Posts Tagged ‘Drug’

 

By Michael Webster: Investigative Reporter May 7, 2008, 2:00 PM PDT

 

 

In a recent drug bust at the San Diego State University Federal agents and SDSU police culminated a yearlong investigation into drug dealing around campus and found it to be more sophisticated, more pervasive and more dangerous and far reaching than they expected or have seen before. These arrests coincided with the first anniversary of a female student freshman’s cocaine-related death.

According to local newspaper reports ninety-six suspects, including 75 SDSU students, have been arrested on drug-related charges as a result of the undercover operation, launched after Jenny Poliakoff, 19, was found dead in her off-campus apartment after a night of celebration.

One of the main suspects in this international drug investigation is Omar Castaneda, a gang member from Pomona with ties to the Mexican Tijuana drug cartels, officials said.

Castaneda, 36, after his arrest he was arraigned in San Diego Superior Court on charges of possession of cocaine for sale. He is suspected of being a major link between drugs flowing into California from Tijuana and sales at SDSU and other California campuses.

The violent Tijuana drug cartel also known as the Arellano-Felix organization (AFO) has a firm and deadly hold on all drug trafficking activities in Baja and San Diego California. Their reach controls drug smuggling in Sinaloa, Jalisco, Michoacan, Chiapas and Baja, and has strong links to San Diego, California. The AFO dispenses an estimated $1 million weekly in bribes to Mexican officials, police and Mexican army officers and maintains its own-well armed, trained, paramilitary security force. The DEA considers the AFO the most violent and aggressive of the Mexican border cartels. Here is the DEA’s background profile on the AFO and its leaders. Click on or google: Dangerous Mexican Cartel Gangs

The SDSU Police Department approached the DEA and county narcotics task-force officials for assistance in December of 07, when it became clear that the drug trafficking on campus was widespread and involved Mexican organized crime drug cartels and their gang members and they feared that it far out striped their ability to handle a potentially very complicated international drug trafficking investigation.

“We were coming in contact with more types of narcotics,” SDSU Police Chief John Browning said. “If you’re serious about this, you have to go to someone who has the resources to take it to the next level.”

As the investigation was unfolding, the campus dealt with another drug-related death. An autopsy showed that Mesa College student Kurt Baker died Feb. 24 at an SDSU fraternity from oxycodone and alcohol poisoning.

“We know there’s drug use in college . . . but when you have an organization that’s actually based out of a college area, that’s a whole different thing,” said Garrison Courtney of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. “You just don’t see that.”

Research indicates that lucrative university and high school campuses are fertile markets for drug dealers. Mexican drug cartels have known this for years and are believed to have infiltrated many of America’s school campuses through cartel gang members. Federal authorities point to the Mexican drug cartels who are ultimately responsible for border violence by having cemented ties to street and prison gangs like Barrio Azteca on the U.S. side. Azteca and other U.S. gangs retail drugs that they get from Mexican cartels and Mexican gangs. Mexican gangs run their own distribution networks in the United States, and they produce most of the methamphetamine used north of the border. They have even bypassed the Colombians several times to buy cocaine directly from producers in Bolivia, Peru and even Afghanistan. These same gangs often work as cartel surrogates or enforcers on the U.S. side of the border. Intelligence suggests Los Zetas . Click on or google: They’re known as “Los Zetas have hired members of various gangs at different times including, El Paso gang Barrio Azteca, Mexican Mafia, Texas Syndicate, MS-13, and Hermanos Pistoleros Latinos to further their criminal endeavors.  Authorities on both sides of the border believe many of these gang members and other surrogates of the powerful Mexican drug cartels have infiltrated and operate openly on many American school campuses particularly in states bordering Mexico including Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California.

One suspect, Phi Kappa Psi member Michael Montoya, worked as a community-service officer on campus and would have earned a master’s degree in homeland security next month. Another student arrested on suspicion of possessing 500 grams of cocaine and two guns was a criminal-justice major.

Authorities identified 22 SDSU students as drug dealers who sold to undercover agents. At least 17 others allegedly supplied the drugs. The rest of the suspects apparently bought or possessed illegal drugs.

Authorities said students from seven fraternities were involved in the drug ring, which operated openly across campus.

