News (Media Awareness Project) - US: MO: DEA Agents Celebrate Anniversary In St. Louis |
| Title: | US: MO: DEA Agents Celebrate Anniversary In St. Louis |
| Published On: | 1998-07-02 |
| Source: | St. Louis Post Dispatch (MO) |
| Fetched On: | 2008-09-07 06:40:30 |
DEA AGENTS CELEBRATE ANNIVERSARY IN ST. LOUIS
More than 100 current and former federal agents and their families were in
Clayton Wednesday to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the federal Drug
Enforcement Administration.
The celebration was one of several being held at division offices around the
county Wednesday. The St. Louis division office encompasses six states and
has more than 262 employees.
The celebration was created to serve as a reunion for former agents and
employees of the DEA in St. Louis' division, while giving the public a
better idea of the agency's responsibilities.
The federal agency, which was formed in 1973, has been a major force in
stopping drug trafficking in the United States - both in its own
investigations and the training it offers to local law enforcement agencies,
DEA spokeswoman Shirley A. Armstead said.
Ed Irvin, the first special agent in charge in St. Louis, said he remembered
the early days of the agency, and the struggles that agents faced. He said
that in addition to fighting drug dealers, the agency faced a major lack of
resources.
For example, Irvin said agents were often forced to buy their own gas and
drive their own vehicles during dangerous missions for the agency. The first
St. Louis office only had one computer that was shared by all the agents.
Irvin said he has watched the focus of the agency change over the years to
battle the changing drug trade.
In the early 1970s, he said, heroin was big but it was eventually surplanted
by cocaine. Now, methamphetamine is becoming the drug of choice, he said.
"I see a bunch of advances, but the challenges are still the same," he said.
"We met the challenges then and you are meeting the challenges now."
Joseph J. Corcoran, the current special agent in charge in St. Louis,
thanked the agents for their years of service and said their sacrifices have
made a difference in many communities. "There's somebody out there that you
don't even know whose life you saved," he said.
Copyright (c) 1998, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Checked-by: "Rolf Ernst"
More than 100 current and former federal agents and their families were in
Clayton Wednesday to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the federal Drug
Enforcement Administration.
The celebration was one of several being held at division offices around the
county Wednesday. The St. Louis division office encompasses six states and
has more than 262 employees.
The celebration was created to serve as a reunion for former agents and
employees of the DEA in St. Louis' division, while giving the public a
better idea of the agency's responsibilities.
The federal agency, which was formed in 1973, has been a major force in
stopping drug trafficking in the United States - both in its own
investigations and the training it offers to local law enforcement agencies,
DEA spokeswoman Shirley A. Armstead said.
Ed Irvin, the first special agent in charge in St. Louis, said he remembered
the early days of the agency, and the struggles that agents faced. He said
that in addition to fighting drug dealers, the agency faced a major lack of
resources.
For example, Irvin said agents were often forced to buy their own gas and
drive their own vehicles during dangerous missions for the agency. The first
St. Louis office only had one computer that was shared by all the agents.
Irvin said he has watched the focus of the agency change over the years to
battle the changing drug trade.
In the early 1970s, he said, heroin was big but it was eventually surplanted
by cocaine. Now, methamphetamine is becoming the drug of choice, he said.
"I see a bunch of advances, but the challenges are still the same," he said.
"We met the challenges then and you are meeting the challenges now."
Joseph J. Corcoran, the current special agent in charge in St. Louis,
thanked the agents for their years of service and said their sacrifices have
made a difference in many communities. "There's somebody out there that you
don't even know whose life you saved," he said.
Copyright (c) 1998, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Checked-by: "Rolf Ernst"
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