Sioux Falls Drug Traffic (South Dakota)

Two significant drug busts in the past two days. In the most recent, Sioux Falls police say they took a major drug distributor off the streets.

Twenty-three-year-old Jose Navarro pled not guilty today to an immigration violation for providing a false social security number. Sioux Falls authorities say they have been investigating Navarro since late 2005. Last night, the area drug task force served a search warrant at his home on East 16th Street. There, they seized "ice" meth, marijuana, and $62,000 cash police believe came from drug sales.

Navarro’s arrest comes just 24 hours after another man was picked up in Tea for having a storage shed full of marijuana, meth and cocaine.

Police say one reason they are making more and more drug busts in Sioux Falls is because of the city's location. Sioux Falls is at the intersection of two major interstates, which makes it a tempting place to stop as drugs are transported between larger cities like Denver, Omaha and Minneapolis, and even Chicago. But authorities say the drug market is mostly driven by supply and demand.

On top of being a tempting off-ramp between major drug markets, Sioux Falls has become a place where dealers can turn a profit on drugs they bring in from larger cities.

“They can purchase the product there for an amount, and they can sell the product here for a higher amount,” said Loren McManus with the Sioux Falls Police Department.

McManus says in the most recent drug bust, it’s unlikely any drugs were actually produced locally, but rather brought in to be sold.

“You're always going to have those people who want to come into our town, perform their work and then leave,” McManus said.

He says the drug market operates much like the overall economy—what’s in demand on the street is also what police will find in the hands of dealers.

“If it's crack cocaine that's most popular, that's what they are going to go after. If its methamphetamine, that's that they'll go after,” McManus said.

Tougher laws protecting key ingredients have police uncovering more drugs passing though the city, instead of being made in Sioux Falls.

“We may see an increase in the import of products because of the fact it is so difficult to get the items needed to make them here,” McManus said.

But dealers will go where they can make money. And warmer weather typically brings more people into Sioux Falls, which means more potential buyers.

“We're talking about students being out of school, people coming into the market for events, so there are more people for the dealers to offer their product to,” he said.

Police in Sioux Falls say another reason we may be hearing more about drug busts is people are more aware of the problem. Police receive a lot of help from people who call the crime stoppers number when they notice suspicious activity in their area. And they say community involvement is a key part of keeping drugs off the streets.

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