Evidence showed that “most of the members were aware of organized drug dealing occurring from the fraternity houses,” officials said. Drug agents confirmed that “a hierarchy existed for the purposes of selling drugs for money.”

Authorities singled out the Theta Chi fraternity as a hub of cocaine dealing.

One alleged dealer, Theta Chi member Kenneth Ciaccio, sent text messages to his “faithful customers” announcing that cocaine sales would be suspended over an upcoming weekend because he and his “associates” planned to be in Las Vegas, authorities said.

The same message posted “sale” prices on cocaine if transactions were completed before the dealers left San Diego.

Until yesterday, Ciaccio was featured on SDSU’s Web site promoting the Compact for Success program, which guarantees certain Sweetwater Union High School District students admission to the university if they maintain a B average.

SDSU President Stephen Weber said that even when campus police decided to ask for help from other authorities, “it wasn’t clear that we were going to end up at the point where we were today.”

Ramon Mosler, chief of the narcotics division of the District Attorney’s Office in San Diego California, said the investigation could have happened on any college campus in America. Mosler said his unit joined in because the university took the unusual step of asking for help.

“Oftentimes administrations don’t want us to do this stuff, and that’s unfortunate,” Mosler said. “I think it’s important to do this every now and then to wake people up. It raises everyone’s awareness to the dangers of drugs.”

 

According to the search-warrant affidavit, Thomas Watanapun sold $400 worth of cocaine to undercover agents from a Lexus sedan registered to his father in Los Angeles.

Authorities said some of the suspects made little effort to conceal their activities.

Dealers “weren’t picky about who they sold to,” Mosler said.

Also arraigned was Patrick Hawley, 20, who was arrested on suspicion of armed robbery and selling cocaine near the campus, officials said.

According to a 2007 study by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University, nearly half of the nation’s 5.4 million full-time college students abuse drugs or alcohol at least once a month.

Law enforcement officials in San Diego say street gangs here continue to have strong ties to organized crime groups in Tijuana. A gunman killed recently in an attack in Tijuana is believed to belong to both a gang in Barrio Logan and the Arellano Felix Drug Cartel. KPBS Reporter Amy Isackson reported.

For years, Mexican drug trafficking groups have recruited U.S. gang members to do everything from smuggle drugs to murder. Tijuana’s Arellano Felix Drug Cartel and a gang from San Diego’s Barrio Logan neighborhood go back at least 15 years.

Many students enrolled in American schools are believed members of gangs many are now coming from the U.S. Military as they rotate out of the services. Many are veterans who where encouraged to join the U.S Military for combat training by Mexican cartels and gang leaders.

The cartels are confronting police and the army on a regular bases in Mexico and hope that these same tactics will soon pay off and enable them to confront the U.S Police in a much more professional, effective and dangerous ways.

 

Richard Valdemar, a 30-year-veteran of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, travels the country lecturing and teaching police about military-trained gang members. Valdemar and other gang experts say gangs are encouraging members to join the military for training to learn urban warfare and learn the latest weaponry.

 

The military’s current emphasis on urban warfare plays into the street-fighting mentality of gangs, experts say.

“When individuals go into the military, they are taught how to use weapons, defensive tactics, and the use of a lot of sophisticated techniques,” said LaRae Quy, of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. “They take that back on the streets with them. This is a legitimate concern for law enforcement.”

Valdemar cites former Camp Pendleton Marine Sgt. Jesse Quintanilla as just one high-profile example. A military court sentenced Quintanilla to death in 1996 for killing his executive officer and wounding his commanding officer.

When interrogators asked Quintanilla why he committed the crimes, Quintanilla said it was for “his brown brothers,” according to Valdemar. Quintanilla showed them a tattoo on his chest with the word “Sureno,” a reference to a California gang, according to court documents.

Army recruiting headquarters in Washington, D.C., dismiss the claims as urban myth. An Army spokesman said army background checks are extensive and weed out gang members.

