METH: THE FUEL OF CRIME

Break-Ins, Fraud, Thefts. Property Offences Were Up 11 Per Cent Last Year
- -- And Police Say A Cheap, Powerful Drug Is To Blame

EDMONTON - Property crimes in Edmonton spiked last year, going up by double
digits, and the increase is being attributed to a spiralling increase in
methamphetamine use, city police say.

"We seem to be targeting the meth users because they seem to be (behind)
the waves of crime. They are involved in absolutely everything," says
narcotics Det. Bob Gauthier.

"I think it's because of the effects of meth. When you have a guy staying
up three or four days, they have nothing better to do than think up new
crimes, new scams."

Cheap and plentiful, crystal meth is highly addictive, and in some areas of
northern Alberta, including Edmonton, has taken over from cocaine as the
third most common drug after alcohol and marijuana.

Prices vary depending on the seller -- some rural dealers sell "a grain,"
or a tenth of a gram for $8 --- but the average price is $60 for a gram of
meth, compared to $80 for a gram of cocaine.

Another reason for meth's growing popularity is its effects last for hours
unlike the 20-minute high one gets from cocaine.

Once addicted, meth users often find they can't afford to pay for their
habit and turn to street crime to make quick and easy cash.

Property crime -- which includes theft, break-ins, auto theft and fraud --
made up 52 per cent of the 87,110 Criminal Code violations in Edmonton last
year. For the year, there were 45,319 property offences, up 4,609 or 11 per
cent, from 2001, according to a police year-end statistical report. The
trend has continued into 2003.

Police have no statistics to tie the property crime increase to meth abuse,
but investigators say they have plenty of anecdotal evidence to back up
their claims.

Det. Allan Vonkeman, with the economic crime section, and Gauthier's
partner, says he's seen a steady increase in fraud and identity theft in
the last two years.

Vonkeman he believes the increase in fraud and identity theft is being
driven by increase in methamphetamine addicts.

Whenever he and Gauthier do a meth bust, they always seem to find evidence
of a highly organized fraud operation -- stolen mail, counterfeit cheques,
fake IDs and so on.

There still is a lot of cocaine-driven crime in Edmonton, but the cokeheads
don't seem to be as networked as meth abusers, Vonkeman said.

Where a cocaine addict might break into a house and steal a television or
DVD player that can quickly be fenced or traded for coke, meth dealers are
trading their drugs for personal information -- stolen credit cards and
mail, vehicle registrations and insurance papers.

"Eight years ago, if you had a package of cheques stolen out of your
vehicle, the police investigator probably would have said 'Don't worry
about it, contact your bank and let them know about it.'

"But today, (the thieves) will have those cheques out and on the street,
and probably scanned into someone's computer so they counterfeit them, in
24 hours.

"We used to get calls from cheque-cashing places reporting counterfeit
cheques maybe once or twice a month. Now we are getting a couple of calls a
day," said Vonkeman.

"The meth people are going out there, and stealing people's identification;
they are doing fraud. And when they get a hold of someone's identity, they
just annihilate it -- it's scary."

Nor is the problem confined to Edmonton. RCMP in Edson, Hinton, Drayton
Valley, Camrose, Fort McMurray and a number of other northern Alberta
communities are also battling an increase in meth abusers, he said.

Last year, RCMP charged 164 people with trafficking in meth in Alberta, 12
times the number five years ago.

"Desperate people do desperate things," said Gary Boucher, a counsellor
with the Alberta Alcohol and Drug Abuse Commission (AADAC). "Wherever there
is an acute addiction in a person's life, the risk for criminal behaviour
is that much more."

AADAC is involved in 28 communities throughout Alberta that police have
identified as having significant methamphetamine problems, he said.

"It's an acute addiction that can take place and users are caught off-guard
in some instances. The next thing they know, they are into it and they have
lost control," Boucher said.

In Edmonton, slightly more than 20 per cent of AADAC clients struggle with
meth addiction, about triple the number in Calgary.

Northern Alberta seems to have a bigger meth problem than the southern part
of the province, in part, because more of it is produced here, says Sgt.
Ian Sanderson, head of the RCMP's drug awareness service based out of Edmonton.

Last November, RCMP and Edmonton police uncovered a super meth lab
operating in a west-end warehouse that was capable of cooking $1 million
worth of meth every 24 hours. Labs have also been found in Spruce Grove and
Gibbons.

Boucher said while police might be dealing with more property crime
offences because of an increase in meth abusers, it isn't a new street drug.

In fact, meth is having its third wave of popularity all over North
America, said Boucher who predicts this latest wave will eventually end,
like its predecessors, through public education and legislation.

Vonkeman and Gauthier say, as police officers, they think the problem will
continue to get worse especially since organized criminals, who don't have
any concern for public safety, have discovered how easy it is to produce
the drug.

"Alot of it is organized crime and their main focus is to make money so
they are out there trying to plug the market," said Vonkeman.

"And those users -- as much as they steal and they defraud people, most of
them don't have a pot to piss in when it's all said and done."

WHAT METH IS AND WHAT IT DOES

METHAMPHETAMINE FACTS:

- - Methamphetamine is a synthetic central nervous system stimulant produced
illegally in clandestine laboratories.

- - It's a highly addictive and dangerous street drug that produces a strong
craving.

- - There is a 42 per cent chance of addiction if tried once.

- - There is a 96 per cent chance of addiction if tried more than once.

- - The success rate of recovery for addicts is about 20 per cent, leaving 80
per cent of addicts untreatable and actively using the substance.

- - Once addicted, most users can't afford to feed their habit through a
traditional manner and turn to street crime to finance their addiction.

Source: First Response Guide to Street Drugs

The Edmonton Journal

ANTI-CRIME TIPS

Time is a vehicle theft's enemy. The more difficult your vehicle is to
steal, the less attractive it is to thieves.

- - Lock your vehicle and pocket the keys.

- - Never leave your vehicle running and unattended -- not even for a minute.

- - Use a visual deterrent like a steering wheel locking device such as the Club.

- - Completely close windows and sunroofs when parking.

- - Park in attended lots.

- - Don't hide extra keys in the vehicle.

- - If you have a garage, use it.

- - Remove portable accessories such as CD players from sight.

- - Turn on your vehicle's security system.

The Edmonton Journal

BY THE NUMBERS

VIOLENT CRIMES

- - Total in 2002: 7,070

- - Homicides: 24

- - Attempted murders: 7

- - Sexual assaults: 515

- - Other sex offences: 91

- - Non-sexual assaults: 5,118

- - Abductions: 4

- - Robberies: 1,311

PROPERTY CRIMES

- - Total in 2002: 45,319

- - Residential break-and-enters: 3,468

- - Business break-and-enters: 2,584

- - Other break-and-enters: 2,046

- - Vehicle theft: 7,074

- - Theft over $5,000: 401

- - Theft under $5,000: 23,225

- - Possession stolen property: 2,178

- - Fraud: 4,343

The Edmonton Journal