To
Contents To Previous Page
To Next Page
To Publications Page To Home Page
|
National
Drug Intelligence Center Oregon High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Drug Market Analysis June 2007 Major Drug MarketsThe Oregon HIDTA region encompasses several major drug markets: Portland, Roseburg, Bend, and Pendleton. The drug situation in Roseburg, Bend, and Pendleton is similar; therefore, they are combined below into one section of this report. PortlandMarket Overview Portland's large size, geographic location, and sophisticated transportation infrastructure, as well as the significant amount of drugs moving into and through the city, make it a major market area in the Oregon HIDTA region. Portland is the largest city in terms of area (134 square miles) and population (nearly 530,000) in Oregon. The city is strategically located in the northwestern region of the state adjacent to the Columbia River and the Washington-Oregon border. The Portland metropolitan area extends to three counties: Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington; most of the city is located in Multnomah County. Portland's advanced transportation infrastructure facilitates the transportation of both licit and illicit goods to and from the city. Interstates 5 and 84; US 26, 30, and 99; the Portland International Airport; the Port of Portland seaport; Amtrak and the Metropolitan Area Express, or MAX--a passenger light-rail railway system located in and around the city--provide drug traffickers easy access to markets within the city. Methamphetamine, particularly ice methamphetamine, and heroin are significant drug problems in Portland; both drugs are widely distributed and abused. Methamphetamine, in particular, contributes to violent crime and property crime in Portland. Significant quantities of marijuana, cocaine, MDMA, and diverted pharmaceuticals are also available and abused in the city. Production An increasing number of indoor cannabis cultivation operations are being established by Asian DTOs in and around the Portland metropolitan area. These DTOs purchase houses in middle-income areas in or near Portland and establish indoor cannabis grow operations in the basements. The grow operations, from which high-potency marijuana is produced, are set on 90-day cycles from start to finish (nursery to cultivation) and produce from 300 to 1,300 plants per cycle. Asian DTOs are producing more marijuana locally than they had in the past to avoid the potential risks associated with transporting the drug across the U.S.-Canada border and to minimize transportation costs.1 Methamphetamine production in the Portland area has decreased significantly since 2004, according to seizure statistics and law enforcement reporting. The number of methamphetamine laboratories seized by law enforcement decreased 90 percent from 2004 to 2006 in the Portland metropolitan area. (See Table 2.) Recent state legislation requiring a doctor's prescription for all OTC medications containing pseudoephedrine or ephedrine has severely hampered methamphetamine producers' ability to obtain the precursor materials necessary for methamphetamine production.
Transportation Mexican DTOs are the primary transporters of methamphetamine, Mexican black tar heroin, cocaine, and Mexican marijuana into Portland. They transport these drugs to the Portland area primarily in private vehicles from Mexico through California on I-5. Some Mexican DTOs transport the drugs through Nogales and Phoenix, Arizona, or through Texas en route to the area. Law enforcement officers recently seized 75 pounds of heroin, over 13 pounds of cocaine, and 14 pounds of methamphetamine over a 7-month period from Mexican traffickers who were transporting the drugs from Eagle Pass, Texas. Local drug distributors had arranged for transporters to drive to Eagle Pass, pick up the drugs, and drive back to Portland. Asian DTOs transport BC Bud marijuana and MDMA from Canada to and through Portland. These organizations typically transport the drugs in private vehicles or tractor-trailers and often commingle large quantities of MDMA with larger marijuana loads. Illicit drugs transported to the area in vehicles are often hidden in concealed compartments. Recently law enforcement officers seized a vehicle in which Mexican black tar heroin was concealed in the bumper of the car. The drugs had been softened in a microwave and, while malleable, they were molded into the vehicle's bumper. Law enforcement reporting indicates that traffickers often conceal drugs in cavities in vehicles, stereo speakers, and engine compartments. Distribution Mexican DTOs distribute wholesale quantities of methamphetamine, heroin, cocaine, and Mexican marijuana to various criminal groups and gangs in the Portland area, who in