 

The ARELLANO-Felix Organization (AFO), often referred to as the Tijuana Cartel, is one of the most powerful and aggressive drug trafficking organizations operating from Mexico; it is undeniably the most violent. More than any other major trafficking organization from Mexico, this organization extends its tentacles directly from high-echelon figures in the law enforcement and judicial systems in Mexico to street-level individuals in United States cities. The AFO is responsible for the transportation, importation and distribution of multi-ton quantities of cocaine, marijuana, as well as large quantities of heroin and methamphetamine, into the United States from Mexico. The AFO operates primarily in the Mexican states of Sinaloa (their birth place), Jalisco, Michoacan, Chiapas, and Baja California South and North.

From Baja, the drugs enter California, the primary point of embarkation into the United States distribution network.

The ARELLANO family,  composed of seven brothers and four sisters, inherited the organization from Miguel Angel FELIX-Gallardo upon his incarceration in Mexico in 1989 for his complicity in the murder of DEA Special Agent Enrique Camarena. Alberto Benjamin ARELLANO-Felix assumed leadership of the family structured criminal enterprise and provides a businessman’s approach to the management of drug trafficking operations.

The AFO also maintains complex communications centers in several major cities in Mexico and the U.S. to conduct electronic espionage and counter surveillance measures against law enforcement entities. The organization employs radio scanners and equipment capable of intercepting both hard line, radio and cellular phones to ensure the security of AFO operations. In addition to technical equipment, the AFO maintains caches of sophisticated automatic weaponry secured from a variety of international sources. Click on or google: Mexican drug cartels and terrorist are recruiting for more fighters to train as soldiers

A Joint Task Force composed of the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Federal Bureau of Investigation has been established in San Diego, California to target the AFO; the Task Force is investigating AFO operations in southern California and related regional investigations which track drug transportation, distribution and money laundering activities of the AFO throughout the United States. Click on or google:  Dangerous Mexican/U.S. Criminal Enterprises Operating Along the Mexican border

Sources:

DEA

FBI

San Diego sheriff’s office

San Diego Trubune

Old habits die hard .Studies reveal that majorities indulged in smoking are desperate to quit but the addiction is so elevated that in spite of repeated efforts, the habit clings to them .Tobacco has deadly effects on the smoker. A habit which was developed for mere pleasure ends up with many fatal and incurable diseases. A typical smoker is likely to suffer from many diseases and may even show acute symptoms of cancer. The perils of smoking cannot be ignored for it leads to slow death.

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• Reduced fertility in female

• Male impotency

• chronic disorder in respiratory system

• Painful ulcers in stomach

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• Coronary diseases and heart attack

Presence of nicotine in a cigarette makes a person addicted to it. It has adverse effects on the brain. Nervous system gets hampered and long before a person can do anything about it he/she is enslaved by noxious drug. Researchers analyzed the effect of nicotine on the brain and formulated a drug which would give the same stimulations but with minimal side effects.Chantix (Varenicline) a cessation drug approved by FDA was launched in the market, targeted at people who were desperate to quit smoking .Pfizer launched this drug to compete with other brands like Zyban, nicotine patches, gums, lozenges and many more. Chantix so far has higher success rates then the rest. This wonder drug is available in white tablet (0.5mg) or in blue tablet (1mg).Chantix can be administered under prescription of a doctor and with its help you can successfully cease this ill gotten habit of smoking for once and for all.

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Fertility drugs are widely accepted by physicians and insurance companies as a viable form of treatment for infertility. However, don’t go into this type of treatment with a blindfold on and expect the best. Pharmaceuticals are not made from natural products and therefore are foreign to the human body. All pharmaceuticals have side effects. Most side effects are mild and create an inconvenience, however in some cases side effects are more severe. Especially when taken with other medications, which can cause drug interaction. These points are not an attempt to scare you, but merely a warning not to take this type of treatment lightly.

There are three “go to drugs” that most physicians will prescribe for infertility. There are other options available, but these three have been well tested and that is why they have moved to the front of the doctor’s prescription pad.

The top three prescribed infertility medications are by class: clomiphene citrate (Clomid), HMG or Human Menotropic Gonadotropins (Repronex), Leuproreline (Prostap SR).

If a woman is experiencing infrequent periods and long cycles most physicians will prescribe clomiphene citrate (Clomid). There are many reasons for the use of this drug not the least of which is that it is lower in cost than most other infertility medications. Clomid increases follicle growth by blocking estrogen and causes the pituitary gland into producing FSH and LH the key hormones needed to improve ovulation.

