ARCHIVED Product No. 2007-R0813-021 North Texas High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Drug Market Analysis May 2007 U.S. Department of Justice Preface reporting, information obtained through interviews This assessment provides a strategic overview with law enforcement and public health officials, of the illicit drug situation in the North Texas High and available statistical data. The report is designed Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA), high- to provide policymakers, resource planners, and lighting significant trends and law enforcement law enforcement officials with a focused discus- concerns related to the trafficking and abuse of sion of key drug issues and developments facing illicit drugs. The report was prepared through the North Texas HIDTA. detailed analysis of recent law enforcement OKLAHOMA TULSA MUSKOGEE OKLA- HOMA SEQUOYAH CLEVE- LAND COMANCHE LUBBOCK TEXAS DENTON COLLIN HUNT ROCKWALL MN WI DALLAS ID SD MI PARKER TARRANT WY KAUF- IA MAN NE IL IN HOOD UT JOHNSON SMITH CO ELLIS KS MO KY HENDERSON TN OK NAVARRO AZ NM AR MS AL TX LA Area of North Texas HIDTA HIDTA County Figure 1. North Texas High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area. This assessment is an outgrowth of a partnership between the NDIC and HIDTA Program for preparation of annual assessments depicting drug trafficking trends and developments in HIDTA Program areas. The report has been vetted with the HIDTA, is limited in scope to HIDTA jurisdictional boundaries, and draws upon a wide variety of sources within those boundaries. This document may contain dated information. It has been made available to provide access to historical materials. ARCHIVED North Texas High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Drug Market Analysis Strategic Drug Threat Drug Trafficking Organizations, Developments Criminal Groups, and Gangs • Some Mexican drug trafficking organizations Drug trafficking organizations are complex (DTOs) are extending transportation and distri- organizations with highly defined command- bution operations to the North Texas HIDTA and-control structures that produce, transport, region to avoid heightened scrutiny along the and/or distribute large quantities of one or more Southwest Border. They can conceal their oper- illicit drugs. ations more efficiently among the growing His- Criminal groups operating in the United States panic population of this area than in sparsely are numerous and range from small to populated areas along the U.S.–Mexico border. moderately sized, loosely knit groups that distribute one or more drugs at the retail and • The distribution and abuse of ice methamphet- midlevels. amine are expanding throughout the North Gangs are defined by the National Alliance of Texas HIDTA region, despite steady declines in Gang Investigators’ Associations as groups or local powder methamphetamine production. associations of three or more persons with a Mexican DTOs are supplanting decreased local common identifying sign, symbol, or name, the production by supplying large amounts of ice members of which individually or collectively engage in criminal activity that creates an methamphetamine to the area. atmosphere of fear and intimidation. • African American, Asian, and Mexican DTOs operating in the North Texas HIDTA region are HIDTA Area Overview increasingly conducting drug transactions with The North Texas HIDTA region encompasses one another, an action that facilitates the expan- 15 counties in North Texas, clustered primarily sion of drug distribution networks. around the Dallas/Fort Worth metropolitan area, and 6 counties in Oklahoma, which include the Okla- • Local traffickers have increased their access to homa City metropolitan area. Most of the region’s multiple drug sources and drug types through population is located in Dallas. The Dallas/Fort interaction with Mexican DTOs. As a result, Worth metropolitan area has a population of approx- local traffickers are introducing different drug imately 5.8 million people; the Oklahoma City met- types to their customers. ropolitan area has approximately 1.2 million. • Asian DTOs from the Pacific Northwest and The North Texas HIDTA region is supported by Canada reportedly trade MDMA (3,4-methyl- an extensive transportation system that provides enedioxymethamphetamine, also known as national and international commercial connections ecstasy) to Mexican DTOs for cocaine in the through numerous interstate highways, U.S. high- North Texas HIDTA region, but the extent of ways, railways, bus lines, and airlines. Drug traf- this practice is currently unknown. fickers exploit the region’s infrastructure to transport and distribute illicit drugs to and from the • The abuse of Mexican black tar heroin resur- area and to transport illicit proceeds generated by faced during the past year in the Dallas/Fort the sales of illicit drugs to Mexico. The North Worth metropolitan area, particularly in Collin Texas HIDTA region is often a destination for County, where abuse of the drug was responsi- illicit drug shipments from Mexico and states along ble for several drug overdose deaths. the U.S.