U.S. Department of Justice
National Drug Intelligence Center
New York/New Jersey HIDTA Drug Market Analysis 2010
June 2010

Drug Flow Into, Within, and From the NY/NJ HIDTA Region

(U) The New York City metropolitan area is a national-level distribution center for cocaine, heroin, and marijuana. Multiton quantities of these drugs are moved into and through the NY/NJ HIDTA region annually, using land, maritime, and air conveyances from drug source and transit areas in Canada, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, and Mexico, as well as from domestic locations such as Florida, Georgia, Puerto Rico, and the Southwest Border area. Analysis of national seizure data identifying the origination and destination of drug shipments shows that the NY/NJ HIDTA region figures very prominently as a primary destination for cocaine, heroin, and MDMA. (See Table 1.) Unique smuggling and transportation methods are associated with each drug type, but overall, drug seizure data and law enforcement reporting indicate that overland smuggling and subsequent transportation by vehicle into the region exceed all other methods combined. (See Figure 3.)

Table 1. (U) Metropolitan Areas Most Often Identified as Origination and Destination Points for Seized Drug Shipments, 2008-2009

Source: National Seizure System; National Drug Threat Survey 2009.

Figure 3. (U) Seizures of Drugs in Transit To, From, or Through New York or New Jersey, in Kilograms, 2009*

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Source: National Seizure System.
*Table includes seizures of cocaine, heroin, and marijuana in which a method of transportation was identified.

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Overland Smuggling Into the NY/NJ HIDTA Region

(U) Cocaine, heroin, and Mexican marijuana are smuggled into the NY/NJ HIDTA region overland, primarily from Mexico across the Southwest Border. Canadian high-potency marijuana and MDMA are smuggled overland from Canada, usually through the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation. National Seizure System (NSS) statistics for 2009 show that more than 427.4 kilograms of cocaine, 48.6 kilograms of heroin, and more than 9,648.8 kilograms of marijuana were seized from overland conveyances either en route to or in New York or New Jersey. Smugglers typically use tractor-trailers or personal vehicles and often conceal drugs by commingling them with legitimate goods or produce or by secreting them in vehicle compartments, such as natural voids in vehicle doors or side panels or in sophisticated after-market traps. Most drug shipments pass through ports of entry (POEs) along the borders; however, they also enter the country at unattended, remote areas between POEs. Once in this country, smugglers transport the drugs to major and secondary markets, including the NY/NJ HIDTA region, primarily using interstate highways and often changing routes in response to law enforcement presence. Smugglers also transport drugs overland across the Northern Border using all terrain vehicles and snowmobiles.

(LES) The St. Regis Mohawk Reservation, which straddles the U.S.-Canada border in northern New York and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec, is the principal entry point for Canadian high-potency marijuana and MDMA into the NY/NJ HIDTA region. Law enforcement estimates suggest that up to 13 metric tons30 of high-potency marijuana are smuggled into the region through the reservation each week. Further, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police estimates that as much as 3,498 metric tons of marijuana is produced in Canada each year.31 Illicit profits derived from Canadian high-potency marijuana sales are substantial. For example, Canadian growers sell marijuana to Native American DTOs on the reservation for $1,800 to $2,200 per pound in wholesale quantities. Once smuggled into the United States, the marijuana can be sold for $2,500 to $5,500 per pound in Albany and for as much as $3,000 to $7,000 per pound in New York City. The profits from high-potency marijuana sales are even greater when it is sold in smaller amounts at the retail level. For example, ounce quantities of Canadian high-potency marijuana sell for $300 to $1,000 in New York City. Wholesale quantities of MDMA also are smuggled through the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation; proceeds from marijuana sales often fund MDMA production or are used to purchase cocaine in the United States for distribution in Canada. Multithousand-tablet quantities of MDMA are supplied by Asian producers to Native American DTOs that smuggle the drug through the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation for distribution in the HIDTA region and other U.S. markets.

