MERCHANTS NEEDED TO FIGHT METH TRADE

Fresno Police Launch Voluntary Reporting Program To Track Products Used In
Illegal Labs.

In the continuing fight to deter methamphetamine production in the Valley,
Fresno police announced Wednesday the formation of a voluntary program that
encourages merchants to report sales of products associated with the
illegal drug.

Called "Businesses Against Methamphetamine," the program urges merchants to
complete a written report that includes the buyer's drivers license or
vehicle license plate when certain items are purchased in suspicious
quantities.

Among those products are cold medicines with pseudoephedrine, denatured
alcohol, acetone and MSM, a horse supplement used to cut finished meth.
When a customer attempts to buy any of these products, the participating
merchants can fill out a "transaction report" that will be sent to the
Fresno Police Department's narcotics office.

"The manufacturing of methamphetamine has a devastating effect on our
community," said Fresno Police Chief Ed Winchester. "We are seeking the
public's assistance in our battle against methamphetamine."

Merchants participating in the program will be provided with stickers in
English and Spanish to be placed outside their store that read "ATTENTION:
The management of this establishment is a co-operative partner with the
Fresno Police Department in its continued effort to stop the manufacturing
and distribution of illegal drugs."

Inside the store, a placard can be set near the suspect products that reads
"ATTENTION: One or more of the products on this shelf have been known to be
used in the manufacturing of illegal drugs. You may be required to produce
a valid California drivers license of I.D. upon purchase."

Similar programs exist in Stanislaus and Merced counties, as well as
several states across the nation where methamphetamine dominates the drug
scene.

The program is not intended to ebb the spread of the so-called super labs
of Mexican nationals that flood the meth market. Super lab operations
involve thousands of dollars of chemicals where sometimes up to 100 pounds
of meth are cooked at a time. The wholesale price of high-quality meth in
Fresno ranges from $4,500 to $6,000 a pound. In Midwest states, such as
Iowa and Missouri, where meth use is rampant, the drug sells for $15,000 a
pound.

This program is designed to dampen the proliferation of small, so-called
"Beavis and Butthead" or "User" labs. These smaller labs, which are popping
up with alarming frequency in the Valley and produce ounces of meth, are
intended for individual use or small-time sales. This type of user can find
the ingredients necessary to make meth at an array of businesses, including
local drugstores.

Some state laws are already in effect requiring a written record for the
sale of certain amounts of certain products. For example, a transaction
report is required for the purchase of $100 or more of denatured alcohol,
which is used to wash pseudoephedrine before a cook. However, many meth
cookers get around this simply by buying smaller amounts several times.
When a merchant observes such purchasing traits, authorities hope the sale
will be noted.

"Police work depends on information," Winchester said. "A merchant may have
some information and think it is not that important, but it may be the
missing link that provides the key to an investigation."

Bob Pennal of the Fresno County Methamphetamine Task Force agreed.

"We need the assistance of the public," Pennal said, "because we need their
eyes."