Posts published in “Day: August 25, 2023”

While some mass indictments on the other side of the country have attracted more attention, one large-scale indictment of 25 defendants in Idaho (and another associated in Oregon) in another large and complex criminal case deserves some regional review.

The details of this Northwest case - including some indictments from several months ago - throw shards of light on sometimes obscure activities that are a matter of clear concern: Trafficking in deadly fentanyl and methamphetamines.

The indictments were released August 21 through the federal U.S. Attorney’s office, though the work leading to them comes from the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force which includes several federal agencies, state agencies (including the Idaho State Police) and local law enforcement around southern Idaho. Here’s what the agencies concluded:

“... the defendants distributed large amounts of methamphetamine and fentanyl throughout Southwestern Idaho and Eastern Oregon.  Many of the individuals are alleged to have been in possession of firearms at the time they distributed the narcotics.  During the course of these investigations and arrests, law enforcement seized approximately 98 pounds of methamphetamine, approximately 21,000 fentanyl pills, 531 grams of fentanyl powder, 38 firearms, 3 bullet-proof vests, and $121,615 in U.S. currency.”

That still accounts only for a small slice of the full traffic in these substances. This overall case may, however, generate a broad enough picture to draw a few loose conclusions about the shape of meth and fentanyl trafficking in the area.

For example: Of the defendants, 21 were specifically named as being involved with methamphetamine, and just five were cited for fentanyl; three of those latter five were reported to be involved with both. (The remaining defendants, and some of those accused of trafficking, were charged with firearm offenses.) Some of them were charged months ago, and some already have been convicted.

Note here too that firearms possession violations were a key part of making this sweeping prosecution work.

The defendants hail from around the region, but Canyon County seems especially prominent: nine were listed with a Nampa or Caldwell home base. Four others were based only a few miles away, at Ontario, Oregon.

There was also a specific link to a specific drug cartel in Mexico, and to gang activity on this side of the border.

“The Jalisco Cartel is one of the main cartels responsible for the influx of methamphetamine and fentanyl into our communities,” said DEA Assistant Special Agent in Charge Matthew Gomm, who oversees operations in Idaho.  “The relationships these cartels have with our local street gangs allow deadly and dangerous drugs to reach their last mile of distribution

One of the defendants, Isaac Bright, last February pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of a firearm.  Bright, the U.S. attorney’s office said, was a documented member of Latin Kings gang “with an extensive criminal history.”

A fair amount of information about the situation has been released, but for those trying to piece together how the meth and fentanyl network in the area works - something we should understand better if we’re going to understand how to combat it - some additional questions might usefully be addressed.

For example: Is there a reason fentanyl is harder than meth to go after? The amounts of fentanyl seized were not small, but there was relatively less prosecution for them compared with the meth. Why was that? Are the networks different? Is the small physical size of the fentanyl product tougher to deal with? And why was it that the amount of money seized for such a substantial operation seemed relatively small; was it larger than it seems in context, was the money (in a digital age) simply hard to grab, or were other factors at play?

In the end, the larger success of law enforcement efforts in public health threats like these depend a great deal on help from the public. And the public can best help when it has a good understanding of how all those pieces fit together, and where their weak links may be.