I-5 YIELDS OUT-OF-STATE METH

Drug Bust Uncovers Manufacturing Network Connected By Interstate

Undercover detectives busted a sophisticated methamphetamine trafficking
operation in South Tacoma last week in what authorities said Monday is a
disturbing new trend.

Supplying meth to Pierce County users no longer is the sole purview of
local "cookers" who whip up small batches of the highly addictive drug in
storage sheds or kitchens in the South Sound area, said law enforcement
officials.

More and more, meth is coming into the South Sound via Interstate 5, which
connects local dealers with a vast manufacturing network in California and
Mexico, they said.

Capt. Mark Couey of the Washington State Patrol said up to 75 percent of
the meth currently being consumed in Washington is coming from outside the
state.

The number of meth labs reported in Washington is down nearly 70 percent
since 2001, Couey said, yet meth-related deaths and traffic accidents
continue to rise. More than half of the drug cases forwarded to the
Washington State Patrol's crime laboratory involve meth, he said.

James Boyle, deputy director of Pierce County Alliance, a local
drug-treatment provider, said his programs are crammed, and that he's
seeing more people, especially women, from all walks of life addicted to
the drug.

"There are still a huge number of referrals," he said.

The reason, authorities said, is out-of-state meth.

"What we're seeing is more and more foreign-based traffickers," Couey said.
"They're 'muling' their product up I-5. It's a disturbing trend."

That is forcing local law enforcement agencies to change tactics in their
battle against meth, which spawns other crimes, such as identity theft and
burglary, said Pierce County Sheriff Paul Pastor.

The focus on eradicating and cleaning up small cooking operations in Pierce
County -- which has met with some success -- is shifting to "more
complicated investigations" targeting the "violent entrepreneurs" who bring
meth into the county from other states and countries, Pastor said.

The new law enforcement effort will have to include more partnerships among
local, state and federal agencies to identify traffickers and create plans
to stop them, the sheriff said.

Friday's bust in South Tacoma is a good example of what local law
enforcement is up against, Pastor said.

A months-long investigation culminated with the arrest of four people and
the seizure of 6.5 pounds of meth, 6.8 pounds of cocaine, four cars,
$13,000 in cash and one pistol, Couey said.

Authorities displayed the seized drugs, cash and gun at a news conference
Monday for reporters to see and photograph.

It was not a record bust but big enough to let authorities know that
traffickers see Washington as a lucrative market, Couey said.

"This won't be the last," he said.

To combat it, authorities need the help of treatment providers and the
public, Pastor said.

Treatment providers must work to help people addicted to meth break the
cycle of addiction, while the public must let users and pushers know meth
is not welcome in Pierce County, the sheriff said.

"It affects all of us. It plagues all of us," Pastor said. "We have to work
on supply. We have to work on demand."