Illegal drug trafficking jumps as officers seek terrorists

WASHINGTON -- Illegal drug trafficking in the Caribbean is up 25 percent, probably because traffickers see an opportunity with U.S. law enforcement focused on terrorism, Drug Enforcement Administrator Asa Hutchinson said Wednesday.

Hutchinson couldn't say whether the rise would translate into more drugs coming into the United States. But he said that like other law enforcement agencies, DEA has been stretched thin since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

"The traffickers see a window of opportunity in the Caribbean as a result of assets that had to be marshaled in our port security and our homeland security," Hutchinson told the House Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Subcommittee.

More than 100 DEA agents have been pressed into service as marshals aboard airplanes and another 40 DEA intelligence analysts are working closely with the FBI.

"We've got to have the funds to replenish any assets that are taken away from the Caribbean," Hutchinson said.

Without more money, he said, it's doubtful the United States will meet its 2002 goal of intercepting 18 percent of illegal narcotics headed for U.S. shores. Last year, federal agents seized approximately 11 percent of drugs.

Hutchinson's remarks about funding relate mainly to the Coast Guard, the agency primarily responsible for drug enforcement along the coast.

The Coast Guard has estimated that as much as 75 percent of its assets -- personnel and boats -- have been pulled away from drug interdiction for anti-terrorist patrols.

The Coast Guard still is trying to come up with an estimate for Congress on how much additional funding it will need to continue its homeland security efforts in addition to its traditional work, which includes immigration and fisheries enforcement.

Hutchinson said the estimated 25 percent increase in Caribbean drug trafficking is based on several factors, including intelligence and a rise in the DEA's investigative caseload. The increase covers a period of several weeks since Sept. 11.