In the Southern Tier of Broome County, officials have gotten busier busting heroin deals in the past couple years. Law enforcement arrests more people for heroin than any other drug. Heroin makes its way to the region from New York City but it’s not a one-way street. Regional drug trade is more fluid than that.
Sober From Addiction
Jake is a lanky guy in his mid-twenties, wearing a brown striped T-shirt. He’s been sober from heroin addiction for about a year. He asked that his real name not be used in this story.
He's been working to repair his relationships with his sister and girlfriend as part of his alcohol and heroin treatment program. One relationship he’s not mending is with his old dealer.
In a deal, they’d drive up next to each other on a side street and roll down the window. Jake would toss him a bag with the money and Chinese food his dealer ordered. His dealer tossed him the heroin.
Jake's dealer usually bought his supply in New York City, he said. That's a common story.
Binghamton Crossroads
Local officials have called Binghamton a crossroads for heroin trafficked from New York City because of all the highways that connect to areas upstate – I-81, I-88 and Route 17.
“Binghamton is not the destination. Many times these drugs pass through our community on their way to larger cities upstate," said Binghamton Mayor Rich David in April. "So Binghamton’s proximity to New York City and Philadelphia and our proximity to major highways – it’s an attractive destination for drug dealers, individuals who pedal their poisons.”
But that’s not the whole story.
"It Depends on Your Dealer"
Sgt. Matt Cower, head of the narcotics unit at the Broome County Sheriff's Department, said it’s true that Binghamton is a crossroads. Dealers from Broome County head down to the city – the heroin’s cheaper there because it’s more prevalent.
“For the price of a bus ticket, they come up to the Broome County area and they can triple or quadruple their money," said Cower. "They can charge that much more for the product here in Broome County because it’s not as readily available.”
But, Cower said heroin is also coming from Rochester, Syracuse and Elmira. Binghamton also sends heroin to those places. It's pretty fluid, he said.
“I think it’s both ways. It depends on your drug dealer," said Cower. "It just depends on where that dealer is in the whole chain of the system.”
Supply and Demand
So how do you curb the flow of the drug, especially when it’s so cheap – about $5 or $10 a bag. In April, Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) said to go after the dealers.
“If we cut off the supply and go after the gangs and go after the people selling it, the costs will go up.”
But experts say, not so fast, that’s not how the drug trade works. Most of the heroin in the U.S. comes up from Mexico. According to the White House's Office of National Drug Control Policy, the powerful drug cartels are too well-armed and well-financed to shut down anytime soon. Ryan Baker, criminal justice professor at Kentucky Wesleyan College, agrees.
“I was looking in upstate New York and you guys have taken out some organized crime groups over the last year of 30, 40, 60 people that are transporting $10 to $20 million dollars worth of heroin. They just popped back up.”
Going after suppliers and street dealers is not the solution, according to Baker.
“Some other cartels, some other organized groups get together and they start transporting, trafficking this heroin in the same types of areas, so it has to do with taking care of the demand," said Baker.
Repairing Relationships
Fighting demand means education, treatment and rehabilitation for people becoming sober.
Jake says with the help of a treatment program, he’s free from heroin, but not from the heroin trade.
“I’m not planning on making financial amends with drug dealers anytime soon," said Jake. "But, I’m sure if you tallied it up, it would be a lot of money that I owe them. What are you going to do?"
He’s repairing his other relationships instead.
