Springfield police target dealers as heroin use grows

When people think of illegal drugs in Springfield, meth is often the first and only thing that comes to their minds. According to Springfield police, that thinking might be ignoring a growing problem in the city — heroin.

Sgt. Justin Gargus, of the Springfield Police Department's special investigation unit, gave a presentation on the rise of heroin use in the city Thursday in collaboration with Community Partnership of the Ozarks.

Gargus said in 2011, the special investigation unit seized 13 grams of heroin, or just under half an ounce. In 2014, they seized 243 grams — more than eight ounces.

Gargus also said that the unit had responded to more than 100 incidents involving heroin in 2014, up from 34 in 2011.

According to Gargus, this increase is due to the falling cost of heroin, as well as the gateway drug effect. Many who abuse prescription pills are finding it's harder to get ahold of them, and using heroin as a replacement.

This heroin is primarily entering Springfield from Chicago through gang connections, Gargus said. Before that, it likely originated overseas — the heroin police are seizing is usually not the black tar heroin associated with Mexico.

The people who are using heroin aren't the "stereotypical" users, Gargus said. Seventy-four percent of them are white, and 53 percent are between the ages of 18 and 30. Gargus said the most concerning demographic for police was recent high school graduates and college-aged students.

There's also no doubt that there's a connection between the increase in heroin use and the increase in violent crime in the area, Gargus said. A tenth of a gram of heroin goes for $40, and users may go through up to a gram and a half a day — they often turn to crime to find the money to avoid painful withdrawal symptoms.

Along with the increase in violent crimes comes a heavier burden on health services as well, as users overdose or catch diseases through the use of unsanitized needles.

Gargus said Springfield police are combating the rise in heroin use by specifically targeting drug dealers in the area, and working to have them prosecuted at the federal level when possible.

The department is also working to start a diversion program that would place first-time offenders in rehabilitation programs instead of jail, but the program has not been implemented due to staffing shortages.