Kansas City a "hot spot" for drugs, DEA says public would be shocked at amounts seized
Agents seize thousands of pounds of drugs each year but call it the "tip of the iceberg"
Agents seize thousands of pounds of drugs each year but call it the "tip of the iceberg"
Agents seize thousands of pounds of drugs each year but call it the "tip of the iceberg"
In Kansas City, law enforcement agents have seized hundreds of pounds of meth, nearly 6,000 pounds of marijuana, and enough fentanyl to kill roughly 3 million people.
That's just this year.
“Frankly, the amount that we seize, which we think is astronomical, if you look statistically, we’re probably not even seizing a drop in the bucket,” said Erik Smith, the assistant special agent in charge for the Drug Enforcement Agency.
It's not just Kansas City's size, but its location that makes it a drug hot spot. Several major interstates converge in the city.
"There's no question that people would be amazed,” Smith said. “Their jaws would drop if they saw the quantity of drugs that pass through."
He said most can be traced to the Sinaloa Cartel and New Generation Cartel in Mexico, where meth is much purer than anything locally made, and has boomed after laws made it tougher to get supplies in Missouri.
"Those chemicals are used in super labs south of the border to produce tons, literally tons, of methamphetamine,” he said.
Fentanyl is the most deadly and profitable drug that moves through the city. So far this year, agents and officers have seized nine pounds.
The fentanyl itself and the ingredients for meth come from China but the cartels use it to earn profits in the billions of dollars.
"That's the type of money that buys elections,” Smith said. “That's the type of money that buys politicians. That's the type of money that funds violence and terrorism and that should be a national security concern.”
With hidden compartments or secret storage, stopping drugs isn't easy. Often, it passes through train stations and bus stops, according to Smith.
"It's an art, frankly,” Smith said of drug interdiction. “It takes a lot of experience and a lot of training.
He added the way to truly stop the cycle of drugs is by stopping addiction.
"We don't want to make felons out of addicts,” he said. “We want to target drug traffickers who are capitalizing on the weak and the vulnerable."