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U.S. Department of Justice
National Drug Intelligence Center
Michigan HIDTA Drug Market Analysis 2010
June 2010
Heroin abuse is increasing in the Michigan HIDTA region, especially among young, suburban Caucasians, many of whom formerly abused OxyContin. The number of publicly funded treatment admissions in the region in which heroin was indicated as the primary substance of abuse was higher than for any other drug and increased more than 20 percent from fiscal year (FY) 2005 (8,439) to FY2009 (10,358). (See Figure 6.) The actual figures may be higher than indicated, since many young, suburban drug abusers are covered by private health insurance and are not included in these data. The abuse of cocaine, marijuana, methamphetamine, MDMA, and CPDs is also of significant concern to law enforcement and public health officials. Marijuana and cocaine abuse remain high and stable in the region. Methamphetamine abuse is increasing in the region, mirroring increasing local methamphetamine production. The number of publicly funded treatment admissions in which methamphetamine was indicated as the primary substance of abuse increased approximately 30 percent in the region from FY2007 (149) to FY2009 (203). (See Figure 6.) MDMA abuse, historically high among high school and college age individuals, is now problematic in Detroit, where African Americans are increasingly abusing the drug. CPD abuse, particularly of OxyContin, Vicodin, and Xanax, remains stable in the HIDTA region.
Figure 6. Publicly Funded Treatment Admissions in the Michigan HIDTA Region, by Primary Substance of Abuse, FY2005-FY2009*
Source: Michigan Department of Community Health.
*Service
funded in whole or in part with MDCH-administered allocations.
A large portion of the proceeds generated by drug sales in the Michigan HIDTA region are transported by traffickers in bulk to drug source locations, including Chicago, Southwest Border states, Mexico, and Canada. Mexican DTOs transport bulk currency shipments to source locations, including California, Mexico, and other areas along the Southwest Border, while Canadian traffickers transport bulk currency across the U.S.-Canada border. Some traffickers consolidate their drug proceeds in the Chicago area before transporting them further to drug source locations. Michigan HIDTA initiatives seized nearly $22 million in cash in 2009.
Prepaid cards,d casinos, money services businesses, and cash-intensive businesses are also commonly used by traffickers to launder illicit drug proceeds. Prepaid credit cards are used by traffickers to hold their drug proceeds during transportation within the HIDTA region and across the U.S.-Canada border. These cards allow traffickers to store and transport their proceeds with very little oversight or risk of seizure. Affiliates of Asian DTOs and OMGs are suspected to be widely using prepaid credit cards, and use of these cards is expected to increase.
d. Prepaid cards are payment mechanisms that draw value from funds provided to the prepaid card program manager or other designee prior to use. Open-system prepaid cards, which are branded by major payment networks, are similar in appearance to traditional credit or debit cards and can be used anywhere that the network brand is accepted, frequently including worldwide automated teller machines (ATMs). Closed-system cards, such as gift cards, operate on merchants' internal networks and can be used only to conduct transactions within the specific payment system(s) for which they were intended.
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