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U.S. Department of Justice
National Drug Intelligence Center
Lake County HIDTA Drug Market Analysis 2010
April 2010
Methamphetamine production in Lake County is very limited. National Seizure System (NSS) data show that only one methamphetamine laboratory was seized in Lake County in 2009, and no laboratories were seized in 2008. However, NSS data indicate that methamphetamine laboratory seizures in nearby Jasper, LaPorte, Newton, Pulaski, and Starke Counties (see Figure 1) increased from 2008 (12) to 2009 (30). Law enforcement officers report that the one-pot or "shake and bake" production method is gaining popularity in Indiana. (See text box.) Most small-scale methamphetamine laboratories are operated by Caucasian traffickers and some outlaw motorcycle gangs (OMGs).
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One-Pot, or "Shake and Bake," Methamphetamine Production A one-pot cook is a variation of the anhydrous ammonia method of production. In the one-pot method, methamphetamine producers, or "cooks," use a combination of commonly available chemicals to synthesize the anhydrous ammonia essential for methamphetamine production. In doing so, they are able to produce the drug in approximately 30 minutes at nearly any location by mixing ingredients in easily found containers, such as a 2-liter plastic soda bottle. In contrast, other methods require hours to heat ingredients on a stove, a process that can result in toxic fumes, primarily from the anhydrous ammonia. Producers often use the one-pot cook while traveling in vehicles and dispose of waste components along roadsides. Discarded plastic bottles may carry residual chemicals that can be toxic, explosive, or flammable. |
Cannabis cultivation at indoor and outdoor grow sites is limited in the Lake County HIDTA region. Nonetheless, some high-potency marijuana available in the region is produced at indoor grow sites, and some commercial-grade marijuana is produced at outdoor grow sites. Caucasian and Hispanic traffickers operate most cannabis grow sites.
Several major highways (Interstates 65, 80/94, and 90) intersect in Lake County and are frequently used by traffickers to transport illicit drugs into and through the region from Chicago and directly from Mexico through Southwest Border states. (See Figure 1.) Mexican traffickers transport multihundred-kilogram quantities of cocaine and marijuana and limited quantities of heroin and ice methamphetamine from Mexico into and through the region, often en route to drug markets in the Great Lakes, Mid-Atlantic, and Northeast regions of the United States. Additionally, East Chicago-based street gang members and some local independent traffickers are increasingly traveling to Southwest Border states in private vehicles to purchase illicit drugs, often using package delivery services to ship the drugs to East Chicago.
Traffickers and abusers routinely use the commuter railway systems that connect Lake County and Chicago to buy and sell illicit drugs. These systems provide numerous daily departures and arrivals between Chicago and the Lake County HIDTA region. Gary's Metro Center Station, in particular, is frequently exploited by traffickers and abusers.
UNCLASSIFIED
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