Investigating a Crime Scene

Investigating a Crime Scene

The trafficking of illegal drugs can be viewed within the paradigm of legally traded commodities, such as televisions or automobiles, which follow a similar process—manufacture, shipment to wholesalers, transfer to retailers, and sale to consumers. In the world of illegal narcotics, the progression from drug creation to drug use is known as the chain of distribution.

Beyond the sale to a customer, many other and, unfortunately, often ignored activities aid or assist this illegal activity. These can include diverting precursor chemicals to manufacture drugs, renting hotel rooms to conduct transactions, or laundering drug proceeds to legitimatize profits. Although the synthesis of drugs can be a lengthy process, they spend the majority of their lifespan (i.e., the time between manufacture and use) being transferred along the chain of distribution. For example, after their manufacture in foreign countries, heroin and cocaine are transported to the U.S. border, smuggled across, transferred from wholesale to retail dealers, and then sold to customers (Canter, 2000).

Even domestically produced drugs, such as pharmaceuticals, marijuana, and methamphetamine, must be transported among various links in the distribution chain.

Drugs as commodities possess two specific characteristics: they are illegal and expensive. And, as they are valuable, drugs must be transported securely to ensure that they will not be lost, stolen, or seized. How can traffickers satisfy these requirements?

Traffickers can smuggle drugs in numerous ways. Human couriers move drugs by concealing them with their bodies either by hiding them in or under their clothing or by inserting or ingesting them into their persons. Some traffickers use go-fast boats or small planes to smuggle drugs into the country. Others simply ship the drugs in parcels via the postal service or retail shippers and hope law enforcement will not interdict the packages. Another popular technique is ...