NCJ Number
89171
Date Published
1981
Length
25 pages
Annotation
This review cites West German statistics on drug-related crime throughout the 1970's to 1981, compares data with the rest of Europe on drug abuse and drug related deaths, delineates the drug importation routes from abroad, and notes trends regarding the characteristics of drug abusers and the illicit drug trade.
Abstract
Data on the first quarter of 1981 indicate a slight decline in the number of drug-related crimes reported in West Germany -- from 15,047 in 1980 to 14,342. The number of registered first offenders also declined by 20 percent between 1980 and 1981. With the reduced availability of drugs in the illicit market, more pharmaceutical breakins have been reported and fewer drug-related deaths have occurred. These indices resemble earlier periods in the 1970's when increased enforcement and international cooperation resulted in reduced heroin availability via the French connection, which eventually brought about the switch to new sources from the Golden Triangle of Asia. The current obstructions to heroin importation to Western Europe are due to political instability in the areas of origin (i.e., invasion of Afghanistan, 1980 military takeover in Turkey) and newly instituted West German controls on immigrants and foreign residents from Turkey and other opium producing areas. As long as the West European demand for opiates remains high, the illicit market cannot be expected to decline permanently. Control and enforcement agencies must watch for the emergence of new supply and trafficking channels of both opiates and marijuana. Charts, tabular data, and 14 footnotes are given.