Pubdate: Sun, 20 Aug 2006 Source: Daily News Journal (TN) http://dnj.midsouthnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060820/NEWS01/608200321/1002 Copyright: 2006 Mid-South Publishing Company Contact: http://dnj.midsouthnews.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1709 Author: Lisa Marchesoni Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/heroin.htm (Heroin) NATIONWIDE HEROIN BUST STARTED HERE Heroin buys by a Murfreesboro vice detective in April 2005 provided early information that developed into an nationwide investigation targeting dealers, said a Drug Enforcement Administration supervisor. The investigation, nicknamed "Operation Black Gold Rush," resulted in 130 arrests Tuesday after local, state and federal officers served search warrants simultaneously in 15 cities, including Smyrna and La Vergne from the Nashville area. Rutherford County houses searched included: Sanchez, Porto and Veronica Liliana Sanchez Cortez were taken into custody from those homes, said Murfreesboro Vice Lt. Nathan McDaniel. They are illegal immigrants. Agent Harry Sommers, who supervises the DEA in Tennessee, said the Murfreesboro vice officer bought heroin from traffickers in the city. "The pieces that came out of Murfreesboro were important because it provided probable cause with the type of intelligence we were going to do," Sommers said. "Clearly, the information provided was an important link." Murfreesboro and sheriff's detectives remained involved in the investigation by doing surveillance for the next 1-1/2 years. They participated in serving the search warrants Tuesday. Cortez had a baby who was taken into custody of the Department of Children's Services. "She didn't shed a tear," McDaniel said of Cortez. Sheriff's narcotics Detective Lt. Egon Grissom said detectives and Interstate Crime Enforcement's K-9 deputies searched the house on Joann Drive in La Vergne. "The house inside had no furnishings whatsoever, no food," Grissom said. "The house was where they were keeping the money. We recovered some cash and some heroin up in the attic." They found two suspects inside with only a blanket and pillow for sleeping. They had warrants on the suspects for heroin sales. McDaniel said vice detectives first received complaints about black tar heroin sales in December 2004 in the Cason Lane area of west Murfreesboro. McDaniel was surprised because he had only seen black tar heroin once when he stopped a suspect about eight years ago. In April 2005, vice detectives developed a confidential source who made heroin buys that cost $7,500 an ounce. They purchased the drug in 1/4-ounce quantities. Users heat the drug to inject it or inhale it. "It's the worst thing I've ever seen in my life," McDaniel said, because the drug is extremely addictive. "It looks like black tar. It's gooey, nasty." The sheriff's narcotics unit joined in when sales were made in Smyrna and La Vergne. Grissom said heroin is a rarer drug and harder to buy. "To obtain heroin, you've got to have the right connections," Grissom said. "It's more expensive than cocaine." After making about five buys, the detectives realized the supply was part of an organization. They enlisted the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation drug agents. Sommers said TBI realized the organization expanded beyond Tennessee and notified DEA. "Combined with ongoing information we had from that point on we put together the federal investigation targeting the Mexican drug-trafficking organization," Sommers said. DEA agents worked their way into the organization. The operation spread into other cities and resulted in the arrests Tuesday. "When it comes to heroin, this is one of those times when we can honestly say the organization was not disrupted, we dismantled this organization," Sommers said, adding the arrests should destroy heroin sales for some time. DEA used information from local and state officers to build this case and other investigations. Both Murfreesboro and the Rutherford County sheriff's office provide one detective each to the regional DEA task force. "The drug issue crosses everybody's borders," Sommers said. "You have to deal with it in a regional way."