several of the largest New York construction firms as allegedly controlled or influenced by the Gambino family and paying a “mob tax” to operate with protection. Through the construction companies, the Gambino family was able to steal union dues and pension benefits, the indictment alleges.

New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said the sweep managed to smash one of the Gambino family’s most profitable enterprises, illegal gambling.

While officials hailed this takedown as a major victory against the mob, they also cautioned that organized crime is still a major force in New York.

Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said, “Organized crime still exists in the city and state of New York. … It’s as unrelenting as weeds that continue to sprout in the cracks of society.”

The New York Times contributed to this report.

-from abclocal.go.com-

Officers say they busted Mario Jones with more than 18,000 ecstasy pills. They say he was taking the drugs from Toledo to Jackson, Mississippi.

It’s being called the biggest ecstasy bust in Toledo history.

Officers say they busted Mario Jones with more than 18,000 ecstasy pills. They say he was taking the drugs from Toledo to Jackson, Mississippi.

Police say they’re worth $374,000. Jones is charged with drug possession and trafficking.
He’s being held on $100,000 bond and will face a judge next Friday.

-from fortmcmurraytoday.com-

By Chuck Chiang

Fort McMurray RCMP have seized more than 150 grams of what’s believed to be crack cocaine in two separate incidents, officials said, arresting three Edmonton men in the process.
According to police, the first incident happened Tuesday at 10 p.m., when RCMP conducted a standard vehicle stop. Upon further investigation, police said they found 111 grams of crack cocaine in the 2003 Kia Sorento, leading to the arrests of the two men in the vehicle.
Rady Michael Saleh, 22, and Anas Ahmad, 24, are charged with possession for the purpose of trafficking.
A second incident occurred early Thursday morning at 12:10 a.m., when another vehicle stop netted 40 grams of crack cocaine. The local RCMP K-9 unit was called in to assist in locating the drugs, and 24-year-old Rory Holoway was arrested and charged with possession, amongst other charges.
“These were normal traffic stops that, a lot of times, our members will notice different things,” said Const. Ali Fayad with the Fort McMurray RCMP. “And one thing usually leads to the other.”
Fayad said the amount of illegal substances recovered at the stops was a key reason for the possession with the purpose of trafficking charge, but there were other factors.
“There are a number of things we have to show the court to get that charge,” he said. “The amount of drugs definitely matter, but we also look for things like scales for measuring and a large amount of cash.”
About $580 was found at the first incident, while $5,500 was found in the second stop.
All three men arrested are from Edmonton.
“It is not uncommon for people involved in the drug trade to come up to Fort McMurray to traffic substances,” Fayad said. “In any community, when you arrest a drug dealer, a lot of times, that guy isn’t from that community. And that’s especially true for Fort Mac, considering how transient the town is.”