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Drug Situation: Florida is a prime area for
international drug trafficking and money laundering organizations, and a
principal thoroughfare for cocaine and heroin transiting to the northeastern
United States and Canada. The over 8,000 miles of Florida coastline, and the
short distance of 45 miles between The Bahamas and Florida provide virtually
unlimited opportunities for drug trafficking organizations to use maritime
conveyances to smuggle drugs.
Miami International Airport (MIA), which is a gateway
for heroin and MDMA trafficking in Florida, continues to be the number one
airport in the U.S. for international freight and number three in the world for
total freight. South Florida, specifically Miami-Dade and Broward counties, are
still favorite areas of drug traffickers for the smuggling of large quantities
of cocaine, heroin and marijuana into the continental United States (CONUS)
from South America, Central America and the Caribbean. Smuggling occurs via
various types of maritime conveyances and cargo freighters, as well as via
private and commercial aircraft.
Additionally, there is a continued shift to ground
transportation (e.g. bus, rail and vehicle) as a means of transporting
narcotics throughout the state and to northern destinations. Miami is the
primary domestic command & control center for Colombian narcotics
traffickers. Colombian traffickers represent the greatest international threat
to the Miami Field Division (MFD). MFD enforcement groups continue to target
the transportation infrastructure of Colombian traffickers in the Eastern
Pacific, the Caribbean and within Florida.
Florida leads the nation in MDMA seizures. South
Florida has been identified as a primary gateway for MDMA smuggling into the
CONUS. The MFD will target specific enforcement initiatives towards the
identification and dismantling of groups operating in Florida, with emphasis on
South Florida. MIA is a major entry point for South American heroin into the
United States. Presently the overwhelming majority of South American heroin
enters the CONUS via MIA.
Methamphetamine remains a large problem in the MFD and
is the primary drug of concern in Central Florida. During all of FY 2002 there
were 127 clandestine methamphetamine laboratories seized throughout Florida.
For the first six months of FY 2003, there have already been 100
methamphetamine lab seizures. |
