Drug’s Popularity Costs San Diego ‘Meth Capital’ Title

The use of methamphetamines is spreading across California at such a rapid rate that San Diego may no longer hold its claim as “meth capital” of the nation.

“We’ve long had the dubious distinction of being the ‘meth capital,’ not just of California but of the world, and finally, with coordinated efforts, we’ve managed to quell the trafficking and manufacturing of that drug,” said Mike Rockey, acting special agent in charge of the state Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement in San Diego. “We’re certainly not at the top any longer.”

Although San Diego authorities are seizing fewer laboratories that manufacture the illegal drug, law enforcement officials in San Bernardino, Sacramento and Riverside counties are finding that laboratories are proliferating. Statistics do not yet clearly signal a successor to the title of “meth capital,” though some Inland Empire authorities have made claim to the title.

Drug Still Readily Available

Although San Diego authorities have put the squeeze on local dealers and manufacturers of speed, the supply of the drug still remains fairly constant on city streets. Officials said users are relying, in addition to a smaller number of laboratories that manufacture the illegal drug, on stockpiled supplies or drugs brought into the area. The street price of about $5 for each 5-milligram dose, they said, will eventually climb as these sources are exhausted.

San Diego law enforcement officials hit the jackpot in recent years as they targeted major suppliers and manufacturers of speed. In fiscal year 1989, officials seized about 96 laboratories that concocted the drug, a decline from the previous year when 136 laboratories were raided. During 1987, 186 methamphetamine laboratories were seized, about 27% of the total number of laboratories that were raided nationwide.

“Sure, we may have seized less laboratories last year, but we netted more major traffickers,” said one Drug Enforcement Administration agent. “A lot of people arrested now are the ones teaching others to make methamphetamine.”

Blue-Collar Drug

Methamphetamine, known as a blue-collar drug, is a strong and addictive stimulant that is usually ingested, snorted or injected. In recent years, it has gained popularity. Only six years ago, local authorities seized six methamphetamine laboratories in San Diego, a fraction of the number that are raided today. And some experts say the popularity of speed will continue as a new, smokeable form of the drug called “ice” begins to reach California.

Thirteen grams of ice, which is sold in small crystals, were found in a San Diego raid last week. But most of the speed netted by authorities is the more traditional form. Last Thursday, police arrested the driver of a motor home in Spring Valley and found 1 1/2 pounds of methamphetamine, worth about $20,000, said San Diego Police Lt. Skip Dicerchio.

“We do feel we’ve had a significant reduction and we attribute it to increased targeting against specific laboratories and criminal prosecution of two precursor chemical companies,” said Ron Garibotto, director of the Narcotics Task force of San Diego County.

Even as methamphetamine laboratories spread to areas north of San Diego, local officials said, efforts to quash speed manufacturers will continue.

“Any decrease in the amount of labs is good news for San Diego, but we shouldn’t be lulled into a false sense that we are winning the war--we still have a problem,” said Paul Downey, a spokesman for San Diego Mayor Maureen O’Connor.