NCJ Number
197032
Date Published
December 2001
Length
37 pages
Annotation
This is a joint assessment of the common threat posed by United States-Canada border drug activity.
Abstract
The assessment confirms that illicit drugs are being transported in both directions across the border. The principal illicit substances smuggled into the United States through Canada are marijuana, heroin, and precursor chemicals. Canada increasingly is becoming a source country for high-grade marijuana; organized Asian criminal groups as well as outlaw motorcycle gangs control facets of production and distribution. Criminal groups divert precursor chemicals, currently unregulated in Canada, to facilitate production of synthetic drugs, primarily methamphetamine, in the United States. The principal drugs smuggled to Canada through the United States are cocaine, liquid hashish, and marijuana. Much of the cocaine is controlled by Italian and Colombian criminal organizations as well as outlaw motorcycle gangs. The paper concludes that cross-border drug smuggling likely will continue. Smuggling of Canada-produced marijuana, high purity heroin, and precursor chemicals from Canada to the United States probably will increase to meet the growing U.S. demand for those substances. The document includes lists of strategic goals, agencies involved, and an overview of bilateral cooperation. Figures, sources