turn distribute the drugs at the midlevel and retail-level. Hispanic and African American criminal groups and gangs are the primary retail distributors of methamphetamine, heroin, powder cocaine, and crack cocaine; Caucasian criminal groups are the primary midlevel and retail-level distributors of marijuana. Asian DTOs and criminal groups are the primary distributors of BC Bud and MDMA at all distribution levels. OMGs distribute methamphetamine and limited quantities of BC Bud. Most drugs are distributed at open-air drug markets in the city, although some distribution is arranged by cell phone. Open-air markets in the city include the Transit Mall, Old Town, and areas near the MAX Light Rail Line. Methamphetamine, heroin, cocaine, and marijuana are available at each of these locations; however, crack cocaine availability is generally limited to Old Town. Many Mexican distributors prefer to sell heroin to purchasers who call them by cell phone to establish a time to meet, although the drug is also available at open-air markets. According to law enforcement reporting, aging crack cocaine dealers are beginning to switch from crack distribution to the distribution of diverted pharmaceuticals. These dealers obtain wholesale quantities of prescription drugs such as OxyContin (oxycodone), Soma (carisoprodol), and Vicodin (hydrocodone) from sources in Los Angeles, California, or through doctor-shopping, forgery, fraud, and theft. These dealers market the drugs to their existing customer base as well as to new customers. Abuse Treatment admissions decreased overall from 2005 through 2006; however, they remain at relatively high levels. Moreover, the number of admissions for heroin and methamphetamine far surpass any other drug. (See Table 3.) Additionally, in 2006 there were more drug-related deaths for heroin (56) than for any other drug in the Portland metropolitan area.
Roseburg/Bend/PendletonMarket Overview Roseburg, Oregon, which is approximately 70 miles south of Eugene and 180 miles south of Portland, is the largest city in Douglas County. Douglas County is the largest county in the Oregon HIDTA region, yet the most sparsely populated; much of the county is composed of public forest lands or mountain ranges. Interstate 5, a primary drug trafficking route in the Oregon HIDTA region, traverses the county in a north-south direction. In Oregon County I-5 runs adjacent to Roseburg. Bend is located in Deschutes County, roughly in the center of the state. Bend is located along US 97, a secondary drug trafficking route through Oregon and a significant alternate route for traffickers seeking to avoid law enforcement detection along I-5. US 97 extends from northern California, through Oregon and Washington, to the U.S.-Canada border. It also intersects I-84, another trafficking route through the HIDTA region. Pendleton is located in Umatilla County in northeast Oregon. Pendleton is situated along I-84 and is south of the Tri-Cities (Richland, Pasco, Kennewick) area of Washington. Pendleton is a distribution stop for many drug traffickers en route to the Tri-Cities from the Southwest Border. Ice methamphetamine poses the greatest drug threat to these areas; marijuana, cocaine, heroin, and prescription drugs are also distributed and abused in Roseburg, Bend, and Pendleton. Mexican DTOs transport methamphetamine, heroin, and cocaine from Mexico through California to and through these areas. Mexican DTOs also transport marijuana to Roseburg and Bend, and Asian DTOs transport BC Bud to Pendleton and Bend. Additionally, Mexican DTOs produce significant quantities of marijuana in these areas, often on public lands. Production According to law enforcement officials, marijuana that is supposedly produced in compliance with Oregon's Medical Marijuana Program is a significant drug threat to Roseburg and Bend. The Medical Marijuana Program allows for individuals with specific medical conditions to "possess up to six mature marijuana [sic] plants, 18 immature plants, and 24 ounces of usable marijuana."2 However, some individuals who are able to obtain a Medical Marijuana registry identification card produce quantities of marijuana that far exceed what the law allows. In September 2006 law enforcement officers in Roseburg seized a so-called Medical Marijuana cannabis grow operation that contained 19 plants. All plants were over 12 feet tall and 12 feet wide and a chain saw was required to cut them down. Methamphetamine production has declined in Roseburg, Bend, and Pendleton as a result of state legislation that controls pseudoephedrine and/or ephedrine purchases. Consequently, law enforcement officers have seized fewer methamphetamine laboratories in these counties than they had in previous years since the legislation passed. (See Table 4.)
