Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com The U.S. is expanding its war on drugs to Africa, the New York Times reports. Targeting areas used to smuggle Latin American cocaine into Europe, the U.S. is training an elite unit of counter-narcotics police in Ghana and plans to do so with Nigeria and Kenya. The aggressive position in Africa is…
Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com The continuing clash between state and federal officials over how to handle medicinal pot in states that legalized it arrived in Sacramento again with a raid on a dispensary, the Sacramento Bee reports. Although the Obama administration pledged to respect state laws on medicinal marijuana, the Federal Drug Enforcement Agency executed…
By Allan Lengel ticklethewire.com After Sept. 11, 2001, it’s still amazing to find how common it is for people to bring guns to airports. On occasion, ticklethewire.com likes to check in to see just how many folks still bring guns. According to the Transportation Security Administration, 30 loaded guns and two unloaded ones were discovered…
By Allan Lengel ticklethewire.com The U.S. likes to think that it contributes positively to many countries. In Mexico, that’s not always the case. ATF reports that 68,000 guns recovered by Mexican authorities between January 2007 and December 2011 were traced back to the U.S., USA Today reports. The paper reported that many weapons were recovered…
Shoshanna Utchenik ticklethewire.com It’s all fun and games til your toy purchases may be supporting international drug cartels. An 18-month investigation of L.A.company, Woody’s Toys Inc., by Homeland Security’s ICE and the DEA’s Southern California Drug Task Force yielded video of employees receiving bricks of cash in fast food chain parking lots, among other incriminating…
Shoshanna Utchenik ticklethewire.com In a brave new high-tech world, the federal indictment of eight online drug traffickers is the first of its kind. The BBC reports that the feds busted up a $1million-plus illegal drug operation online on a marketplace called “The Farmer’s Market” using the TOR network, which allows emails and websites to hide…
By Danny Fenster ticklethewire.com According to an AP survey of the nation’s leading states in meth production, lab seizures by law enforcement agencies rose nationally, the AP reports. In 2011 Missouri was the leading producer, with 2,096 seizures. Missouri was followed by Tennessee, Indiana, Kentucky and then Oklahoma. Across the nation the rise in meth…
By Mariano Castillo CNN Mexico has landed some hard punches against the drug cartels that have stirred violence in parts of the country — at least on paper. In 2011, against just the notorious Zetas cartel, Mexico ended the reign of 16 leaders who ran cartel operations at the state or national level. Thugs with…
