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<\/p>\nNEW YORK (WABC) — The New York City Police Department continues to crackdown on fentanyl, the powerful, addictive, and deadly drug that gets lots of attention from law enforcement and the media, but on top that, and all the other narcotics on the streets, officials are now having to keep a new, fresh, watchful eye on an old drug making a comeback — meth.<\/p>\n
To make matters worse, drug prosecutors tell 7 On Your Side Investigates, that old laws aren’t keeping up with the recent surge of Methamphetamine entering New York. Officials say that laws as they stand today are allowing dealers and meth smugglers to slip through the cracks.<\/p>\n
In December of last year, NYPD busted a drug lab inside a Bronx apartment building. The building had two daycares inside and responders had to protect themselves before entering. They wore hazmat gear because the fumes were too powerful.<\/p>\n
“A number of investigators who entered the scene were overcome by the fumes,” said Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget Brennan.<\/p>\n
The drugs from inside were tested and today, we now know the coolers found inside the apartment were filed with meth, along with other drugs, like fentanyl and heroin.<\/p>\n
The resurgence of meth is not exclusive to New York City. The DEA says that the agency expects to seize double the amount of meth nationwide this year, compared to last year.<\/p>\n
Robert Murphy is the Special Agent in Charge for the Atlanta Division of the DEA.<\/p>\n
“Methamphetamine is by far the most coveted drug in the United States,” he said. “This is what people want.”<\/p>\n
Meth is a highly addictive, man-made drug that’s cheap to produce and drug dealers are adding it into cocktails of other dangerous drugs. It’s being found in white powers and the latest club-drug, known as pink cocaine. Brennan says, it’s also being added to pills that look like and are advertised as legitimate prescription medication.<\/p>\n
“Anyone who’s buying anything on the street could be getting meth,” she said.<\/p>\n
Brennan says they’re seizing the drug in new, unexpected places and is concerned with her office’s ability to deter the trafficking of meth.<\/p>\n
“Meth is becoming another drug to poach in our area,” she said. “We don’t have the tools necessarily to rein it in.”<\/p>\n
Brennan says enforcement of meth is tough for multiple reasons. First, the large amounts, followed by frequency of seizures. Agents recently seized a package full of meth they say was shipped from California to an apartment on West 38th Street, and in another case, 30 pounds of meth, among other drugs, were seized at a luxury apartment building in Hell’s Kitchen.<\/p>\n
In a third case, agents pulled over a driver in Lower Manhattan and found more than 100 pounds of crystal meth in his car. Brennan’s office gave it a street value of $600,000.<\/p>\n
The defendant was released from jail. Today, she says the driver is nowhere to be found. He never showed up for court.<\/p>\n
“We couldn’t even ask for bail because it’s not considered a narcotic drug in New York State,” Brennan said.<\/p>\n
According to her, that’s among the biggest challenges her office faces cracking down on meth.<\/p>\n
In the state of New York, if someone’s caught with large quantities of heroin, cocaine, or fentanyl, they can be put in jail and a judge can set a high dollar amount to bond out. But when it comes to meth, it’s not considered a narcotic in the state. The most a judge can grant is supervised release.<\/p>\n
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“One of our biggest concerns is the lack of accountability for people bringing in meth today,” Brennan said. “Even though it’s been around for a long time now and we’ve asked the legislature to consider putting it in that category of narcotic drugs, it’s never been added in.”<\/p>\n
7 On Your Side Investigates reached out to New York Governor Hochul’s office for a response. In an email, her spokesperson said she has tried to get the drug classifications changed to match federal laws but it was blocked by the state legislature for the last two years in a row.<\/p>\n
The statement said: “Governor Hochul’s top priority is to keep New Yorkers safe, which is why she has worked with the Legislature to deliver record funding to crack down on gun crimes, car thefts and repeat offenders, while further expanding the discretion of judges to set bail, and most recently made essential changes to the pre-trial discovery process to support survivors of crime and hold perpetrators accountable. Governor Hochul’s efforts have resulted in lower crime rates across the state, and we will continue working with law enforcement and local officials to improve the criminal justice system, combat violence, and strengthen public safety across New York.”<\/p>\n
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