17 INDICTED IN E. KENTUCKY MARIJUANA ROUNDUP

LONDON, Ky. -- A major marijuana roundup in Eastern Kentucky resulted in
federal indictments of 17 people accused of cultivating nearly 4,000 plants.

U.S. Attorney Greg Van Tatenhove of the Eastern District of Kentucky said
the joint federal, state and local investigations announced yesterday show
authorities are serious about cracking down on the "most widely used
illicit drug in America."

"We're still in the midst of the battle," Van Tatenhove said at a news
conference on the indictments.

The two-day roundup of suspects that ended yesterday resulted in nine drug
busts in seven counties -- Breathitt, Knott, Knox, Pulaski, Rockcastle,
Wayne and Whitley. Some of the marijuana was cultivated indoors, Van
Tatenhove said.

The largest bust netted more than 1,300 plants in Knox County. Van
Tatenhove said the plants were grown between April and September.

The defendants each face up to 40 years in prison and a $2 million fine if
convicted of manufacturing in excess of 100 marijuana plants.

The announcement yesterday was made at the London headquarters for the
Appalachia High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area office, a federal and state
task force that battles illegal drug trafficking in the region.

Frank Rapier, deputy director of the task force, said the confiscated
plants weighed a total of 176 pounds and had a total value of between
$350,000 and $500,000.

Van Tatenhove said marijuana use has become an epidemic in Eastern
Kentucky, although it receives less attention than prescription-drug abuse
and methamphetamine use.

At a drug summit in Paintsville in November, Tom Manzi, a Drug Enforcement
Administration supervisor who works with Kentucky on drug issues, said
abuse of prescription drugs -- including OxyContin, Tylox and Vicadin --
remains the "most serious drug threat in Eastern Kentucky."

But Van Tatenhove, citing national statistics, said 62 percent of drug
addicts are marijuana abusers.

According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, marijuana is the leading
cash crop in Kentucky, West Virginia and Tennessee. The states comprise
only 4 percent of the U.S. population but produce 28 percent of the
nation's marijuana.

The federal agency eradicated 700,000 marijuana plants in Kentucky last year.

Rapier said much of the marijuana grown in the region is sent to other
parts of the country. "Not all of it is being used here, but it's still
very startling," he said.

Van Tatenhove said Eastern Kentucky continues to have a "particularly
egregious problem" with marijuana.