Treatments with Clomid may last up to six cycles with a daily regiment of 1-2 tablets for five days beginning 2-5 days after the period starts. If the treatment is successful ovulation will occur 7 days after the last day of treatment. Doses usually start low and gradually go up with each cycle attempt and other agents may be added during the different cycles.

Side effects may include:

* Reduction in the quality of cervical mucous
* Thinning of the uterine lining
* Ovarian cysts * Hot flashes
* Nausea * Headaches
* Weight gain
* Fatigue
* Increased risk of having twins * Slight increase in risk of miscarriage

HMG or Human Menotropic Gonadotropins (Repronex) is given by subcutaneous injection. This treatment is for both women and men suffering from infertility.

For women it is a step up in treatment for Clomid and used to improve follicle growth and improved ovulation. Women will have a series of shots daily for 5 or more days. The length of treatment depends on the FSH and LH levels achieved during treatment.

In men the HMG is used to treat hypogonadotropic hypogonadism and induce sperm production. Men will require a much longer treatment period. Injections are administered 3 times a week for several months.

Side effects may include:

* Injection site pain
* Lower abdomen tenderness
* Fluid retention
* Headache
* Emotional irritability
* Breast discomfort
* Fatigue
* Risk of multiple births
* Shortness of breath
* Severe pain or swelling in lower abdomen or extremities
* Vomiting or diarrhea

Leuproreline (Prostap SR) has a wide range of uses. Prostap SR is used in the treatment of prostate and breast cancer, endometriosis or uterine fibroids and even autism.

Prostap SR is also used to for ovarian stimulation in conjunction with IVF (In Vitro Fertilization). The treatment is a subcutaneous injection once a month.

I have heard of many cases of severe side effects with this treatment. However, it is an outstanding treatment in dealing with endometriosis, which is a common factor in infertility. If you experience extreme side effects consult with you doctor to weigh the pros and cons of continuing treatment.

Side effects may include:

* Loss of libido
* Hot flashes
* Osteoporosis
* Breast tenderness or fullness
* Weight gain
* Fatigue
* Nausea
* Vomiting
* Diarrhea
* Headaches
* High blood sugar levels

Comparing these forms of treatment is but one step toward your successful efforts in overcoming infertility.

Read, read and then read some more before moving forward with any form of treatment. Then consult with your physician on the best treatment option for you. Ask specific questions about risks and side effects. Don’t be afraid to seek out a second opinion on your diagnosis and treatment options. You will be able to determine how much your doctor cares for you depending upon their reaction to you suggesting of a second opinion. A confident doctor will even make the suggestion himself or herself. Good luck and God Bless.

Hope is there for all childless couples:  Clomid is there to help you in adding to your family.  It’s being administered to women with an astoundingly high rate of success.  Some women, and young girls, suffer from Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome when they have a problem with their menstrual cycle; while some women may suffer from a condition called Endometrius when the uterine cavity grows outside the uterus.  Clomiphene Citrate, the generic compound of Clomid, helps in curing all these conditions.

Clomid’s an old number – its’ been around since the 1960s’, an enduring, popular drug in helping women to conceive.  It can be given to men as well but under careful medical monitoring; as the drug can lead to an abnormally high level of testosterone, it can have a negative impact on the production of sperms, so such patients have to regularly go for a sperm count check.

Surgery involves some complications – it is easier to take an oral pill.  Women who suffer from Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome [PCOS], Endometrius, or unexplained fertility can consider surgery only if it’s absolutely necessary and if treatment with Clomiphene does not bear fruit.  However, the success rate of treatment with Clomid is nearly 80%.

At times, young girls in their puberty have trouble with their periods, which can be heavy, irregular or may not occur.  This is PCOS, which brings other problems along with it – acne, hirsutism, small breast size, increased girth – adding to their woes. PCOS can be corrected with proper medication under strict medical care with Clomid.  At other times, women are unable to bear a child for reasons that cannot be medically ascertained – it could be that the eggs don’t mature, or it could be because of menstrual complications, or there is some other unknown reason for their infertility.  In Endometrius, women develop cysts in the ovaries or fallopian tubes, which cause inflammation of the uterus, acting as an obstruction to achieving pregnancy. This happens when cells shed during their menstrual cycle grow outside the uterus by attaching themselves to the tissue surrounding it.

