Cocaine

Cocaine poses a threat to Utah, particularly because of the violence associated with the distribution and abuse of the drug. Powdered cocaine is distributed in both wholesale and retail quantities and is available throughout the state. Crack cocaine is available only in retail quantities and only in metropolitan areas. Mexican criminal groups transport powdered cocaine into the state and serve as wholesale, midlevel, and retail distributors. At the retail level street gangs and Caucasian and Mexican local independent dealers distribute powdered cocaine. Some street gangs also convert powdered cocaine into crack and distribute the drug at the wholesale and retail levels.

Abuse

Cocaine abuse remains a concern in Utah. Data from the Utah Division of Substance Abuse indicate that the number of cocaine-related treatment admissions to publicly funded facilities decreased from 2,238 in FY1997 to 1,657 in FY1998, then remained relatively stable through FY2001 when 1,620 admissions were reported. (See Table 2 in Methamphetamine section.) (Treatment data provided by the Division of Substance Abuse do not distinguish between powdered and crack cocaine.)

The rate of cocaine abuse in Utah is comparable to the national rate, and most cocaine abusers in Utah are young adults. According to the 1999 and 2000 NHSDA, the percentage of Utah residents (1.5%) who reported having abused cocaine at least once in the year prior to the survey was comparable to the percentage nationwide (1.6%). Individuals 18 to 25 years of age in Utah reported the highest rate (3.4%) of past year cocaine abuse.

The percentage of Utah high school students who reported having abused cocaine at least once in their lifetime is lower than the national percentage. According to the 2001 YRBS, 4.1 percent of high school students surveyed in Utah reported lifetime cocaine abuse, compared with 9.4 percent nationwide. However, 2.7 percent of Utah high school students surveyed reported having abused cocaine at least once in the 30 days prior to the survey, statistically comparable to the national percentage of 4.2 percent.

Cocaine abuse increasingly is a factor in drug-related deaths in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. According to DAWN mortality data, the number of deaths in which cocaine was a factor increased from 37 in 1996 to 59 in 2000. (See Table 3 in Methamphetamine section.)

Cocaine is frequently abused by adult male arrestees in Salt Lake City. According to ADAM data, 18.0 percent of adult male arrestees in Salt Lake City in 2000 tested positive for cocaine. Among adult male arrestees, 29.0 percent of African Americans, 27.4 percent of Hispanics, and 15.4 percent of Caucasians tested positive for the drug.

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Availability

Powdered cocaine is available in various quantities throughout Utah, and crack cocaine availability is limited to retail quantities in metropolitan areas of the state. Powdered cocaine is available in wholesale quantities in the Wasatch Range Task Force area, which encompasses most of north central Utah including Ogden, Provo, and Salt Lake City. Law enforcement authorities in Salt Lake City report that powdered cocaine is readily available in wholesale quantities in and around Salt Lake City. According to the Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA), powdered cocaine also is available at numerous ski resorts in Utah. Crack cocaine is available in retail quantities in the Salt Lake City area.

The price of cocaine has remained relatively stable throughout Utah, with variances reported in some rural areas of the state. According to the DEA Salt Lake City Resident Office, powdered cocaine prices have fluctuated nominally, with some decreases from FY1999 to FY2001. According to DEA, during the second quarter of FY2001, powdered cocaine sold for $16,000 to $20,000 per kilogram, $500 to $1,000 per ounce, and $75 to $125 per gram throughout the state. Crack cocaine sold for $20 to $30 per rock throughout the state. Local law enforcement authorities report that wholesale powdered cocaine prices were as high as $25,000 per kilogram in some rural areas of the state. State and local law enforcement agencies in the state reported wholesale purity levels of 50 to 96 percent and retail purity levels of 25 to 70 percent in 2001.

Despite the availability of cocaine in Utah, federal law enforcement seizures of the drug have declined. According to FDSS data, cocaine seizures by federal law enforcement officers in Utah decreased from 66 kilograms in 1998 to 22 kilograms in 2001. (See Table 4 in Methamphetamine section.) Law enforcement officials in Utah reported cocaine seizures totaling 47 kilograms in 1999, 45 kilograms in 2000, and 17 kilograms in 2001 as part of Operation Pipeline, and they did not report any cocaine seizures in 2000 as part of Operation Jetway; however, in 2001 they reported seizing 15 kilograms of the drug.

Federal sentencing statistics for Utah indicate that the number of cocaine-related federal sentences decreased dramatically from 34 in FY1997 to 12 in FY2001. According to USSC data, 47.2 percent of drug-related federal sentences in Utah were for cocaine-related violations in FY1997. That percentage declined to 14.1 percent in FY2001--well below the national rate of 42.5 percent. (See Table 1 in Overview section.)

