Border To Border Drugs

Drug distribution rings operate a sophisticated export business along the freeways that stretch from southern California and Arizona up to the Canadian border, smuggling drugs across the border and then distributing them up and down the West Coast through a broad array of sub-contractors, unwitting accomplices and cartel deputies within our communities.

We looked into an industry that reaches every city and every small town in every state of the West. In a collaborative series called Border To Border Drugs, Fronteras: The Changing America Desk and the Northwest News Network explore these distribution networks, the smuggling strategies and trends, and the devastating impact of America's insatiable appetite for illegal substances.

Crime, Law and Justice

Leader Of West Coast Trafficking Ring Gets 27-Year Sentence

Austin Jenkins

One the ringleaders of a sprawling West Coast drug and gun trafficking ring has been sentenced to 27 years in federal prison.U.S. Attorney Jenny Durkan…
Crime, Law and Justice

Law Enforcement, Truckers Try To Keep Ahead Of Smugglers

For drug smugglers, getting a truckload of illegal narcotics past border authorities means potentially huge profits.But they're often up against two…
Crime, Law and Justice

San Diego Is Biggest Entry Point For Mexican Meth

More than 70 percent of methamphetamine illegally trafficked into the U.S. passes through U.S.-Mexico border crossings in the San Diego area. That’s…
Crime, Law and Justice

Drug Cartels Thrive On Ultimate Consumers: Addicts

Drug cartels are doing big business up and down the West Coast. When you go by freeway, you’re driving a Silk Road of sorts for heroin, meth and…
Crime, Law and Justice

Drugs, Guns And Money: Anatomy Of A West Coast Trafficking Ring

Austin Jenkins

Mexican drug cartels operate an illicit export business that depends on freeways that run from California and Arizona to Canada. If you drive these…