A concerted effort to reduce the distribution of crystal meth by the Camrose Police Service is making an impact. "What we're very successful in is busting runners from Edmonton," said criminal investigation section member Sgt. Greg Corbett. "They (runners) come down here and they stick out like a sore thumb. Usually these people have warrants so they're identified right away and they're getting caught." Detective Lorne Blumhagen said a practice of running interference with major players has interrupted distribution to all the locals, and that the locals now have to rely on their own devices to access meth. That usually means a trip out of Camrose. [continues 329 words]
A year has passed since the Battle River Drug Response Task Force brought the issue of crystal meth to the forefront in the region. The narcotic, known as the "dirty drug" because of its toxic ingredients and perilous effects, is presently not the force it was 10 months ago, according to law enforcement. "It was ugly here six to eight months ago," commented Tofield RCMP Sgt. Jim Warren. "But we're at the low end of the cycle." Camrose Police Service criminal investigation section members Det. Lorne Blumhagen and Sgt. Greg Corbett also report a decrease on the meth front. Although they have no statistical information to back their claim, a decrease in meth related crimes in addition to their own intelligence gathering supports their belief. [continues 282 words]
Organizers of a Drug Response Task Force public meeting, scheduled for Nov. 27 at Camrose Composite High School (CCHS), are anticipating an emotional and hard-hitting evening. "We have put together an outstanding group of presenters who will deliver the straight goods on crystal meth," said task force chairman Kerry LaBerge. "I encourage parents in the Camrose and the surrounding communities to attend this meeting and hear first-hand the horrors of crystal meth, and to learn what steps they can take to make sure it does not become an issue in their or their children's lives." [continues 183 words]
Battle River Regional Division #31 administrators were schooled on the dangers of crystal meth (methamphetamine) by Calgary police officer and award-winning author Det. Steve Walton, Nov. 12. Walton, a 24-year police force veteran whose book Get the Dope on Dope: First Response Guide to Street Drugs is widely used in medical and law enforcement circles as the resource guide to illegal street drugs, painted a poignant picture of crystal meth's rise in Alberta communities. "What you're seeing is the emergence of one of the most dangerous street drugs in the world," Det. Walton told an assembly of about 60 BRRD #31 administrators. [continues 229 words]
An increase in dangerous illegal narcotics and accessibility to them by youth has prompted the City of Camrose's Social Planning committee to strike a Drug Response Task Force. Battle River Regional Division #31 will partner in the initiative and has struck its own internal working and advisory committees to deal with the growing community drug problem that has filtered into some division schools. At the request of the Social Planning committee, the division will partner with a wide variety of community agencies, including the Camrose Police Service (CPS), on the task force. [continues 218 words]