Figure 4. (U) St. Regis Mohawk Reservation

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Figure 5. (U) Canadian High-Potency Marijuana Prices

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Maritime Smuggling Into the NY/NJ HIDTA Region

(LES) Some traffickers use commercial maritime conveyances to smuggle drug supplies directly into the NY/NJ HIDTA region through the Port of New York/New Jersey--the largest container port complex on the East Coast, which handled nearly 59 million metric tons of bulk and general cargo in 2009. In Operation Jamrock, a DTO shipped multiton quantities of marijuana in a cargo container to Port Elizabeth in Newark from Jamaica.32 The vast amount of goods that transit the port every year allow substantial opportunities for smugglers to conceal illicit narcotics among legitimate cargo, but seizure data and law enforcement reporting indicate that this method is used less often than overland smuggling. NSS data reveal that nearly 66 kilograms of cocaine and 2,444 kilograms of marijuana were seized from maritime vessels in New York and New Jersey in 2009.

(LES) Multikilogram quantities of cocaine and heroin are often smuggled in cargo ships from source areas such as Colombia to areas in the Caribbean such as the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico. Once in these locations, the drugs are typically offloaded, broken into smaller quantities, and transported to the NY/NJ HIDTA region in cargo, by couriers on commercial airlines, or through package delivery services. For example, Operation Pink Slip revealed that multikilogram quantities of cocaine were smuggled on cargo ships from Panama and Colombia to Jamaica, where the drugs were divided into smaller quantities for shipment to Bermuda and various areas in the United States, including New York.33

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Air Smuggling Into the NY/NJ HIDTA Region

(U) Traffickers smuggle illicit drugs, primarily cocaine, heroin, khat, and marijuana through major international airports in the NY/NJ HIDTA region, such as John F. Kennedy (JFK), Newark Liberty, and LaGuardia, by couriers, in cargo, and through package delivery services. NSS data indicate that more than 973 kilograms of cocaine, 196 kilograms of heroin, and nearly 765 kilograms of marijuana were seized from air cargo and packages in New York and New Jersey in 2009. Additionally, a significant amount of khat, principally shipped from the United Kingdom and Kenya, transits the JFK and Newark airports, most of which is en route to other areas of the country. NSS data indicate that 74,706 kilograms of khat were seized from New York and New Jersey mail facilities in 2009. Less than 10 percent (7,038 kilograms) of that total was identified as destined for New York or New Jersey.

(LES) DTOs often use couriers aboard commercial aircraft to transport heroin to the NY/NJ HIDTA region from source areas such as Colombia and Africa or from transit areas in the Caribbean such as the Dominican Republic. DTOs often exploit corrupt security employees at some international airports in source countries who allow drug couriers to easily pass through Customs.34 These couriers conceal heroin either in false sides of their luggage, under their clothing, or internally by ingesting "pellets"--heroin packaged in small rubber items such as condoms, the fingers of surgical gloves, or balloons. In Operation Ghana Get You, couriers from West Africa ingested as much as 2 kilograms of heroin per trip and earned $3,500 per kilogram. Couriers who smuggle drugs in their luggage typically carry 6 to 7 kilograms and earn approximately $10,000 per shipment.35

(LES) Cocaine, heroin, and marijuana are frequently shipped to the NY/NJ HIDTA region in cargo aboard commercial airlines. In Operation Ankle Bracelet, a Dominican Republic-based DTO shipped cocaine via commercial airlines to the region commingled in shipments of fruits and vegetables.36 In Operation Pink Slip, cocaine offloaded in Jamaica was split into smaller shipments and transported to the NY/NJ HIDTA region aboard commercial airlines where corrupt airline employees removed the drug-laden luggage prior to Customs checks.37

(LES) DTOs frequently transport drugs to the NY/NJ HIDTA region through package delivery services. Marijuana is shipped to the region in 10- to 25-pound packages typically from California and the Southwest Border.38 According to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, from January 1, 2007, to May 7, 2010, postal inspectors in New York and New Jersey seized 731 packages containing more than 3,938 kilograms of marijuana (See Table 2.). Approximately 91 percent (665) of the packages were shipped from Arizona, southern California, and Texas.39 Marijuana shipped from the Southwest Border is typically Mexican commercial-grade, while marijuana shipped from northern California is mostly high-potency marijuana.40 Postal inspectors seized 34 packages containing more than 61 kilograms of marijuana from northern California during the same time period. Inspectors also seized marijuana shipments from Florida, Hawaii, Maine, Nevada, North Carolina, Oregon, and Washington. Traffickers often use overnight express and track 9 to 10 packages at a time online.41 Law enforcement officers indicate that traffickers have become more adept at masking the odor of marijuana in their shipments.42 Concealment and masking methods include wrapping the marijuana in cellophane and then concealing the drugs in plastic food storage containers, putting the marijuana in foil insulated bags, concealing drugs inside dog food, and using spray foam that hardens around the drugs and effectively masks the odor.43

Table 2. (LES) Drugs Seized at New York and New Jersey Postal Facilities, in Kilograms, 2007-2010

Source: U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
*January 1, 2010 through May 7, 2010.

