WILL CRACK TEAR OUR SOCIETY APART?

IN 1989 when American drug enforcement officer Robert Stutman warned that
the "danger drug" crack cocaine was heading for Britain, he was derided by
some for being sensationalist.

It was hard to imagine that ruthless dealers would take over our streets,
turning them into dangerous slums where gun law ruled and addicts succumbed
to such a destructive drug.

Although this country is not yet in the throes of an epidemic, there is no
doubt crack has arrived and is starting to leave its dirty mark on society.

Many addicts are known to commit crime to feed a habit which can cost up to
UKP 250 a day.

The addiction is also notoriously difficult to treat and, because of the
profit to be made out of crack, police forces are now waging war against
organised criminals who rely increasingly on guns to protect the markets
they are supplying.

The problem is particularly bad in black communities.

In London, crack has been largely blamed for a wave of black-on-black gun
crime which last year saw 171 shootings, including 18 murders and 81
attempted murders.

Leeds, with a large African-Caribbean community, has also been hit by a
series of shootings linked to the drug and the arrival in the city of
so-called Yardies from Jamaica who have upset local dealers by muscling in
on their trade.

A West Yorkshire Police operation to fight back against crack becoming
established in Leeds and Bradford has so far led to 270 arrests and 121
people deported to Jamaica. Drugs, including crack, worth almost UKP 1m
have been seized and about 20 firearms have been recovered.

South Yorkshire has also been hit by drug-related shootings as crack
becomes increasingly available.

"Five years ago it was rarely seen," said Det Insp Adam Nolan, of South
Yorkshire Police's serious and organised crime unit.

"Now officers doing routine drug warrants are coming across it. It is far
more common than it has ever been. The problem is its entirely addictive
nature. People can build up a quick dependency without a great deal of use.

"For someone to spend UKP 100 in one day on heroin is exceptional but with
crack it is an almost constant need and you can buy a UKP 10 or UKP 20 rock
and have another one almost immediately. It is a very instant hit. We know
of people who have gone through hundreds, if not thousands of pounds worth,
over one session."

Elsewhere in the region there have been isolated cases where crack has been
used.

North Yorkshire remains relatively untouched, but treatment providers
working with the York and North Yorkshire Drug Action Team are preparing in
case it should spread.

Gabrielle Seager, co-ordinator of the North Yorkshire DAT, said: "We have
had a few scattered reports but not widespread incidents in any way. North
Yorkshire has its own drug squad working closely with us to monitor the
drug markets and do drug mapping. We are also training staff to be able to
deal with crack cocaine so if and when it happens we can respond instantly."

Anti-drug campaigners have noticed the arrival of crack cocaine in Hull,
although heroin abuse remains the biggest problem.

"We've been able to keep on top of things because of the geography of this
area but we cannot afford to be complacent about it," said Geoff Ogden,
senior co-ordinator of the East Riding and Hull Drug Action Team. "We have
improved treatment and the arrests for heroin users and suppliers so the
crack cocaine market has opened up, but it's nothing like in the major cities."

While the problem at the moment is largely confined to the larger inner
cities, Government and police leaders are so concerned that the country's
first crack cocaine summit was opened in Birmingham yesterday. The two-day
conference examined why the Class A drug affects certain communities and
how to help them fight spiralling theft, random violence and organised
crime. The Home Office said last month that compared with 1999 there was an
eight per cent rise in seizures of crack cocaine in 2000. During the same
period courts in England and Wales dealt with a seven per cent rise in
crack-related offences.