Colombia replaces Asia as top supplier

SCRIPPS HOWARD
WASHINGTON -- Latin America has replaced Asia as the source for most of the heroin seized in the United States, as the Colombian drug cartels have branched out from cocaine into other drugs, federal agents say.
The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy says high-quality white heroin from Colombia today comprises 60 percent of the drug seized in the United States -- marking a dramatic shift in the source of heroin sold on U.S. streets.
In 1989, almost 96 percent of the heroin seized in the United States originated in Asia, but Drug Enforcement Administration agents say that today it has dwindled to less than 10 percent of the market in spite of a large increase in heroin production in Afghanistan and Burma -- historically the major source of heroin in the world.
DEA agent Steve Robertson said economics are driving Colombian drug smugglers into the lucrative heroin market.
"For 1 kilogram [2.2 pounds] of heroin you can get $55,000, while for 1 kilogram of coke [cocaine] it's $17,000 to $25,000. It's a market decision -- it's all true business," he said. "The Colombians have seen a market."
The DEA says Colombian smuggling methods are maturing. In the 1990s, couriers who could swallow 50 to 80 rubber containers of heroin brought most of the Latin American heroin smuggled into the United States.