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Most of the illicit drugs distributed in the NE HIDTA region are produced at locations outside the region; however, some drug production does occur throughout New England. A portion of the SA heroin available in the region is processed at heroin mills that operate in key regional distribution centers--Lowell/Lawrence and Hartford/Springfield.1 For instance, federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies seized a heroin processing mill in Hartford and discovered 1,300 bags of the drug in October 2007. Powder cocaine is commonly converted to crack throughout the HIDTA region by African American and Jamaican distributors, who purchase powder cocaine from Dominican traffickers.
Marijuana is produced by traffickers from cannabis cultivated in the NE HIDTA region. Data from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Domestic Cannabis Eradication/Suppression Program (DCE/SP) reveal that the number of cannabis plants eradicated from outdoor grow sites in the region increased between 2005 and 2007, while the number of plants eradicated from indoor grow sites increased tremendously between 2005 and 2006 and then declined significantly between 2006 and 2007 (see Table 1). Law enforcement officials attribute the decrease in the number of indoor cannabis plants eradicated between 2006 and 2007 to a reduction in Asian-operated indoor hydroponic grow sites seized in the region. The only notable Asian-operated indoor grow site discovered in 2007 was seized by law enforcement officials in July; it consisted of 534 cannabis plants and was operated by a Vietnamese DTO in New Britain, Connecticut.
Table 1. Cannabis Plants Eradicated in Indoor and Outdoor Cultivation Sites in New England, 2005-2007
| 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indoor cultivation sites | 2,712 | 15,337 | 5,277 |
| Outdoor cultivation sites | 11,054 | 13,622 | 14,486 |
| Total | 13,766 | 28,959 | 19,763 |
Source: Domestic Cannabis Eradication/Suppression Program.
MDMA and powder methamphetamine production in the NE HIDTA region occurs intermittently and usually involves small laboratories where abusers and independent dealers produce limited quantities of the drugs for personal use or distribution to close friends and associates. In 2007 law enforcement officers seized one MDMA laboratory in Vermont; the laboratory was also equipped to produce methamphetamine. The number of methamphetamine laboratories seized in New England decreased from 20 in 2005 to 13 in 2006 to 6 in 2007. Two of the methamphetamine laboratories seized in 2007 were located in Vermont, two were in New Hampshire, one was in Maine, and one was in Massachusetts. Additionally, law enforcement officials report that two methamphetamine laboratories were seized in Maine and one was seized in New Hampshire in 2008 (through May). Law enforcement reporting reveals that laboratory operators acquired the precursor chemicals and equipment used at the seized laboratories from local stores and over the Internet.
ODDs are also produced in limited quantities in the NE HIDTA region. During 2007 four unique laboratories were seized in New England, including one in New Hampshire that produced steroids, one in Connecticut that produced PCP and another that extracted the hallucinogen d-lysergic acid amide (LSA) from morning glory seeds, and a fourth in Massachusetts that produced methaqualone. Moreover, limited quantities of psilocybin mushrooms are produced in the NE HIDTA region, typically by college students. According to law enforcement officials, most psilocybin mushroom cultivators in New England acquire cultivation materials over the Internet.
1. A heroin mill is a location in which heroin is repackaged into retail quantities from wholesale lots.
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