National Drug Intelligence Center   Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Drug Market Analysis 2009   March 2009   UNCLASSIFIED

Distribution

Mexican DTOs and criminal groups control wholesale distribution and are involved in most midlevel distribution of methamphetamine, powder cocaine, Mexican black tar and brown powder heroin, and commercial-grade marijuana in the Rocky Mountain HIDTA region. Mexican traffickers and criminal groups use Colorado Springs, Denver, and Salt Lake City as principal distribution centers. They generally do not stockpile drug shipments for extended periods of time but, rather, use vacant stash houses and apartments for short-term storage and distribution to midlevel dealers. Mexican wholesale and midlevel dealers are the primary sources of supply for local Hispanic, African American, and Asian criminal groups and street gangs and for other distributors in secondary markets in the HIDTA region. Distributors in remote areas of the region often travel to Denver and Salt Lake City to obtain drugs from Mexican DTOs for distribution in their communities. Mexican traffickers operating in the Rocky Mountain HIDTA region also supply illicit drugs to other major domestic drug markets, such as Chicago; Kansas City and Wichita, Kansas; Omaha, Nebraska; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Table 2. Drug Distribution, by Group, Rocky Mountain HIDTA Region, 2008

Source: National Drug Intelligence Center.
NA--Not applicable.

Hispanic criminal groups and street gangs are significant midlevel and retail-level illicit drug distributors in the region. Hispanic street gangs, such as Sureņos 13, distribute methamphetamine, cocaine, marijuana, and heroin that they obtain from Mexican traffickers. These gangs are aggressively expanding their retail-level crack cocaine distribution operations in some metropolitan areas of the region. Moreover, law enforcement officials report that Honduran groups in Denver and other areas are becoming more involved in retail drug distribution. Honduran youths in Denver are moving aggressively into retail heroin distribution sales, and in some remote areas, such as Eagle County (100 miles west of Denver), Honduran groups are engaging in the retail distribution of ice methamphetamine and powder cocaine.

African American street gangs are significant retail-level drug distributors, particularly in metropolitan areas of the Rocky Mountain HIDTA region. African American street gangs such as Rolling 30's Crips are the primary converters and distributors of crack cocaine in metropolitan areas of the region. African American street gangs operating in Denver also distribute PCP that they acquire from gang associates who produce the drug in Los Angeles.

Asian DTOs and criminal groups are the primary wholesale suppliers of high-potency Canadian marijuana and MDMA in the Rocky Mountain HIDTA region. These traffickers supply the drugs principally to Asian retail distributors (mostly Asian street gangs) and, to a lesser extent, Caucasian retail-level distributors in metropolitan areas of the HIDTA region, particularly in Denver and Salt Lake City.

Independent dealers and OMGs also distribute methamphetamine, marijuana, and Mexican black tar and brown powder heroin in smaller cities and rural areas of the HIDTA region. Caucasian and Hispanic independent dealers routinely travel from markets such as Cheyenne, Green River, and Rock Springs, Wyoming, and Billings to obtain illicit drugs from Mexican DTOs and street gangs in Denver and Salt Lake City for distribution in their communities. Some African American local independent dealers in Denver obtain MDMA from Canada for local distribution.

Drug distributors exploit technological advances in communication to increase mobility and enhance security while conducting criminal activities. The use of cell phones has enabled some distributors and street gang members to relocate wholesale and midlevel distribution activities from open-air drug markets to diverse locations in metropolitan areas of the region. Distributors typically use cell phones for a limited period of time, usually 30 days, before discarding them to enhance their communication security. To ensure anonymity, some Asian gang members maintain associations with cell phone store employees to obtain phones. Many distributors also communicate using push-to-talk phones, which are similar to walkie-talkies. These communications are difficult to intercept because of direct dialing and the brief nature of the conversations. Criminals sometimes switch from conventional cell phones to push-to-talk phones in mid conversation to exchange important information. Other forms of communication that are popular among distributors are text messaging and e-mails. For example, some distributors use text messaging to share delivery and pickup information with customers. Additionally, law enforcement officials in southern Colorado report that a large-scale marijuana distributor used coded e-mails to communicate with customers. Distributors and gang members also use the Internet to access social networking sites, such as Facebook or MySpace, where they post photographs and communicate with associates.

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Drug-Related Crime

High levels of violent and property crime in the Rocky Mountain HIDTA region are often associated with the distribution and abuse of illicit drugs, particularly methamphetamine. Weber-Morgan Narcotics Strike Force officials in Ogden report that methamphetamine-related crimes account for over 85 percent of their investigations. In fact, 81 of the 95 state and local law enforcement agencies that responded to the NDIC NDTS 2009 report methamphetamine as the drug that most contributes to violent crime. The majority of methamphetamine-related violent crimes, including armed robbery, assault, and homicide, are perpetrated by members of DTOs, criminal groups, and street gangs in the course of their drug trafficking operations. Most methamphetamine-related property crimes, such as burglary, identity theft, and property theft, are committed by methamphetamine abusers. Local methamphetamine producers, often Caucasians, also "smurf"5 precursor chemicals from retail stores in the region to circumvent precursor chemical control restrictions.

Crack cocaine distributors commonly commit violent crimes such as assault, carjacking, drive-by shooting, home invasion robbery, and armed robbery to establish or maintain control of local drug markets. Law enforcement officials in Colorado Springs report that a large-scale DTO that operated in Colorado and Tennessee robbed banks in Colorado, Tennessee, and Michigan, later using the proceeds to purchase powder and crack cocaine for distribution in California, Colorado, Tennessee, and New York. Abusers of cocaine, heroin, and CPDs often commit crimes such as identity theft, retail fraud, burglary, and robbery to obtain drugs or money to purchase drugs. Law enforcement officials report that the number of pharmacy robberies committed by abusers in the HIDTA region to obtain either money or drugs has increased over the past year as the demand for CPDs such as OxyContin, Percocet, and Percodan (oxycodone); Valium (diazepam); and Lortab (hydrocodone) has risen.

Violent crime associated with retail drug distribution by street gangs, primarily African American and Hispanic street gangs, is one of the primary public safety concerns for law enforcement in the HIDTA region. Many of these gangs are well established in metropolitan areas throughout the region and are starting to expand their drug distribution operations into suburban and rural areas. Members of these gangs pose a considerable threat because they often engage in violent activities to protect their drug operations and expand their territories. Street gangs in the region use drug sales as their primary funding source to conduct other gang-related activities. Denver law enforcement officials report that most criminal street gang activity involves street-level drug sales, assaults, robberies, burglaries, and shootings. Law enforcement agencies in the region report high levels of violence associated with crack cocaine and ice methamphetamine, drugs commonly distributed by street gang members.

Footnote

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