Anti-meth task force receives federal grant

A coalition of Missouri law enforcers trying to fight methamphetamine operations statewide will get nearly $2.5 million in additional federal funding, the Justice Department said Wednesday.

The money brings to $5.6 million the amount of Justice Department funds the Missouri Sheriffs' Methamphetamine Relief Team Project has received since last year.

The project aids sheriffs and rural drug task forces in their fight against clandestine methamphetamine labs. The funds may be used for personnel, training, equipment and prevention efforts.

Cape Girardeau County Sheriff John Jordan is project director for the program.

"It will be a great asset to the MoSMART program," Jordan said.

Last year the money was used to hire 25 full-time methamphetamine investigators and pay overtime to deputies working on meth lab investigations.

The additional manpower has proved invaluable to the SEMO Drug Task Force, said coordinator Kevin Glaser.

Not only has the program put four additional officers in the field to help the task force but the money has allowed drug task forces to develop and get an intelligence system up and running, Glaser said.

The system for gathering and storing intelligence is in its infant stage, but will prove to be a big help on the local level as well as statewide, he said.

This round of MoSMART funds will be divided, with $1.3 million used to support existing programs and $1 million for new projects, said Jordan.

The MoSMART program is geared to help small, rural counties fight methamphetamine. Usually under tight budget constraints, the counties can't afford to fight methamphetamine effectively, Jordan said.

In Wayne County

Wayne County, the majority of which is made up of state and national forest land, was one of those counties.

Last year, the county received $74,281 from MoSMART that allowed Sheriff Larry Plunkett hire a full-time investigator and purchase a vehicle for him.

The money is awarded through an application process. Applications are studied by a panel of five sheriffs from across the state who then award the money based on need.

"It sounds like it's going to be real competitive this time," Jordan said, adding that law enforcement officers are already seeing the results.

"Arrests are way up in the Bootheel," he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.