AGENTS: ILLEGAL DRUG HAS GROWING NICHE IN DALLAS

Federal drug enforcement authorities in Dallas are intercepting
increasingly large amounts of an imported leaf from northeast Africa known
as "khat." The chewable stimulant has found a market among some area
cabdrivers and within growing Somali and Ethiopian immigrant communities.

Several cabdrivers say the ancient chewing habit transferred years ago to
the Dallas area, where the drug fuels workers through long hours and
energizes social gatherings in some tight-knit ethnic communities and
restaurants.

The plant, pronounced "cot" or "chat," has been cultivated and consumed as
a legal stimulant for centuries in East African nations. It is so
interwoven into the fabric of those cultures that many immigrants to
America have trouble believing it is illegal here. Two years ago, the
president of Yemen began a campaign against the widespread use of khat,
promising to cut back his all-day consumption to evenings only.

"It makes work easy, so that it's not bad to work," said Taviku
Gebremakaot, an Ethiopian immigrant who drives a taxi at Dallas/Fort Worth
International Airport. He said he does not use the drug while on the job.

Local demand for khat appears to be limited, and supplies inconsistent, but
Dallas is among a half-dozen other major U.S. cities where khat seems to be
appearing in increasing quantities as law enforcement authorities learn to
recognize it.

The drug, most often smuggled into airports in personal luggage, has been
found in cities such as New York, Minneapolis, Detroit and Boston. Until a
flood of Somali immigrants began coming to the U.S. during the mid-1990s,
airport customs authorities and police were largely unfamiliar with the
plant. Most drug-sniffing dogs aren't trained to detect its odor, law
enforcement officials say.

A new federal report assessing illegal drug trafficking in North Texas says
a D/FW Airport drug task force confiscated 64,000 grams of khat from
passengers in 2001. The leaf is also being found in commercial quantities
at the airport. In the past two years, the U.S. Customs Service has seized
nearly 1,200 pounds of the plant from mislabeled cargo containers at the
airport, which is evidence of more ambitious smuggling enterprises,
according to a report produced annually by the North Texas High Intensity
Drug Trafficking Area task force.

Smuggling prosecution

Federal authorities in Dallas have prosecuted several people who have tried
to bring khat into North Texas, for sale primarily to Somali, Yemeni,
Ethiopian and Arab immigrants. One British man, Peter Asquiths, was
sentenced in January 2001 to an eight-month prison term after U.S. Customs
officials caught him at the airport with two suitcases stuffed with khat.
Several smuggling investigations are ongoing, customs officials said. "We
do prosecute them, if we catch someone smuggling a quantity of khat into
the U.S.," Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Michael Worley said.

The leaf is legal, plentiful and cheap in western Europe and Canada. In the
United States, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration in recent years has
moved khat into the same enforcement categories as cocaine and heroin.

Drug experts, as well as those who have used khat, say the leaf does not
impair motor skills but rather creates a mild, amphetaminelike euphoria
that heightens senses and self-esteem. The federal Drug Enforcement Agency
warns that khat can be psychologically addictive and has been known to
cause aggressive behavior and feelings of paranoia among chronic users.

Dallas-area Somalis and Ethiopians familiar with the drug say spotty
availability and relatively high prices - about $40 for a day's supply -
suggest that local demand may not be as strong here as in other U.S. cities
where the drug has been known to be openly advertised in Somali grocery
stores and restaurants.

Somali taxi cabdriver Abdul Mohamud said that while he does not use khat,
many cabbies do because they can work 20-hour shifts by periodically
chewing wads of the plant during their shifts.

Used at cultural events

The drug is also used at weddings and other cultural ceremonies, such as
prayer sessions. Khat loses its natural potency after about three days
unless it is kept moist and cold during transport. A more commonly
available version of khat comes in dry form but is considered less potent,
tasty and desirable.

Street drug expert R. Terry Furst, associate professor of criminal justice
at John J. College in New York, said khat seems destined to remain a niche
drug within small ethnic communities.

"It is not the kind of drug that appears to be abused, and there's not that
much activity," he said.

But Supervisory Special Agent Robert Thompson of the Customs Service said
the smuggling of khat - and associated criminal activity - would be a
greater local problem if law enforcement had not prosecuted several cases
in North Texas in recent years.

"People make big bucks smuggling anything in," he said. "I think there's
big money in everything. It all depends on what you're good at, if you've
got a niche."

[SIDEBAR]

A GUIDE TO KHAT

What it is

Khat, pronounced "cot" or "chat," is a natural stimulant from the Catha
edulis plant found in a large flowering shrub that grows in northeast
Africa and the Southern Arabia peninsula. Fresh khat leaves are a glossy
brown color and contain a psychoactive ingredient chemically similar to
amphetamine. The plant has been cultivated for centuries and is in wide use
today primarily in Yemen, Somalia and parts of Ethiopia and the Middle
East. The drug also is known as Abyssinian Tea, African Tea, and African Salad.

The effects

Chewing khat produces a mild cocainelike or amphetaminelike euphoria that
is less potent than either substance. Those who ingest it report feelings
of bliss, clarity of thought and energy, followed by a more prolonged sense
of euphoria. Chronic users have been known to be aggressive or paranoid.

Legality

Khat is legal to possess and use in most countries, including the United
Kingdom and Canada. In the United States, the drug was recently classified
a Schedule I narcotic carrying penalties similar to heroin and cocaine.
Prior to the reclassification, the drug was classified as a Schedule IV
substance with lesser penalties similar to those for marijuana.

Availability

Khat is often transported into the U.S. from Europe, Canada and Africa
wrapped in plastic bags or banana leaves to retain moistness required for
continued potency. Active ingredients typically lose potency after three
days if the plant dries too quickly. The drug has been found in the
personal luggage of travelers and in bulk freight containers. It is sold by
word of mouth, or in ethnic specialty shops, in cities such as Boston, Los
Angeles, Detroit, Buffalo and New York City. Law enforcement authorities in
Dallas have made an increasing number of large-scale seizures at D/FW
International Airport in recent years.

SOURCES: U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency; Dallas Morning News research