U.S.-CANADA METH CRACKDOWN HAILED AS SUCCESS

Scores In Custody, Contraband Seized In U.S.-Canada Operation

WASHINGTON - U.S. and Canadian officials said Tuesday that they had
disrupted a major methamphetamine supply system through an investigation
that netted 67 arrests and tons of illegal chemicals.

Many of the alleged brokers, money launderers and go-betweens were of
Middle Eastern origin, including a New York man - grocery store owner Alaa
Odeh - whose uncle was recently arrested in Israel's West Bank on charges
of being a member of the Islamic Jihad terrorist group. Much of the money
was funneled to Amman, Jordan, and the West Bank cities of Nablus and Ramallah.

Assistant Attorney General Michael Chertoff, head of the Justice
Department's criminal division, said that no charges directly involved
terrorism but that the investigation would continue into the money trail.

The 18-month investigation, dubbed "Operation North Star," centered on the
shipment of pseudoephedrine - a common nasal decongestant that in large
amounts is a key ingredient in methamphetamine - from three Canadian
companies to large illicit labs in the U.S. Southwest.

The charges were brought in indictments unsealed Tuesday in New York, Los
Angeles and Chicago, as well as cases brought in Canada. Among those
charged are six current or former executives with the three Canadian
companies - Frega Inc., Formulex and GC Medical Products - who allegedly
diverted thousands of pounds of pseudoephedrine to the United States for
illegal use.

Charges were also brought against operators of illicit labs, many near Las
Vegas, Phoenix and Los Angeles, as well as transporters and distributors of
pseudoephedrine. Search warrants executed Tuesday resulted in the seizure
of more than 34,000 pounds of pseudoephedrine, $3.6 million in cash and six
homes, officials said.