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National Drug Intelligence Center New Hampshire Drug Threat Assessment Update May 2003 HeroinTreatment statistics and medical examiner data reflect the magnitude of the heroin threat to New Hampshire. According to the New Hampshire Department of Substance Abuse (NHDSA), the number of heroin-related treatment admissions to publicly funded facilities in the state increased 83 percent from 426 in 1997 to 780 in 2001. (See Table 1.) NHDSA data indicate that 342 of the 780 individuals treated for heroin abuse in 2001 were 25 to 34 years of age. The Office of Chief Medical Examiner reported that heroin/morphine was a factor in 14 of the 31 drug deaths reported in the state in FY2001.
Seventeen of the 22 law enforcement respondents to the National Drug Intelligence Center (NDIC) National Drug Threat Survey 2002 in New Hampshire reported that the availability of heroin is high or medium in their jurisdictions. (See NDTS text box.) Retail quantities of heroin, primarily South American heroin, are most readily available in the Plymouth area, the Seacoast region, and the western part of the state, and are increasingly available in rural areas of New Hampshire. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Manchester Resident Office reported that heroin sold for $7 to $20 per bag at the retail level in the first quarter of FY2003.
Federal-wide Drug Seizure System (FDSS) data indicate that federal law enforcement officers in New Hampshire did not report any heroin seizures to FDSS in 2002. (See text box.) The New Hampshire Drug Task Force seized 0.8 kilograms of heroin in 2002. U.S. Sentencing Commission (USSC) data indicate that none of the drug-related federal sentences in New Hampshire in FY2001 resulted from heroin offenses. (See Table 2.)
Caucasian local independent dealers and abusers are the principal transporters and retail distributors of heroin in New Hampshire--wholesale-level heroin distribution is extremely limited. These individuals typically travel to Lowell and Lawrence, Massachusetts, via private vehicles to purchase ounce quantities of heroin, primarily from Dominican criminal groups, then transport it back to the state for distribution. Heroin also is transported from New York City to New Hampshire by local independent dealers and abusers via private vehicles and, to a lesser extent, via commercial vehicles and couriers aboard commercial aircraft. Wholesale-level heroin distribution is extremely limited in New Hampshire. However, state and local law enforcement officials indicate that Dominican criminal groups from Massachusetts occasionally travel to New Hampshire to sell wholesale quantities of heroin to local distributors. Caucasian local independent dealers and abusers are the principal retail distributors of heroin in New Hampshire. Heroin typically is packaged in small glassine bags and is distributed from private residences, vehicles, and public areas such as parking lots.
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