Colorado authorities confiscated more than a million doses, or 22 pounds, of methamphetamine during a Grand Junction bust that was part of a nationwide effort to squelch trafficking and use of the drug.
“Operation Wildfire,” led by the Drug Enforcement Administration, resulted in 427 arrests across the country and the seizure of 209 pounds of meth.
While it began in Western states, meth has been found in every state, said DEA administrator Karen Tandy.
“It’s homemade, cheap and readily available,” Tandy said.
In Colorado, Utah, Wyoming and Montana, the DEA, in cooperation with local law enforcement officers, arrested 60 people and seized 23 labs and 63 pounds of meth, said Jeffrey Sweetin, special agent in charge of the DEA’s Rocky Mountain division.
Sweetin said about 65 percent of the meth that circulates locally comes from “superlabs” that operate across or near the border with Mexico.
The other 35 percent typically comes from meth cooks who use a hotel room to make enough for personal use and a bit more to sell.
“It’s pretty much a use and break-even system,” Sweetin said.
Methamphetamine, which can come in the form of a crystallike powder or rocklike chunks, is an addictive stimulant that can be smoked, snorted, injected or swallowed. Its street names include “ice,” “crystal,” “speed” and “tina.”
Meth can be made using ingredients found in over-the- counter cold medicines, prompting a dozen states to pass laws forcing stores to restrict access to medicines containing ephedrine or pseudo ephedrine.
During the crackdown, which took place during the past two weeks, authorities also took custody of 30 children.
On Tuesday, the DEA also unveiled its new anti-meth website aimed at teens, www.justthinktwice.com.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Staff writer Alicia Caldwell can be reached at 303-820-1930 or acaldwell@denverpost.com.
