METH AN INSIDIOUS MENACE

Class B drug methamphetamine is one of the most insidious illegal
substances police have seen in New Zealand in the past 15 years, and its
influence is growing. MARAMA ELLIS reports.

Gang violence, organised crime, clandestine drug laboratories - 2001 is
shaping up to produce a bumper crop of arrests and seizures of New
Zealand's new illicit drug of choice.

Methamphetamine, an amphetamine-type substance also known as speed, upper,
meth and goey, has raced to the forefront of a changing drug trend in New
Zealand.

Already this year, police have uncovered at least two meth labs, seized
more than $110,000 worth of the drug, and made about 60 arrests related to
the drug in the North Island.

Police predict the increase in meth users will be reflected in crime
statistics, as addicts turn to burglaries and fraud to help finance their
habit.

Figures released recently showed almost 1900 more violent crimes were
committed in 2000 than during the previous year, up from 39,688 in 1999 to
41,580 last year; a big worry for police, who point to the often violent
and paranoiac side effects of speed.

The drug problem is not only becoming evident in court cases, but on New
Zealand's streets and at dance parties, where some thrill-seekers want to
inject extra excitement into their lives.

In Wellington, youth workers report teenagers as young as 14 are on speed.

Peter Whaanga, Wellington co-ordinator for Drug Arm, a nationwide addiction
awareness and relief programme, said youth workers had noticed a definite
surge in the availability of speed and the number of young people using it.

"It's simple to get . . . we've seen deals on the streets," Mr Whaanga, a
self-confessed reformed drug dealer and former gang member said.

"We've had 14-year-olds admit to using meth and we've seen the
repercussions of the deals . . . we've picked the teenagers up out of the
gutter and cleaned them up.

"These young people think they are just having a good time, but, while it
might start out good for them, it finishes bad."

Higher Ground Drug Rehabilitation Trust staff in Auckland have noted a far
greater proportion of their residents in recent years have been amphetamine
abusers.

"There is no doubt that amphetamines are more freely available and there is
a whole group of people, clearly a different type from opiate users, who
are attracted to them," trust director Robert Steenhuisen said.

Overseas studies of criminal behaviour patterns of amphetamine users
compared with opiate users showed one of the main differences was that once
opiate use started to drop, so too did the user's criminal involvement.
This was not necessarily the case with amphetamine-type substances.

"These people are quite different from those who plant 10 cannabis plants
in their backyard to smoke," Mr Steenhuisen said.

"Amphetamine users want to get a rush, a sense of wellbeing and power.
There's a thrill-seeking component here."

Geoff Robinson, from Capital Coast Health's Drug Rehabilitation Clinic in
Wellington, said some of his patients used as much as two grams of the
substance every day.

Meth prices in New Zealand range from about $100 to $180 a gram.

The drug can be bought as crystals, powder, chunks or tablets and can be
snorted, injected or smoked.

Many patients were psychologically addicted to the euphoria, increased
libido and decrease in fatigue caused by the drug, but it also induced
acute paranoia, depression and could lead to heart problems, Dr Robinson said.

This paranoia among gang members using the drug, as well as manufacturing
and distributing it, is a big concern for police.

National Drug Intelligence Bureau boss Detective Sergeant Tony Quayle said
methamphetamine was a "monster" that had spread with alarming speed around
the country.

He has spent about two months collating and analysing New Zealand's illegal
drugs data for the Australian Illicit Drug Report 1999-2000.

His report said one of the country's biggest organised crime groups, Hell's
Angels, had been suspected of manufacturing methamphetamine since the early
1990s.

"At our last `guesstimate', there would be no region in New Zealand that
hasn't reported their local gang is involved in methamphetamine; not
necessarily in production, but definitely distribution," Mr Quayle said.

"The gang members are also using methamphetamine and as a result are
becoming increasingly paranoid," the report said.

"This is causing warring over distribution markets. Inter-gang violence
will probably increase in keeping with the expansion of the methamphetamine
market."

Acting national crime manager Detective Inspector Harry Quinn said the high
level of violence associated with the drug would undoubtedly have an impact
on society.

"Methamphetamine is one of the most insidious drugs we have seen in the
last decade and a half," he said.

"The level of violence that surrounds people who are meth addicts or who
are coming off after a long time or have a heavy drug use is incredibly high."

New Zealand has difficulty policing the use of amphetamine-type substances
because the new varieties of the drug are not covered in the Misuse of
Drugs Act 1975 schedules, which allow for their search and seizure.

At the moment, police cannot search for meth unless they have a warrant.

This is an anomaly they hope will be changed soon, under moves to
reclassify drugs.

The Police Association has also been lobbying for more resources to be
targeted at the drug.

However, Mr Quinn said the allocation of more money would not necessarily
address the meth issue.

Drug education, rehabilitation and law enforcement were all needed.

Police were working closely with pharmaceutical companies and pharmacists,
educating them about how meth manufacturers try to get the chemicals needed
for a bake.

Overseas drug trends that might affect New Zealand are also being monitored.

Police intelligence reports say Southeast Asian drug trafficking has
changed considerably, with traditional heroin producers turning to meth and
dual-drug laboratories in countries such as Thailand, Burma and Vietnam.

Early last month, nearly 7.8 million speed tablets and 116kg of heroin were
confiscated from two Thai fishing vessels destined for Thailand, Malaysia
and Australia.

Mr Quayle said the Thai meth market was producing millions of tablets.

"If the Thai market comes to New Zealand, we could be flooded with cheap
amphetamine pills. The only saving grace is that Australia is between them
and us."