SOLDIERS IN BATTLE ON DRUGS

Local Narcotics Task Force Finds Hard Work, Not Much 'Hollywood Glamour' In
Job

The walls of Cal Luedke's tiny office near downtown Waco are covered with
photographs of drug busts gone by the smiling faces of happy narcotics
officers posed over heaps of confiscated drugs and mounds of seized money.

Luedke, project director of the Agriplex Drug Task Force, has spent more
than 15 of his 27 years in law enforcement as a soldier in the drug war.

'It's not cut out like the TV portrays it. There are a lot of sleepless
nights and a lot of time that nothing happens. It's hours of sitting and
looking.'

"I don't really know why," he said. "It's not the pleasure of kicking in a
door. I just know when when I was in other police work, I was bored."

But boredom is a constant companion to the 10 narcotics officers who make
up the multiagency task force. Months of tedious investigative work and
days of covert surveillance are often necessary to make criminal charges
stick against suspected drug dealers.

"It's not cut out like the TV portrays it," Luedke said, taking a shot at
the numerous crime drama shows he says have glamorized the drug world.
"There are a lot of sleepless nights and a lot of time that nothing
happens. Patience is one of the biggest virtues in this business. It's
hours of sitting and looking."

The officers Luedke oversees even have their own motto about their job:
Narcotics work is "90 percent bored as hell and 10 percent scared as hell."

The scary part, officers said, is the moment they make or break an
investigation by serving their search warrants.

Officers Face Inherent Dangers In Operations

Usually working under the cover of darkness, officers move in own their
targets home. What follows is "the ultimate adrenaline rush," as one
officer described it.

With only a bullet proof vest and a shotgun to protect him, the first
officer through the door never knows what awaits him inside. Will the bad
guys be home? Will they flush their drugs down the toilet? Will they come
out shooting?

Most of the task force officers have found themselves caught in a
criminal's cross hairs at one time or another. Some have the scares to
prove it.

"Those are few and far between. You go in with the realization that that
could happen. That's why you go in with your gun drawn," Luedke said.

The Agriplex Task Force is one of 46 such groups operating in Texas through
federal grants. The local task force consist of of officers from various
law enforcement agencies in Freestone, Limestone, Falls and McLennan
counties. The group also has a cooperative agreement with authorities in
Hill County.

Making An Impact

Members have opened more than 200 individual cases since June 1, and the
hard work has recently paid off.

This month alone, a task force officer in Freestone County spearheaded an
investigation that resulted in the arrest of 26 alleged drug dealers on
Dec. 13. Days earlier, a separate twoyear investigation came to a close
with the sentencing of a 37yearold Waco man to 30 years in federal prison
for distributing methamphetamines in Central Texas.

Over the past two years, task force officers have seized more than $2.5
million in illegal narcotics, including marijuana, heroin, cocaine, crack
cocaine and methamphetamines. The group has also confiscated thousands of
dollars in cash along with numerous weapons and vehicles in drugrelated
activities.

Much of the confiscated money goes back to the antidrug operation.

Force 'Self Supported'

"For the past three years, we have been self supported," Luedke said. "It
hasn't cost the taxpayers of McLennan County a dime."

But there's still much more work to be done, task force officials said.

Interstate 35 remains a prime supply line for narcotics moving into the
United States.

"It's a pipeline from Laredo to the border with Canada," Luedke said. "As
long as they have that Mexican border open like it is now, it's only going
to increase. (Texas law enforcement agencies) are probably only getting 2
percent of the dope coming in on the highway. There's not enough manpower
and not enough hours in the day."

Marijuana continues to be the drug of choice for narcotics traffickers. A
pound of pot sold for $250 near the border may fetch $3,000 to $4,000 in
the northern part of the United States, making drug smuggling a highly
profitable venture for many wouldbe criminals.

Heroin supplies are growing slowly while the methamphetamine market,
supplied by manufacturers in Mexico and California, is flourishing.

The local task force hopes to cope with the growing problems by adding
additional officers this year. They also have acquired their own narcotics
detection dog for use in searches.