Crack use increases in city

BY KEITH LACEY

This past year will be remembered, not so fondly, as one where Greater Sudbury lost its innocence when it came to one of the most destructive illicit drugs.

Greater Sudbury Police have admitted crack cocaine has become a very serious problem across this city and many other parts of Northern Ontario.

Peter Orsino, head of the joint forces drug unit for Greater Sudbury Police, said within the past two years, crack cocaine has gone from a fringe problem involving a couple dozen addicts to one reaching epidemic proportions.

Because it’s relatively cheap - you can buy a small piece of crack that will get you high for $10 - more and more people are trying it. Drug gangs from Toronto have set up shop in Greater Sudbury because there are huge profits to be made, said Orsino.

The problem is the effects of crack last only 10 to 20 minutes and addicts want more and more. The craving never goes away. It’s not unusual for an addict to spend anywhere from $500 to $2,000 a day, said Orsino.

One crack cocaine addict, who agreed to speak to Northern Life, said the powerful drug is readily available and destroying hundreds, if not thousands, of lives in this community.

“You might as well put a gun in your mouth,” he said. “It’s that bad...this stuff is so addictive and causes so much grief and destruction, I can’t put it into words.”

Crack addicts lose all compassion and concern for themselves and others and their only goal is to get enough money - legally or illegally - to feed their addiction. The need for more drugs is so strong, most addicts can’t work and resort to crime to get the money to buy more, he said.

“You totally forget how to care about people...you forget how to love,” he said. “Your only concern is getting enough money to get high again and if that means lying or stealing or prostituting yourself, then that’s what an addict will do.”

In October, local police services claimed a small victory in the fight against the scourge of crack cocaine in Greater Sudbury by charging 37 people with trafficking.

The charges stem from an eight-month undercover investigation conducted by the Ontario Provincial Police Drug Enforcement Section and Greater Sudbury Police. The investigation was code-named Project Rocked.

“Am I convinced we’ve stemmed the tide of crack cocaine in this community...no I’m not, but I am confident we’ve reached deep into the local drug trade,” said Greater Sudbury Police Chief Ian Davidson.

“I also do know 37 dealers are in jail or will soon be in jail.”

An undercover officer was able to make numerous purchases of crack cocaine during this project, which resulted in the 37 individuals being charged with more than 200 various drug-related offences.

Over $120,000 of crack cocaine was seized and purchased during the investigation.

In November, the courts in Sudbury clearly indicated dealers will pay a heavy price.

A young man caught three times in a few weeks selling crack cocaine to an undercover police officer last April and May was sentenced to two years in a federal penitentiary Thursday.