AS DRUG USE RISES SO DOES CRIME RATE

The numbers of people using crystal meth is rising across B.C. and Quesnel
police and social service providers are linking the trend to higher crime
rates in our city.

"The dramatic increase of break and enters is directly attributed to
crystal meth," said Jeffrey Dinsdale, a counsellor at Professional
Counselling Resources.

Methamphetamine, commonly known as crystal meth, is a stimulant that
chemically alters the parts of the brain that control emotions and hunger.

People who get high on the drug often become agitated, moody and aggressive.

The percentage of calls to B.C. alcohol and drug information and referral
services regarding the drug has risen from about one per cent in May 2002
to five per cent in May 2004, according to a provincial government study.
The province released these statistics earlier this month in the study
Crystal Meth and Other Amphetamines: An Integrated B.C. Strategy.

The study also found that the percentage of admissions to addictions
services resulting from use of the drug increased from four to 11 per cent
between 1999 and 2002.

Quesnel RCMP agree the drug is linked to increased crime.

"There's a direct correlation," said Const. Gord Gill, a member of the drug
enforcement unit. "Specifically, relating to crystal meth, I totally agree
with (Dinsdale)."

Gill says crime often surrounds meth drug houses, whose operators tend to
go on crime sprees, committing assaults and theft throughout the streets
they reside on.

"It's a whole gamut of crime that goes around with it. We respond to
assaults in the same areas," added Gill.

In the first quarter of 2004, 782 criminal code offences occurred in
Quesnel, up from 746 during the same period in 2003.

The number of offences throughout 2003 was 3,664, an increase from the
3,024 committed in 2002.

Theft and property crimes accounted for 56 per cent of these offences in 2003.

"Our crime stats have gone up in the last two years running and it's
related to the increase of drug use," said Gill.

But Dinsdale says crystal meth is particularly threatening because it is so
easy to get.

"It's relatively inexpensive, it's readily available and people of all ages
have access to it," said Dinsdale.

Crystal meth is a highly toxic substance that can be made cheaply by
combining various household cleaning products.

The result is a white, odourless, bitter tasting powder that can be smoked,
injected, snorted or eaten.

The effects of use include feelings of euphoria for six to eight hours and
prolonged users can go for up to several weeks without sleep.

But long-term users may experience blurred vision, dizziness and loss of
co-ordination.

Crystal meth can also induce schizophrenia and toxic psychosis and result
in toxicity, organ failure, heart disease or death.