DEALERS HAVE UPPER HAND

Dial-A-Dope

Combating illegal dial-a-dope operations is a risky and frustrating
proposition for police.

The only way officers can get close to bringing down the heads of the
trafficking networks is by going deep undercover.

"It's a dangerous and expensive thing for us to do," said Vancouver
police drug squad Det. Jim Fisher. "The drivers are cannon-fodder,
the only way to bring one down is by getting to the distributor."

But getting to the boss of an operation is a lengthy endeavour that
could put an officer at risk.

"We do 'buy-ups' where we buy from a dealer several times and build
up his trust and try to go up the chain," said Fisher.

But the shifty nature of dial-a-dopes means undercover agents rarely
make it to the top of the ladder.

"They're pretty cognizant of our tactics," admitted Fisher. "We know
how they operate but they also know the tactics we use."

One of the most pressing issues drug squads face is a lack of resources.

The squad has been without a dedicated dial-a-dope investigation team
since 2001 and investigators are also responsible for busting
grow-operations and other drug-related crimes, which makes it
difficult to keep a finger on elusive dial-a-dopers.

"It needs intelligence-based policing," said Fisher, "but we only
have the manpower to target dial-a-dope operations a couple times a year."

Without being able to hit a dial-a-dope operation from the top
usually results in street-level dealers getting off with minimal
sentences while the distributor changes his operational make-up to
elude police.

"There's no kidding ourselves," Fisher conceded. "So we make them
lose their phone numbers and force them to rebuild their lines, but
it's only a brief interruption. We talk about disrupting organized
crime, not dismantling it."

Until police receive the tools they need to focus on dial-a-dopes and
the justice system goes after drug dealers harder, Fisher believes
police will struggle to keep up with trafficking.

"You have to be patient," said the 19-year drug squad veteran. "There
is a Chinese proverb that says, 'If you wait at the riverbank long
enough you'll eventually see the bodies of your enemies float by.'
Well, I've been waiting a long time."