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NDIC seal linked to Home Page. National Drug Intelligence Center
West Virginia Drug Threat Assessment
August 2003

Methamphetamine

Methamphetamine poses an increasing drug threat to West Virginia and is the primary drug threat in Wood County. Statewide, treatment data indicate low levels of methamphetamine abuse. However, the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources reports that the level of methamphetamine abuse likely is not reflected in the number of treatment admissions because methamphetamine is a relatively new abuse problem. Most of the methamphetamine available in West Virginia is produced locally, with availability levels varying from high to low among communities throughout the state. Caucasian local independent dealers and loosely organized criminal groups, as well as OMGs such as Barbarians and Pagan's, produce and distribute most of the methamphetamine available in West Virginia. Additional quantities of methamphetamine are transported from Mexico as well as from Arizona, California, and Florida via private vehicles and package delivery services. Out-of-state criminal groups, primarily Mexican, increasingly are distributing methamphetamine in West Virginia, particularly in Charleston and the eastern panhandle. Methamphetamine distributed at the retail level in West Virginia typically is packaged in small plastic bags or candy dispensers and sold from private residences and bars.

 

Abuse

One percent of all drug treatment admissions involving illicit drugs in West Virginia were methamphetamine-related in 2000. According to the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources, the number of treatment admissions to publicly funded treatment facilities for methamphetamine abuse decreased from 71 in 1998 to 48 in 1999, then increased slightly to 53 in 2000. (See Table 2 in Overview section.) Although the number of treatment admissions to publicly funded facilities for methamphetamine abuse is low, the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources reports that the level of methamphetamine abuse likely is not reflected in the number of treatment admissions because methamphetamine is a relatively new abuse problem.

Methamphetamine abuse levels are highest in the western part of the state. West Virginia State Police officials in Danville and Hamlin as well as representatives from the Parkersburg Drug and Violent Crime Task Force report high levels of methamphetamine abuse in their jurisdictions. Huntington Police Department officers report moderate levels of methamphetamine abuse in that city. Officials in these areas often report that crack abusers are switching from crack to methamphetamine because methamphetamine produces physiological effects that are similar yet longer-lasting.

The percentage of youths reporting methamphetamine abuse in West Virginia is higher than the national percentage. According to 1999 YRBS data, 14.3 percent of West Virginia high school students surveyed reported having abused methamphetamine at least once in their lifetime, compared with 9.1 percent nationwide.

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Availability

The availability of methamphetamine varies from high to low throughout communities in West Virginia. Generally, methamphetamine availability is high in the western part of the state, moderate but increasing in the northern and southern parts of the state, and low in eastern West Virginia. According to the NDTS 2002, 17 of the 28 law enforcement respondents in West Virginia who rated the level of methamphetamine availability indicated medium or low levels of availability in their jurisdictions. Respondents from Charleston, Danville, Hamlin, Parkersburg, South Charleston, and Vienna reported that methamphetamine was available at high levels. According to FDSS data, federal law enforcement officials in West Virginia seized 1.4 kilograms of methamphetamine in 1998, 0.6 kilogram in 1999, 0.2 kilogram in 2000, 0.5 kilogram in 2001, and 0.2 kilogram in 2002. (See Table 4 in Cocaine section.) USSC data indicate that in FY2001, 5.9 percent of drug-related federal sentences in West Virginia were methamphetamine-related, compared with 14.2 percent nationally. (See Table 1 in Overview section.)

Most of the methamphetamine available in the state is produced locally and sold in retail quantities; however, wholesale quantities occasionally are available. In 2002 the DEA Charleston Resident Office reported that methamphetamine purity levels ranged from 15 to 100 percent. Statewide methamphetamine prices for 2002 as reported by the DEA Charleston Resident Office are listed in Table 8.

Table 8. Methamphetamine Prices, West Virginia, 2002
Pound $5,000-$6,500
Ounce $1,600
8-ball $350
Gram $150

Source: DEA Charleston Resident Office.

 

Violence

Methamphetamine increasingly is associated with violent crime in West Virginia. Methamphetamine abusers and producers often commit crimes of domestic violence, including spousal and child abuse and child neglect. According to the Parkersburg Drug and Violent Crime Task Force, incidents of domestic violence increased 25 percent in its jurisdiction in 2002 because of methamphetamine production and abuse. The task force also attributed a 5.8 percent increase in sexual abuse and assault incidents in 2002 to methamphetamine abuse.