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Violence

Cocaine-related violence poses a significant threat to law enforcement authorities throughout Utah. Cocaine distributors often use violence to protect their territory and drug supply. Street gangs that distribute cocaine often commit violent crimes in Utah, primarily in the Wasatch Range Task Force area, which encompasses most of north central Utah including Ogden, Provo, and Salt Lake City. Law enforcement respondents to the National Gang Survey 2000 reported that the following gangs distribute cocaine and commit violent crimes in the state: 013 Ogden Trece, 18th Street, 21st Street Gang, Alley Boys, Armenian Mafia Gang, Kearns Town Bloods, Ogden Violent Gangsters, Original Laotian Gang, QVO, Tongan Crip Gangsters, and Tongan Crip Regulators. According to law enforcement agencies throughout the state, assault is the most common violent crime committed by gangs that distribute cocaine. Some distributors also commit drive-by shooting, assault on law enforcement officers, and other violent crimes.

Law enforcement agencies in Utah report that individuals who abuse cocaine often commit violent crime. According to ADAM data, 15.3 percent of adult males arrested in Salt Lake City in 2000 for violent crimes tested positive for cocaine. In addition, some cocaine abusers have attacked and killed law enforcement officers in the state.

Production

Coca is not cultivated nor is powdered cocaine produced in Utah. However, retail distributors in Salt Lake City and other metropolitan areas commonly convert powdered cocaine to crack. They convert small quantities on an as-needed basis to avoid federal drug sentences that are lengthier for possessing crack than powdered cocaine. Street gangs such as 18th Street, Alley Boys, QVO, and Tongan Crip Gangsters convert powdered cocaine to crack in or near the business, private residence, or public area where it is distributed.

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Transportation

Mexican criminal groups dominate the transportation of cocaine from Mexico. They typically transport cocaine from Mexico through Arizona, California, and New Mexico into Utah. Street gangs in Utah also transport cocaine into the state. Law enforcement respondents to the National Gang Survey 2000 from Farmington, Salt Lake City, and West Valley City reported that street gangs transport cocaine from Arizona and California into their jurisdictions.

Cocaine typically is transported into Utah in private or rental vehicles, although commercial aircraft, buses, trains, and package delivery services also are used. Operation Pipeline seizure statistics indicate that in 1999 and 2000, I-15 and I-70 were the primary routes along which cocaine was seized in Utah.

Wholesale quantities of cocaine are transported through Utah en route to other areas of the United States. According to Operation Pipeline seizure statistics, cocaine is transported from California through Utah to Colorado, Idaho, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Washington. The primary transportation routes for cocaine that transits Utah are I-15, I-70, and I-80.

Couriers aboard commercial aircraft also transport cocaine into and through Utah. The Salt Lake City Air Interdiction Unit seized 13 kilograms of cocaine and arrested two individuals who were transporting the drug on a commercial flight from California to Anchorage via Salt Lake City in November 2001. The cocaine was concealed in a false compartment in a piece of luggage.

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Distribution

Mexican criminal groups distribute most of the powdered cocaine that is available in Utah. These groups distribute the drug in wholesale, midlevel, and retail quantities throughout Utah. Many of these Mexican criminal groups have direct contacts to Mexican DTOs that operate in Mexico and southwestern states. In addition, these groups distribute multiple kilograms of cocaine per week exclusively to friends, family members, and others who distribute wholesale and midlevel quantities. In December 2001 federal, state, and local law enforcement authorities in Ogden and Salt Lake City arrested more than 50 members of a Mexican criminal group in one of Utah's largest drug investigations. The individuals were charged with offenses that included distributing drugs and operating a criminal enterprise. The arrests were the result of a 3-year investigation into the Mexican criminal group that transported and distributed cocaine and methamphetamine from Mexico through Southern California and Arizona into Utah. Members of the criminal group in Salt Lake City and Ogden sold the drugs to, and often worked in cooperation with, street gangs and abusers.

Street gangs and local independent dealers based in Utah often obtain powdered cocaine from Mexican criminal groups and distribute the drug at the retail level. Law enforcement respondents to the NDIC National Gang Survey 2000 reported that the following street gangs distribute powdered cocaine in retail quantities throughout the state: 013 Ogden Trece, 18th Street, 21st Street Gang, Alley Boys, Armenian Mafia, Avenues Gang, Black Mafia Gangsters, Gangster Disciples, Ogden Violent Gangsters, Oriental Laotian Gangsters, QVO, La Raza, Silent Aryan Warriors, Sureņos 13, Sureņos Chiques, Tiny Oriental Posse, Tongan Crip Regulators, Varrios Mexicanos Locos, and Varrio Loco Town. Local independent dealers who distribute cocaine usually are Caucasian or Mexican and distribute other illicit drugs as well.

Crack cocaine is distributed in limited quantities in the metropolitan areas of Utah. Crack distribution in the state is limited to midlevel (ounce quantities). Street gangs are the primary midlevel and retail distributors of the drug in Utah. Street gangs such as 18th Street, Alley Boys, QVO, and Tongan Crip Gangsters convert powdered cocaine to crack and distribute midlevel and retail quantities of the drug to local independent dealers and directly to abusers.

Powdered cocaine and crack cocaine are distributed from private residences or businesses, including bars, nightclubs, and restaurants in Utah. Wholesale quantities of powdered cocaine typically are wrapped in clear or colored cellophane or packaged in plastic bags and sealed with tape. One of the most common packaging methods involves placing gram or ounce quantities of powdered or crack cocaine in small, vacuum-sealed plastic bags.

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