Production

National Drug Intelligence Center
Nevada High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Drug Market Analysis
June 2007

Local methamphetamine production has steadily decreased within the Nevada HIDTA region over the past 6 years. In 2001 the state of Nevada placed restrictions on retail pseudoephedrine sales. Additionally, law enforcement operations conducted in the area by local investigators and task forces, such as the Nevada HIDTA Southern Nevada Joint Methamphetamine Task Force, have resulted in the incarceration of many local laboratory operators. As a result, the number of methamphetamine laboratories seized in Clark County alone decreased 92 percent from 2001 to 2006; most laboratories seized in Nevada over the past 6 years have been located in the county. (See Table 1.)

Table 1. Number of Methamphetamine-Related Items Seized in Clark and Washoe Counties, 2001-2006
Year	Items Seized	Clark County	Washoe County	State of Nevada (Total)
2001	Laboratories	179	13	195
	Chemicals/glass/equipment	53	2	56
	Dump sites	8	0	9
	Total	240	15	260
2002	Laboratories	69	10	81
	Chemicals/glass/equipment	19	0	19
	Dump sites	4	0	4
	Total	92	10	104
2003	Laboratories	68	6	77
	Chemicals/glass/equipment	43	0	43
	Dump sites	9	1	11
	Total	120	7	131
2004	Laboratories	43	9	52
	Chemicals/glass/equipment	21	0	21
	Dump sites	8	1	9
	Total	72	10	82
2005	Laboratories	22	2	27
	Chemicals/glass/equipment	17	2	22
	Dump sites	1	2	3
	Total	40	6	52
2006	Laboratories	13	1	16
	Chemicals/glass/equipment	12	1	14
	Dump sites	1	0	1
	Total	26	2	31

Source: National Clandestine Laboratory Seizure System, February 7, 2007.

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Most methamphetamine laboratories in the region today are relatively small and are operated by producers who manufacture only enough methamphetamine for their personal use or for limited distribution to friends and associates--on average 4 to 7 grams per production cycle. Independent producers operating these small-scale laboratories typically want to avoid the risks of dealing with street-level distributors or feel they can keep costs down by producing the drug themselves.

Cannabis cultivation and marijuana production operations appear to be increasing throughout the Nevada HIDTA region. Area law enforcement officers are increasingly encountering illegal indoor cannabis grow sites ranging from 30 to 100 plants in residential neighborhoods and rural areas. Caucasian and African American criminal groups and independent dealers are the primary cultivators of indoor marijuana. Most sites are equipped to produce high-potency marijuana. A growing demand for high-potency marijuana is fueling the increase in indoor cannabis cultivation. Indoor grow operators often use hydroponic growing technology. They also use high-pressure sodium lamps or high-intensity discharge (HID) lighting in order to reduce the risk of detection through high electricity use and to increase their control over the growing environment. Some cannabis plants are cultivated locally for medicinal purposes. Under current Nevada law, individuals registered with the state may cultivate up to three mature and four immature plants at any one time. However, some marijuana traffickers are reportedly exploiting state medicinal marijuana laws in an attempt to justify illegal indoor cannabis cultivation.

Most crack cocaine available in the Nevada HIDTA region is converted locally by African American street gangs that are supplied with powder cocaine by Mexican DTOs operating in the area. Powder cocaine is typically converted to crack cocaine at or near distribution sites; most crack distribution sites are in Las Vegas, North Las Vegas, and Reno.

Transportation

The Nevada HIDTA region serves as a regional- and national-level transshipment area for Mexican DTOs that transport wholesale quantities of methamphetamine, cocaine, marijuana, and heroin from Mexico. Although significant quantities of these drugs remain in the area for local distribution, most are transshipped to drug markets throughout the United States, including the Great Lakes, Hawaiian Islands, Midwest, and Northeast.

Over the last year HIDTA law enforcement officials have reported an increase in Mexican trafficking cells' use of drug load vehicles with more sophisticated fabricated compartments. The compartments generally include electronic or magnetic switches that require several steps to open and are often welded into body frames, gas tanks, and passenger areas. Additionally, Mexican trafficking cells are using family members as couriers to transport illicit drugs into the HIDTA region; Mexican traffickers believe that family members provide greater operational security and hinder law enforcement investigative efforts. These same vehicles and couriers are also used to transport drug proceeds back to Mexico.

Las Vegas-based Asian traffickers, including independent dealers, purchase MDMA from West Coast Asian suppliers. They ship MDMA into Las Vegas via mail parcels and transport it via couriers on commercial flights or in private vehicles. Canada-based Vietnamese DTOs transport high-potency marijuana destined for Reno in private vehicles that typically cross the U.S.-Canada border at official POEs in Washington.

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