U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade (file photo)
Detroit has long been a place with a vibrant illegal drug trade.
Katrease Stafford of the Detroit Free Press writes that federal officials who gathered for a summit in Detroit on Wednesday said that a drug trafficking pipeline from Michigan to five other Midwest states has caused an alarming spike in prescription pill abuse and a resurgence of heroin addiction.
"We know in Michigan that we’ve seen a huge spike in prescription pill abuse," Detroit U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade said a press conference. "We’ve also seen a serious resurgence in heroin as addicts turn to that as a cheaper alternative for their opioid addiction. That has resulted in some very significant problems in Michigan, and we seem to be exporting our problems to other states.”
McQuade said authorities have determined that a pipeline exists from Michigan into Ohio, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and West Virginia.
The Freep reported:
McQuade said people arrested for drugs said Michigan has become a pipeline into other states because they're trying to "reach new markets." McQuade said traffickers often branch out because they feel safer in other states that lack the rival gangs that Michigan has. She said Michigan is also a large producer of heroin because it has a large population of low-income individuals who are often targeted by traffickers.