COPS WINNING COKE BATTLE

Seizures Reach Record High

COCAINE seizures by police have hit a record total.

Official figures from the Scottish Drug Enforcement Agency show nearly a
ten-fold increase compared with 2001.

The drug squad have seized more than half a ton of the drug.

And detectives working with police force drug squads report steady
increases in seizures of the Class A substance.

Officers working with the SDEA have taken 567 kilos from traffickers and
dealers since April last year.

The previous year, the SDEA seized 60 kilos of the drug. The new figures
represent the biggest haul made in the space of a year by police.

Insiders say there is no let-up in demand for the drug and traffickers are
only too happy to supply, knowing there is a keen profit to be made.

One senior detective said: "Cocaine used to creep into this country - now
it's much more than just creeping in."

A recent conference was held in Scotland to examine how to tackle the
spread of cocaine.

Police were warned that violent South American drug barons are now turning
to Europe having saturated the US with cocaine supplies.

Scotland's second biggest force - Lothian and Borders - polices one of the
current cocaine hotspots. Since April last year, the force has made 109
seizures of cocaine.

The previous year, officers made 70 seizures.

A spokesman said: "The street value of what we have taken this year so far
is around #14,000.

"The year before, it was #140,000 from fewer seizures.

In Aberdeen, detectives are seizing more crack than cocaine.

In the past year, Grampian Police seized 800 grams of crack compared with
350 grams of cocaine.

In Dumfries and Galloway, seen as the main gateway for drugs into Scotland,
seizures of cocaine have also risen.

SDEA director Jim Orr said that while the full extent of cocaine use in
Scotland is still unclear, there will be no let-up in pursuing dealers and
traffickers.

He added: "There is no doubt that cocaine represents a significant
challenge, and we are already responding to that challenge."