NewsWhore
11-14-2006, 04:30 PM
Officials at the Drug Control Department (DNCD) have announced that they've broken up a "mafia" within their own department that was receiving weekly payoffs totaling RD$3 million. As reported in Diario Libre, the mafia, which was based at the DNCD's headquarters in Santo Domingo, would receive money from officials in the different DNCD divisions around the country in order to ensure impunity for acts committed during their tenure. Those accused in relation to these crimes are part of the 446 DNCD agents who have been dismissed since an initiative to clean up the drug agency began on 16 August. The situation has become alarming in some of the national divisions. The colonel in charge of the DNCD's Santo Domingo East division has been changed six times in 73 days, an average of a new colonel every 12 days. Puerto Plata and San Pedro de Macoris officials have been changed twice in both divisions. According to the report, the money was coming from divisions in Santo Domingo East, RD$500,000, San Francisco de Macoris RD$600,000, Puerto Plata RD$500,000, and Santiago RD$700,000, as well as fees coming in from other locations such as Barahona.
Major General Rafael Radhames Ramirez Ferreira is quoted in Listin Diario as saying that the country is "rife with drugs" and that there needs to be a restructuring of the DNCD in order to deal with the problem. Ramirez points to Villa Consuelo where, he says, it is not uncommon to see people openly cooking crack. Major General Ramirez said that in addition to the training of 100 new recent high school graduates as DNCD agents, they are also contemplating the creation of a drug detection dog training school in the country. He said that a dog can be trained locally for RD$7,000, while trained dogs imported from abroad cost US$10,000.
Ramirez explains that given the policing of the points of sale, vendors have resorted to delivery service to get their products out to the public.
The Listin Diario editorial today says that despite the present crack down on drugs, a problem still persists: "the most powerful dealers rely on persons of influence to secure benign decisions in the courts and then return to their flourishing businesses on the streets."
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#5)
Major General Rafael Radhames Ramirez Ferreira is quoted in Listin Diario as saying that the country is "rife with drugs" and that there needs to be a restructuring of the DNCD in order to deal with the problem. Ramirez points to Villa Consuelo where, he says, it is not uncommon to see people openly cooking crack. Major General Ramirez said that in addition to the training of 100 new recent high school graduates as DNCD agents, they are also contemplating the creation of a drug detection dog training school in the country. He said that a dog can be trained locally for RD$7,000, while trained dogs imported from abroad cost US$10,000.
Ramirez explains that given the policing of the points of sale, vendors have resorted to delivery service to get their products out to the public.
The Listin Diario editorial today says that despite the present crack down on drugs, a problem still persists: "the most powerful dealers rely on persons of influence to secure benign decisions in the courts and then return to their flourishing businesses on the streets."
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#5)