Clomiphene is believed to work on the pituitary glands, producing high levels of Follicular Stimulating Hormone [FSH] and Luteal Hormone [LH], which leads to ripening of ovarian follicles and releasing greater number of eggs for ovulation, so that chances of pregnancy increase. The medicine is not recommended for long usage as it makes the uterine lining thinner, which can hamper pregnancy; but for a woman who becomes pregnant while taking the regimen, the amount of LH produced strengthens the blood vessels in the uterus and helps in preventing a miscarriage.

It is truly a wonder drug for curing infertility.  Women on Clomid dosage, sometimes achieve pregnancy in their first cycle!  For others, it can take 3-6 months; rarely do gynaecologists prescribe this drug for a year to a single patient.  The normal dose is 50mg, which can be increased in the next cycle, if the gynaecologist so considers.   The patient is generally asked to begin taking the medicine on day 3, 4 or 5 of her cycle, for a total period of 5 days.  The ovulation pattern can differ for a woman, taking this medicine, from one cycle to the other.  Couples, who desire to become parents, are recommended to mate frequently when the woman is taking Clomid.   

The medicine is well-tolerated, though there may be side-effects such as hot flashes, nausea, abdominal discomfort, mild headaches, vaginal dryness, tenderness of breasts, fatigue, mood changes, or blurred vision; but these are short-term effects.  Other women may encounter problems of another kind – formation of cysts, or fluid in their lungs or abdomen, but these disappear when the treatment ends.   Anyone using this medicine has to regularly visit her treating doctor.

Clomid is cheaper than many other drugs, and effective.  It brings a bonus to childless couples – with greater number of ovarian eggs released, there are chances of multiple pregnancies!  A visit from the stork may bring you twins or triplets; the plus point being that you may complete your family at one goes!

A powerful new over-the-counter fertility drug, FertiBella, made by French company LeRoche Benicoeur, may raise the odds of successful pregnancy by up to 65 percent, according to a recent study published in the British Medical Journal. And the reason behind its efficacy has been the subject of much debate amongst experts in the field of reproductive endocrinology.

The study was conducted by a team of researchers led by Dr. Hans deBoise, an endocrinologist at the Rijnstate Hospital in Arnhem, the Netherlands. Researchers analyzed six prior studies on the effectiveness of fertility treatments in increasing the success of pregnancy rates, involving a total of 1,384 women. For every 10 women undergoing some type of fertility treatment and combining once-daily FertiBella therapy, the researchers found, three extra pregnancies would result compared with women who used a single treatment alone.

“We offer FertiBella Advanced Conception to all our patients undergoing fertility treatment,” said Steve Copeland, a fertility specialist at the Fertility Centers of Maryland.

Researchers speculate that FertiBella dramatically improves the threshold level of a genetic marker produced by early human embryos that could help predict the likelihood of pregnancy.  The presence of this genetic marker above a specific threshold level was associated with a pregnancy rate of more than 70% in previously infertile women. In cases where the embryos showed a marker presence below the threshold level or an absence of the marker, the pregnancy rate was nearly three times lower.

A study originally published in the medical journal Fertility and Sterility details the findings on the genetic marker, known as soluable Human Leukocyte Antigen-G (sHLA-G) (Volume 83, Issue 5, Pages 1410-1413: Soluble human leukocyte antigen G expression in phase I culture media at 46 hours after fertilization predicts pregnancy and implantation from day 3 embryo transfer).

The advantage of this novel marker is that it increases the chances for successful pregnancy in women who have embryos that are marker positive with high threshold levels. Researchers were unable to pinpoint exactly why FertiBella improved embryo threshold levels, but they noted a combination of FertiBella’s other benefits in regulating female reproduction that may have caused the unexpected result.

A new study links fertility drugs that modulate hormones in women with increased risk of cancer but more study is needed, Dr. Holly Phillips tells Maggie Rodriguez.