–Mexico border; it is also a transshipment • The abuse of “cheese” heroin is increasing in the zone for drug shipments en route to midwestern, Dallas area and contributed to the deaths of at southeastern, eastern, and other southwestern drug markets. least 17 local adolescents during the past 2 years. 2 This document may contain dated information. It has been made available to provide access to historical materials. ARCHIVED National Drug Intelligence Center COLORADO KANSAS MISSOURI §44 ¨¦§35 ¨¦ OKLAHOMA Tulsa Muskogee Oklahoma City ¨¦§40 Amarillo ¨¦§40 ¨¦§40 ¨¦§44 ARKANSAS Lawton CO §27 ¨¦ ¨¦§35 NEW MEXI Wichita Falls Lubbock ¨¦§30 Carrollton TEXAS Dallas Farmers Branch Fort Arlington ¨¦§20 20 Worth ¨¦§ Abilene HIDTA County Waco Major City 1,000,000 + ¨¦§35 45 250,000¨¦§10 - 999,999 ¨¦§ 100,000 - 249,999 Other Place of Interest ¨¦§10 Austin Interstate ¨¦§10 Figure 2. North Texas HIDTA transportation infrastructure. Several primary drug transportation routes in Drug Overview the United States traverse the North Texas HIDTA The North Texas HIDTA region is a significant region. Dallas, Forth Worth, and Oklahoma City national-level distribution and transshipment center are located at the intersections of major north-south for illicit drugs supplied by Mexican DTOs. Mexi- and east-west transportation routes that lead from can DTOs exploit the region’s proximity to the the Southwest Border area to interior drug markets. U.S.–Mexico border, extensive transportation Interstate 35 is the primary north-south route that infrastructure, and global financial institutions and affects drug transportation into the HIDTA region. use the area to distribute wholesale quantities of Interstate 35 begins in Laredo, the busiest inland methamphetamine, cocaine, marijuana, and heroin. port of entry (POE) in the United States, and passes Mexican DTOs also warehouse significant quanti- through Dallas/Fort Worth and Oklahoma City, ties of illicit drugs in the region for eventual trans- continuing to drug markets in the West Central and port to markets nationwide, such as those in Great Lakes Regions. Interstates 20 and 40 provide Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, access to the North Texas HIDTA region from Missouri, New York, North Carolina, and Ohio. smuggling hubs in western Texas, New Mexico, The Dallas/Fort Worth area is the principal drug Arizona, and California. Although I-10 does not distribution center in the region; however, Okla- traverse North Texas HIDTA counties, traffickers homa City also figures prominently in regional use this route to access I-20, which passes through drug trafficking. Dallas/Fort Worth and extends to South Carolina. 3 This document may contain dated information. It has been made available to provide access to historical materials. ARCHIVED North Texas High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Drug Market Analysis Methamphetamine and cocaine, both powder Table 2. North Texas HIDTA Initiative Drug and crack, pose the greatest drug threats to the Seizures, in Kilograms, 2005–2006 HIDTA region. Methamphetamine distribution and Percent abuse have increased significantly in recent years Drug 2005 2006 of Change throughout most areas of the HIDTA region. Although local production has decreased, the Methamphetamine 34.4 314.6 815 amount of ice methamphetamine supplied to the Cocaine 229.3 706.2 208 area by Mexican DTOs has increased. Powder cocaine and crack cocaine are particular threats to Marijuana 6,259.6 9,126.7 46 low-income areas of Dallas, Fort Worth, Oklahoma Heroin 5.4 2.2 -59 City, and Tulsa. Marijuana poses a serious drug Source: North Texas High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area. threat to the North Texas HIDTA region; the drug is always available to the area’s illicit drug abuser Illicit drug production in the region primarily community because large quantities are smuggled entails methamphetamine production; however, pro- to and through the area from Mexico by Mexican duction has decreased sharply during the past sev- DTOs. Heroin, primarily Mexican black tar, is eral years, most notably in North Texas HIDTA abused in the region, but to a lesser extent than counties, as evidenced by declining laboratory sei- other drugs. However, heroin is a growing problem zures. In 2006 only two North Texas HIDTA in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, particularly in subur- counties—Dallas and Tarrant—reported metham- ban communities. Diverted pharmaceuticals pose phetamine laboratory seizures. Only 7 methamphet- significant