MONDAY'S DRUG BUST NEEDS TO OPEN OUR EYE

Monday's multi-million dollar cocaine bust is significant and for many reasons.

It's significant in that it shows yet again how diligent our law
enforcement officers are in tracking down suspected drug dealers and
shutting down their operation. Over the past few years, and
particularly in the last few months, we've seen more and more
suspects taken into custody and larger and larger amounts of drugs
seized, along with money and oftentimes weapons.

We continue to praise local law enforcement officers for their
diligence in working every lead, looking underneath every rock and
persistently tracking down those believed to be responsible for
traffficking in large amounts of marijuna and cocaine, and them
attempting to break the kilos down into smaller quantities to sell to
our friends, family and neighbors.

The confiscation of 200 kilos of cocaine and the arrest of two
Sampson County men also shows the cooperation law enforcement
officers from various counties and different agencies, including the
federal Drug Enforcement Administration, can work together for a
common cause -- removing drugs from our streets and drug dealers from
our midst.

It takes that kind of multi-county and multi-agency cooperation to
make the kind of impact that is needed against drug trafficking.
That's proven by what happened this week, how much of the illegal
substance was confiscated and how many agencies it took to pull off
such a huge bust.

The bust is also significant because it serves to show us how much
Sampson County is used to move large quanities of drugs both around
our communities and in and out our borders into neighboring counties
and onto interstate highways.

Unfortunately, that means we can no longer bury our heads in the sand
and pretend we don't have a drug problem and that drug dealers aren't
in and out of our neighborhoods each and every day.

They are.

But we can be comforted in knowing we have law enforcement officers
who are determined to shut down their operations and return
neighborhoods to those who live there, giving them the chance, once
again, to live without the fear that many are now experiencing.

While Monday's drug bust should send us multiple messages about what
is happening in our county, we hope it sends an even stronger message
to drug dealers intent on using our county to ply their trade and
move their product. That message -- you may deal drugs in this
county, but sooner or later our officers will track you down, shut
down your operation and haul you off the streets into our jail.

Don't believe it? Just take a look at what happened just a few nights
ago and, if you're a drug dealer, understand that your turn is coming. Soon.

Editor Sherry Matthews