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Production

Caucasian local independent dealers and loosely organized criminal groups as well as OMGs such as Barbarians and Pagan's produce most of the methamphetamine available in West Virginia. These dealers, groups, and gangs primarily use the iodine/red phosphorus and iodine/hypophosphorous acid production methods. To a lesser extent, these dealers, criminal groups, and gangs use the Birch reduction and phenyl-2-propanone methods to produce methamphetamine. Methamphetamine laboratories often are located in public areas, such as hotels and in residential neighborhoods, presenting a serious threat to the safety of West Virginia citizens. Some methamphetamine laboratories are portable and are transported in the trunks of private vehicles. On September 12, 2002, a 40-year-old Caucasian man was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 97 months in prison and 3 years' supervised release for operating several methamphetamine laboratories in south central West Virginia. Subsequently, additional time was added to the sentence for having a gun at one of the laboratories and for a violation of the Prohibited Disposal of Hazardous Materials Act. One methamphetamine laboratory was located at his residence and another was located at his business in Clendenin.

 

Methamphetamine Production Methods

Ephedrine/Pseudoephedrine Reduction:

Hydriodic acid/red phosphorus. The principal chemicals are ephedrine or pseudoephedrine, hydriodic acid, and red phosphorus. This method can yield multipound quantities of high quality d-methamphetamine and often is associated with Mexican drug trafficking organizations.

Iodine/red phosphorus. The principal chemicals are ephedrine or pseudoephedrine, iodine, and red phosphorus. The required hydriodic acid in this variation of the hydriodic acid/red phosphorus method is produced by the reaction of iodine in water with red phosphorus. This method yields high quality d-methamphetamine. Another iodine/red phosphorus method, limited to small production batches, is called the cold cook method because the chemicals, instead of being heated, are placed in a hot environment such as the sun.

Iodine/hypophosphorous acid. The principal chemicals are ephedrine or pseudoephedrine, iodine, and hypophosphorous acid. The required hydriodic acid in this variation of the hydriodic acid/red phosphorus method is produced by the reaction of iodine in water with hypophosphorous acid. Known as the hypo method, this method yields lower quality d-methamphetamine. Hypophosphorous acid is more prone than red phosphorus to cause a fire and can produce deadly phosphine gas.

Birch. The principal chemicals are ephedrine or pseudoephedrine, anhydrous ammonia, and sodium or lithium metal. Also known as the Nazi method, this method typically yields ounce quantities of high quality d-methamphetamine and often is used by independent dealers and producers.

Phenyl-2-propanone:

P2P. The principal chemicals are phenyl-2-propanone, aluminum, methylamine, and mercuric acid. This method yields lower quality dl-methamphetamine and has been associated with outlaw motorcycle gangs.

 

The number of methamphetamine laboratory seizures in West Virginia fluctuated but increased overall from 1998 to 2002. According to El Paso Intelligence Center (EPIC) data, 1 methamphetamine laboratory was seized in West Virginia in 1998, 4 in 1999, 2 in 2000, 12 in 2001, and 41 in 2002. The DEA Charleston Resident Office reported that most seized methamphetamine laboratories were capable of producing 1 to 2 ounces of methamphetamine per production cycle. The number of methamphetamine laboratories seized in West Virginia in 2002 most likely is much greater than the number reported to EPIC. Parkersburg Drug and Violent Crime Task Force officials reported seizing 56 methamphetamine laboratories in 2002 and receiving telephone calls daily from local residents concerning methamphetamine laboratory activity.

Methamphetamine production poses serious safety concerns in West Virginia. The production process involves the use of volatile chemicals and creates toxic and hazardous waste that endangers law enforcement personnel, emergency response teams, children in residences of methamphetamine producers, and the environment. Methamphetamine laboratories create 5 to 6 pounds of toxic waste for every pound of methamphetamine produced. Most toxic residue from methamphetamine production is dumped in the local area, killing vegetation and contaminating water supplies and soil. Cleanup and remediation of laboratory sites, which federal law mandates, costs federal, state, and local governments millions of dollars each year. Cleanup of a single laboratory site can range from $5,000 to $60,000. In February 2002 several individuals established a methamphetamine laboratory in the rear of a store located in a residential neighborhood in Wood County. The individuals poured toxic waste, including solvents and chemicals, down a basement drain. The chemical fumes drifted through the drainpipes of nearby residences. The fumes were ignited by the pilot light of a water heater in one of the residences causing a flash explosion.

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Transportation

Caucasian local independent dealers and loosely organized criminal groups as well as OMGs transport small quantities of methamphetamine to West Virginia from Mexico, Arizona, California, and Florida, among other states, via private vehicles and package delivery services. According to state and local law enforcement agencies, out-of-state criminal groups, primarily Mexican, increasingly are transporting methamphetamine into West Virginia using similar conveyances.

 

Distribution

Caucasian local independent dealers and loosely organized criminal groups as well as OMGs are the principal retail-level distributors of methamphetamine in West Virginia; wholesale-level distribution is limited. Out-of-state criminal groups, primarily Mexican, increasingly are distributing methamphetamine in West Virginia, particularly in Charleston and the eastern panhandle. Methamphetamine distributed in West Virginia typically is packaged in small plastic bags, as well as in candy dispensers, and usually is sold from private residences and bars.


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