Pubdate: Sun, 19 Feb 2006
Source: Fayetteville Observer (NC)
Copyright: 2006 Fayetteville Observer
Contact:  http://www.fayettevillenc.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/150
Author: Amneris Solano
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/coke.htm (Cocaine)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)

DRUG BUSTS SLOWING TRADE

CLINTON -- The Sampson County Sheriff's Office saw drug seizures rise 
by more than $7million from 2004 to 2005.

And this year, officers grabbed $20 million in cocaine in one 
incident. The rising drug amounts reflected in the increased value of 
seizures is an indicator of the county's persistent drug problem, 
Sheriff Jimmy Thornton said. Deputies recovered $1 million worth of 
marijuana, cocaine and methamphetamines in 2004. The amount 
skyrocketed to $8.8 million last year. So far this year, agents have 
uncovered three meth labs and seized 440 pounds of cocaine in one of 
the largest arrests in county history. The street value of the 
cocaine was estimated at $20 million. Two men were charged with 
trafficking the drug by possession.

Court records say the men were carrying the cocaine in a 1997 Ford 
Ranger. The drugs were confiscated Jan. 23 along Edmond Matthis Road, 
a rural road in southern Sampson County.

Investigators are not releasing details in the case. On Feb. 9, 
deputies raided a home on Jeanette Lane near Godwin where they seized 
$561 worth of marijuana and charged two people who live in the house 
with intent to sell and make the drug.

Breeding ground Sampson County has become a hotbed for drug activity, 
Thornton said, and he wants it stopped because drugs breed other 
crimes such as break-ins and robberies. The number of robberies, 
especially, has increased, he said. "I think that we are seeing more 
violence now," the sheriff said, "whereas before I don't know that we 
had that much." The amounts are alarming, he said, but the figures 
also show law enforcement's commitment to battling the drug problem. 
The Sheriff's Office often teams with the federal Drug Enforcement 
Administration, the State Bureau of Investigation, the state Highway 
Patrol and surrounding sheriff's offices to build cases against drug dealers.

"They've all shared in this," Thornton said. "We didn't do it without 
help." Emmett Highland, resident agent in charge with the DEA office 
in Wilmington, said the state in general has experienced an increase 
in drug trafficking because the population has grown.

Highland said state, federal and local agencies have combined their 
resources to target the larger drug dealers. By doing so, they are 
able to seize bigger amounts of drugs.

Cocaine is the top drug that is being trafficked in southeastern 
North Carolina, he said. The state is not only a destination for the 
drug, the DEA Web site said, but a distribution point for northern 
states on the East Coast. Statewide, the number of federal cocaine 
seizures rose from 275 pounds in 2003 to 862 pounds in 2004.

Sampson County belongs to a DEA task force of local and federal 
officers. Over the past year, the task force has made significant 
seizures that have hurt the drug trade in the southeastern part of 
the state, Highland said. "We've had some great successes over the 
last 18 months or so," he said. The seizure of the 440 pounds of 
cocaine in January has been one of the biggest in the region, 
Highland said. He would not discuss details of that case but said it 
is an indicator of what law enforcement agencies are facing "I think 
people have to wake up and realize that we've got a serious problem," 
Thornton said.

Thornton attributes the increase in drug seizures to better 
cooperation and coordination with local, state and federal agencies 
and his office's philosophy for vigorously targeting drug dealers.

Interstate connection Chief Deputy John Conerly said Sampson County 
is an easy target for drug dealers because it is rural and because of 
its proximity to Interstates 40 and 95. Interstate 40 runs through 
the eastern part of the county and has exits near Newton Grove. I-95 
meets I-40 in Johnston County near the Sampson County line.

The county has 500,000 miles of paved highways, which makes it 
appealing to drug traffickers who want to travel undetected on back 
roads. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the 
production, trafficking and use of illegal drugs is a growing problem 
in rural counties. A 1997 report on the issue says that "growing 
competition and effective law enforcement efforts" in cities have 
forced drug dealers and producers into remote areas where they can 
avoid being seen and the competition is less hostile. Law 
enforcement's best weapon against them, Conerly said, has been 
anonymous tipsters. People report suspicious activity in their 
neighborhoods and investigators follow those leads.

"We need those tips," he said, "to point us in the right direction."
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