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Vermont Drug Threat Assessment Update
May 2003

Marijuana

Marijuana is the most commonly abused illicit drug in Vermont. According to the 1999 and 2000 NHSDA, the percentage of Vermont residents who reported past month marijuana abuse (7.3%) was higher than the national rate (4.8%). Marijuana-related treatment admissions in Vermont increased 12 percent from 1,223 in FY2000 to 1,366 in FY2001, according to ADAP. (See Table 1 in Heroin section.)

Marijuana is the most readily available drug in Vermont. According to FDSS data, federal law enforcement officials seized 450.1 kilograms of marijuana in 2002. USSC data in FY2001 indicate that marijuana-related sentences accounted for 20.0 percent of the federal drug-related sentences in Vermont; nationwide, marijuana-related sentences accounted for 32.8 percent of federal drug-related sentences.

Most of the marijuana available in Vermont is produced in Mexico; however, high quality BC Bud from Canada and locally produced marijuana also are available. The DEA Boston Division reported that commercial-grade marijuana, mostly of Mexican origin, sold for $120 to $200 per ounce and $40 per bag in Burlington in the fourth quarter of FY2002. High quality, Canada-produced marijuana sold for $250 per ounce and $100 per bag during that same period.

Cannabis is cultivated both outdoors and indoors throughout Vermont. Vermont is largely rural, and law enforcement officials report that large outdoor cannabis grows are prevalent throughout the state. According to DEA Domestic Cannabis Eradication/Suppression Program data (DCE/SP), 3,638 cannabis plants were eradicated from outdoor grow sites in 2000 and 3,351 in 2001. Local law enforcement officials also report that the number of indoor grows in the state is increasing. DCE/SP data indicate that 398 cannabis plants were eradicated from indoor grow sites in 2000 and 416 in 2001.

Various criminal groups, street gangs, and local independent dealers transport marijuana into Vermont. Most of the Mexico-produced marijuana available in the state is transported from Massachusetts and New York in private or rental vehicles. However, package delivery services and couriers aboard commercial aircraft also are used to transport marijuana into the state, often directly from areas near the U.S.-Mexico border. Higher quality, Canada-produced marijuana also is smuggled across the U.S.-Canada border using similar conveyances as well as by couriers on foot, snowmobiles, or all-terrain vehicles. Once across the border, marijuana smugglers typically rendezvous with individuals who then transport the drug via private vehicle to locations throughout Vermont. Canada-produced marijuana occasionally is smuggled across the U.S.-Canada border into Vermont by Hells Angels outlaw motorcycle gang (OMG) members, primarily in private vehicles.


Marijuana Smuggled from Canada Into Vermont via Helicopter

On February 28, 2003, officers from the U.S. Border Patrol (now Bureau of Customs and Border Protection) and Vermont State Police seized 250 pounds of marijuana that were transported from Canada into Vermont via helicopter. According to law enforcement officials, the marijuana was dropped from the helicopter to a snowmobile trail near Lowell, Vermont (approximately 15 miles south of the U.S.-Canada border). Officers later apprehended the recipient of the marijuana who was traveling on Interstate 91 near Lyndonville. The arrestee, a resident of Montreal, Canada, reportedly was a member of an organized criminal group that smuggles high quality marijuana, known as Quebec Gold, into the United States from Canada.

Sources: U.S. Border Patrol; U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Vermont.

Wholesale-level distribution of marijuana occurs in Vermont but is somewhat limited. Loosely organized Caucasian criminal groups and Caucasian local independent dealers are the primary retail-level marijuana distributors in the state. Marijuana is sold at various locations in Vermont including bars, nightclubs, apartments, and parking lots.

 


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