Heroin in mid-Missouri
Heroin deaths in the U.S. quadruple, with the greatest increase in usage in the Midwest. ABC 17’s Marissa Hollowed speaks with an undercover sergeant of the Columbia Police narcotics unit, an addiction specialist and a recovering heroin addict to see why the drug is killing so many people.
She didn’t want to show her face or use her real name, so for the sake of this story, we’ll call her Rose. Rose is a heroin addict. She grew up a “middle class girl from the suburbs, that went to college,” says Rose. “I had a great job, I was working at an animal hospital.”
But that all fell apart when Rose started using drugs, first prescribed by a doctor. Now she says, “I’m 24 years old and I’m living off my parents like I’m 15.”
Rose’s story starts like many other heroin users. “I ended up getting in a car accident. They prescribed me pain medicine. It was definitely scary once I realized, I’m addicted.”
An undercover sergeant with the Columbia Police Narcotics and Organized Crime Unit describes it like this, “When (someone) runs out of the prescription medication, they don’t have a script for the prescription medication, but now they are addicted to it, they are going to make another turn. When they do, all of the sudden the heroin is what’s accessible that provides somewhat the same effects as some of the meds do.”
But why such a drastic turn?
Addiction Specialist Jerry Eames of ESCAPE says, “The cost is so low and the availability is so high.”
“It’s so easily found now, it’s scary. Like, a lot of high school kids are trying it. It’s everywhere, you have no idea,” says Rose.
Heroin is usually sold in 1/10 gram.To give you an idea, about 1/10 of a sugar packet. A tenth of heroin typically costs about $20 to $30 dollars on the street in Columbia.
The street value of an opioid like hydrocodone or oxycontin is anywhere from $60 to $100 dollars for the same amount.
Heroin no longer has to be shot into a vein with a needle. “That increased the young females who would be afraid of doing things like that,” says Eames. Now, it comes in a pill form, it can be snorted and it can be smoked. That is part of the reason it’s becoming so wide spread across all races, income and education levels. According to the Centers for Disease Control, use among women doubled and increased greatly among the wealthy and those who are privately insured.
“This is a drug, really, I’m seeing more housewives using it,” says Eames.
The Columbia Police Narcotics and Organized Crime Unit says combating heroin and catching up to dealers is its number one priority right now.
“It’s very addictive and this is the drug that’s killing people,” says the undercover CPD sergeant.
According to the CDC, in 2013, there were 16,235 deaths across the country from opioids and 8,257 from heroin. Overdose deaths increased nationwide, with the greatest increase in the Midwest.
In Boone county, in 2012, there were 4 confirmed heroin deaths, in 2013 there was one, and in 2014 there were 3. A forensic investigator from the Boone County Medical Examiner’s office says quote– “I can guarantee that those numbers will be higher in 2015.”
ABC 17 News also made a records request with the Columbia Police Department asking for the number of heroin overdose calls and deaths in the city of Columbia. We were told the request would take 3 months to process and that it would cost $1,511.25.
In the last month and half, we’ve reported:
(7/15) A man faces another charge in relation to the heroin overdose death of a 16 year old girl in a Columbia hotel.
(6/29) Two men are arrested in Callaway county for heroin after a car chase and crash.
(6/12) Three people are arrested for heroin possession and intent to distribute in Gasconade county.
(6/10) A Phelps county woman is sentenced to 20 years for selling heroin.
(6/9) Columbia authorities investigate two possible heroin overdose deaths.
“A lot of times we know or have a fair idea of where they are coming from and who’s holding them, but it’s a matter of catching them with them or catching them actually dealing the drugs. That makes things a little more difficult, “says the CPD sergeant.
Most of the time, heroin is not being made here in mid-Missouri, but rather in Mexico and coming up from the borders that way. The DEA tells ABC 17, “El Chapo’s” Sinaloa cartel is responsible for sending heroin in mass quantities to Chicago. It’s then trafficked to places like St. Louis and down I-70 to mid-Missouri. Since the cartels have such sophisticated trafficking operations, it’s harder for police to infiltrate the drug ring.
“It’s like a spider web of madness that you’re trying to track down because it goes through so many different hands, with the smaller circles of people, everybody’s is a bit more tight lipped and close mouthed,” says the CPD sergeant.
There’s also no guarantee of what someone is really getting. In the last 15 years, “its potentiated 5 to 700 times, depending on who makes it, what is a normal dose one day, can kill you the next,” says Eames.
After seeing a friend overdose and almost die, Rose gained a new perspective on life.
“I wanna live you know. I don’t want to be another heroin statistic from an overdose.
Rose was able to get to a treatment center and has been clean for about a year. “It’s really emotional, it makes me really happy because I didn’t have a good relationship with my family before. Now my big sister is getting married and I get to be in her wedding, that’s awesome. That would not have happened before,” says Rose.
Also, Missouri is the only state in the nation without a prescription drug monitoring program. Many think this encourages “doctor shopping” for pain medication, but some lawmakers cite privacy concerns.
