The recurring pattern showed up on about every other page of the list.
Methamphetamine, the illegal drug which law enforcement officers uncover most often in Sequoyah County and the state, is still out there. But a law controlling the sale of legal drugs used to make the illegal drug known as "meth" has helped curtail the manufacture of the illegal product and can lead law enforcement officials to illegal drug manufacturing investigations and arrests.
Frank Loyd, spokesman for the District 27 Drug Task Force, explained.
"People are still buying pseudo(ephedrine) because the addiction to meth is so strong, it puts a person in a state they'll put themselves at risk to get the medications," Loyd said.
The at-risk factor was increased when Oklahoma passed a law controlling the sale of over-the-counter cold medicines which contain pseudoephedrine. The law now requires the buyer to show identification and list an address when buying pseudoephedrine. Those lists are regularly reviewed by investigators, who find repeated names and addresses quite handy when it comes time to do investigations.
According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Web site the number of local small mom-and-pop illegal labs has declined significantly in Oklahoma, due primarily to the passage of pseudoephedrine control laws enacted in 2004. The DEA Web site reports that since these laws were passed the number of labs seized has decreased by about 80 percent in Oklahoma.
But the District 27 Drug Task Force is still making arrests and uncovering meth and meth labs.
The 2004 control law, Loyd explained, requires that anyone buying over-the-counter tablet pseudoephedrine must now go directly to the pharmacist to ask for the medicine, which are kept behind the counter. The person must show identification and sign for the medicine, and the amount bought is limited each month.
But, Loyd pointed out, some of those addicted to the illegal drug are finding ways around Oklahoma's pseudoephedrine control law, although it isn't doing them much good.
Loyd explained, "There's probably not a lab here (in Sequoyah County) that we don't know about. By using the law we can actually identify them."
The District 27 Drug Task Force covers four counties, Sequoyah, Cherokee, Adair and Wagoner Counties.
Using the Law
Loyd said it is true that the 2004 law has cut back on the number of illegal methamphetamine labs, and it has had another positive result. He explained that drug task force members regularly collect the records of pseudoephedrine sales from pharmacies throughout the four-county district. Investigators can spot the purchase patterns in just a few minutes.
"It don't take long to find the pattern," Loyd said, adding, "This law has been a help to us."
Task force members look for names, dates, addresses, the types of pseudoephedrine bought, when it was bought, and for other hints.
Loyd said one of the first things investigators look for is the brand name and amount bought. Three packages is the limit per purchase.
The names of buyers, taken from their driver's licenses and their addresses may also raise suspicions. Three or four people with the same last names and the same or similar addresses also attract investigators' interests.
From addresses, Loyd said investigators may even determine where the illegal drug may be in the process of manufacture.
"When you have four people in line buying the highest amount of pseudo available, buying the same exact product, and just a few minutes apart, they are usually known drug users," Loyd explained.
The number of times purchases are made also merit a check on the list by investigators.
"Some times the pattern will run for one or two days in a row," Loyd said. "That tells us they're stockpiling pseudo.
"When you have nine people involved in buying pseudo that's a (illegal drug) cook and it's going to be a pretty good sized one," Loyd said.
Pseudo is the slang term used by the investigators.
"Sometimes people even go from pharmacy to pharmacy," Loyd said, adding legitimate buyers don't need that much medicine.
Loyd said it is easy to weed out pseudo buyers who are legitimately buying the over-the-counter drug to combat a cold or sinus problems. The names, the amounts and the number of times the drug is bought separate the legitimate buyers from those who have other plans for pseudo. The names of legitimate buyers are never revealed and personal and private information is restricted, Loyd emphasized.
Investigators may also get suspicious when a number of people buy the same brand over and over. Loyd said those planning to make illegal drugs will buy the cheapest, but strongest, brand available to save money.
Another trick illegal drug manufacturers use is to entice older people or anyone on a fixed income to buy the pseudo for them, in exchange for money.
"These older people and those on a fixed incomes don't realize that they are committing a felony, and, if convicted, may face up to 10 years in jail," Loyd said. "They face charges of conspiracy to manufacture or endeavoring to manufacture methamphetamine.
"Also, the vehicle they used to transport the drug can be seized and forfeited," Loyd added as a warning.
Loyd said, "This law has cut the number of illegal labs more than in half. The new law had had a tremendous effect on the number of labs and has led us to those still cooking. It also saves us a lot of time. We don't have to do as much undercover work."
Still Work to Do
Loyd explained that the pharmacy lists are not considered sufficient evidence to ask for a search warrant to ferret out illegal drugs and drug makers. The investigators still have work to do.
Based on the information obtained from pharmacy lists investigators may stake out a place where they suspect illegal drugs are being manufactured. They may also go through a neighborhood and asked neighbors what they have seen.
"Sometimes we just walk up to the door and knock," Loyd said, "and they let us in.
"The addiction is so strong they are willing to take chances, even though they know we can track them."
Still, the number of illegal labs and drug manufacturing has reduced the amount of the illegal methamphetamine available to drug users. Sadly, Loyd said the void is being filled in other ways.
"They are importing what is known as ice or crystal methamphetamines. We've seen an extreme jump in the amount of ice. It is probably being imported from Mexico," Loyd said.
The DEA agrees. The DEA Web site states: "Methamphetamine, particularly crystal methamphetamine, which is produced in Mexico and the Southwest United States, remains the principal drug of concern in the State of Oklahoma...Oklahoma also serves as a transshipment point for drugs being transported to the eastern United States via Interstates 40 and 44. Interstate 35 also provides a critical north-south transportation avenue for drug traffickers."
"We," Loyd said about the local drug task force, "have put so much pressure on the local labs they are moving. But the use is still there, and the import of ice from Mexico has filled that hole."
Sequoyah County had the second highest number of drug labs seizures in the state in fiscal year 2006-7, Loyd said.
Answers?
Loyd said arresting illegal drug makers and users is only a small part of stopping illegal drug use.
"The arrest and prosecution is not 100 percent of the answer to the drug problem," Loyd said. "We also need education and rehabilitation.
"Once a person gets off drugs, one thing you need to do for them is find them a job. They have a hard time finding a job because of their drug history.
"We (meaning the system) get them off drugs, then slap them on the back and say good job, but no job."
Loyd praised but did not name certain businesses in the county which offer jobs to rehabilitated drug users, thus giving them a chance at a drug-free life.
"They have to take baby steps," Loyd said about those trying to remain drug free. "Once they get off it, and it's extremely hard, they need any type of employment. It allows them to get back into the structure of society, gets them out of the meth society."
Loyd praised the drug court program, a way for non-violent drug offenders to be rehabilitated instead of going to prison. But one false step toward drugs, and the offender must serve a prison sentence.
The Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs reports that there are 22 drug courts in Oklahoma and 11 more planned. Sequoyah County's Drug Court is under the direction of Special District Judge Dennis Sprouse.
According to the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, there are currently 148 drug and alcohol treatment centers operating in the state.
"The drug court," Loyd said, "is one of the best programs I've seen anywhere, and is a success."
Loyd said the district attorney's office is a strong supporter of the drug court, which has a high success rate.
Fighting the drug battle is a continuing process and is fought on many fronts, Loyd said.
"Our target continually moves on us, which is the way it's always been. And the war is continuing," he said.