Transportation Mexican DTOs transport ice methamphetamine, cocaine, and limited amounts of heroin to Roseburg, Bend, and Pendleton; they transport marijuana to Roseburg and Bend in private and commercial vehicles. Drugs typically are transported on I-5 from Mexico through California en route to the HIDTA region. Bend law enforcement reporting indicates that drugs are transported on I-5 to northern California and then transported to Bend on US 97. Pendleton law enforcement reporting indicates that while some drugs are transported to the area on US 97 to I-84, most drugs are transported to Pendleton from Portland. Additionally, some traffickers transport drugs to Pendleton on I-84 from Boise, Idaho. Asian DTOs transport BC Bud and MDMA from Canada to the Roseburg, Bend, and Pendleton areas. They typically transport these drugs through Washington on I-5 to distributors in Roseburg and on US 97 to distributors in Bend. Drug distributors in Pendleton, who have Canadian sources of supply, obtain their drug supplies from transporters en route to Boise on I-84 or from midlevel distributors in the Tri-Cities area. Drug traffickers typically hide drug shipments in concealed compartments of private and commercial vehicles. According to law enforcement reporting, these compartments range from simple to sophisticated. Some traffickers simply hide drugs in suitcases or duffel bags located in their personal vehicles, or they commingle the drugs with legitimate goods on tractor-trailers. However, Bend law enforcement officers have seized several vehicles that contained more complex systems for hiding illegal drugs. In October 2006 Bend law enforcement officers encountered a vehicle in which a casino betting chip containing an electrical diode was used as a remote sensor to open a compartment in the air bag system of the vehicle, revealing 4 pounds of methamphetamine. In another incident, Bend law enforcement officers had to use a cutting torch to remove the dashboard of a vehicle in which 8 pounds of methamphetamine was discovered. Distribution Mexican DTOs control the wholesale distribution of methamphetamine, cocaine, and heroin in Roseburg, Bend, and Pendleton as well as the wholesale distribution of Mexican marijuana in Roseburg and Pendleton. Asian DTOs control the wholesale distribution of marijuana in Bend. Retail drug distribution occurs throughout the cities of Roseburg, Bend, and Pendleton. Mexican criminals distribute methamphetamine, marijuana, cocaine, and heroin at the retail level from a variety of public areas such as bars, open-air markets, parking lots, and restaurants. Caucasian criminals also distribute retail-level quantities of methamphetamine, marijuana, and heroin. Abuse Amphetamines, which include methamphetamine, and marijuana are the primary drugs of abuse reported in treatment admissions for Deschutes, Douglas, and Umatilla Counties in 2006. In these counties the overall number of admissions for amphetamines (1,573) and marijuana (1,176) far surpasses the number of admissions for cocaine and heroin. (See Table 5.)
Diverted pharmaceuticals are abused in Roseburg and Bend. Law enforcement reporting from Roseburg indicates that the drug threat posed by prescription drugs such as OxyContin, Vicodin, and methadone has increased significantly. Abusers in Roseburg steal prescription drugs from neighbors' mailboxes, and adolescent abusers steal prescription drugs from family members and then congregate with their peers at "pill parties" to exchange the drugs. Additionally, Bend law enforcement reporting indicates that pharmaceuticals are diverted by abusers through doctor-shopping, prescription forgery, and fraud. End Notes1. According
to law enforcement officials, Asian drug trafficking organizations (DTOs)
pay transporters approximately $500 per pound to smuggle marijuana across
the U.S.-Canada border. |
End of page.