(LES) Cocaine is shipped via package delivery services to the NY/NJ HIDTA region, often from Puerto Rico or the Dominican Republic, typically in 1- to 5-kilogram quantities. From January 1, 2007, to May 7, 2010, postal inspectors seized 222 packages of cocaine weighing more than 625 kilograms. Of those 222 packages, 76 percent (169) were mailed from Puerto Rico. Cocaine is concealed in a variety of ways ranging from simple to elaborate. In Operation Blowback cocaine shipments from the Dominican Republic were often wrapped in cellophane, surrounded by candy wafers, wrapped in carbon paper, and then surrounded with a candy wrapper before they were sent to distributors in New Jersey using a package delivery service.44 Some cocaine traffickers exploit corrupt postal carriers who leave packages at an abandoned address for a later pickup by members of the organization. Further, traffickers instruct dealers how best to ship payments back so that packages will likely not be tracked by law enforcement.

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Drug Flow Within the NY/NJ HIDTA Region

(U) Traffickers primarily transport illicit drugs within the NY/NJ HIDTA region along six major interstate highwaysd and 10 secondary interstatese that service the region (see Figure 7). Most agencies surveyed (121 of 143) indicate that drugs in their area are obtained from suppliers within the region, principally in New York City and Newark. Distributors in Upstate New York and parts of New Jersey typically travel to these locations in personal vehicles to obtain cocaine, heroin, and marijuana for distribution in their home areas.

Figure 7. (U) NY/NJ HIDTA Region Transportation Infrastructure

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(U) Many drug distributors in Upstate New York obtain high-potency marijuana and MDMA from sources of supply in Canada as well as marijuana transported through the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation. Several OCDETF investigations initiated in 2009 focused on traffickers traveling to or from the reservation to obtain hundreds of pounds of marijuana.

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Drug Flow From the NY/NJ HIDTA Region

(LES) Multiton quantities of illicit drugs are transported to the area each year; however, not all drug shipments that arrive in the NY/NJ HIDTA region are intended for distribution in New York and New Jersey. DTOs operating in the region supply drugs to other DTOs, groups, and gangs in cities throughout the Florida/Caribbean, Great Lakes, Mid-Atlantic, New England, Southeast, and West Central Regions. (See Table 3.) Traffickers who are supplied by New York-based DTOs either travel to the HIDTA region by personal vehicle, train, or bus to obtain drug supplies or have the drugs delivered to their home areas.

Table 3. (LES) Drug Flow from NY/NJ HIDTA Region by DTO and Drug

Source: Federal, state, and local law enforcement reporting.

(LES) Only a portion of the Canadian high-potency marijuana and MDMA smuggled into New York through the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation is intended for distribution in the HIDTA region. Of the estimated 13 metric tons of marijuana smuggled into the region each week only about 25 percent is destined for New York City; the remainder is transported to other areas of Upstate New York and major markets throughout much of the eastern United States. (See Figure 6.) NSS data indicate that more than 92 kilograms and 480,724 dosage units of MDMA were seized from packages in the NY/NJ HIDTA region in 2009; none of these packages were destined for New York or New Jersey.

Figure 6. (LES) Destination States of Illicit Drugs Smuggled Through the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation

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(LES) Significant quantities of khat are shipped to the JFK and Newark airports, primarily from the United Kingdom and West Africa. Of the 74,706 kilograms of khat seized in 2009 from New York and New Jersey mail facilities, more than 42 percent was destined for other states, such as California, Georgia, Minnesota, Ohio, Tennessee, and Washington.

Footnotes

d. (U) Interstates 78, 80, 81, 87, 90, and 95.
e. (U) Interstates 190, 278, 280, 287, 295, 390, 495, 684, 878, and 895.

LIMITED OFFICIAL USE-LAW ENFORCEMENT SENSITIVE//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY

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