FBIS4-22235 "jpusr033___94031"
FBIS-USR-94-033 JPRS
FBIS Report: Central Eurasia 31 January 1994 BALTIC STATES ESTONIA

Country's Drug Trade Examined

Country's Drug Trade Examined 94WD0268A Tallinn ESTONIYA in Russian 31 Jan 94 p 5 94WD0268A Tallinn ESTONIYA Russian CSO [Article by Margarita Kornysheva under the rubric "Crime and the Law": "Until the Chicken Has Its Head Cut Off"] [Text] Here is some information about the drug trade obtained from confidential sources. First, not only do well-established systems for the delivery and distribution of narcotic substances operate in Estonia, but we also have our own trained experts who are capable of determining the quality of the "merchandise" and pricing it in a highly professional manner. Second, there is a "fixation" on the border, where only "dupes," random people, get caught. Third, there is a quite well developed secrecy system. Fourth, cruel laws apply to the hilt within the drug groups--if someone quits the game, or "spills the beans," he therefore chooses "eternal rest" somewhere in a quarry in Manniku. Fifth, threats against narcotics policemen are increasing, and actions against them are quite real. All of this is happening against the background of the fact that, in the words of the psychiatrist Anti Liiv, "even the revolt in the northeastern area of the country is less of a catastrophe for the Estonian people than drug addiction."
`A Strange Small State in Which the Drug Problem Is of No
Concern to Anyone' Doctor Liiv, who at one time practiced in the United States, maintains that this is precisely how Americans perceive Estonia. As you will understand, this problem "did not exist" in our country until sometime in 1985, just like prostitution, corruption, and all manner of other "capitalist ills" "did not exist." Finally, they came to their senses and saw that one in four apprehended thieves had something to do with drugs (by now, one in three criminals commits the crime either intoxicated with drugs or in possession of these substances). In short, the phenomenon manifested itself sharply. Moreover, compared, for example, to the year 1988, which is usually the reference point, the phenomenon has grown to a quite respectable size. Data quoted by the newspaper ARIPAEV not so long ago show that according to the most conservative calculations, each of the 8,000 uncovered drug addicts spends 200 kroons weekly for the poison. The annual volume of the local drug trade comes to at least 60 million kroons. How are they to be legalized? We do not have a law that hampers money laundering although, in an effort to get the endeavor off the ground, representatives of the competent organs have visited the West to "collect material" in order to offer our legislators the draft of this particular law. The republic still does not have a state program for combating drug addiction, nor is there a major specialized police unit in the scope of whose interests drugs would fall. Who benefits by so nicely sweeping under the rug a problem that clearly threatens the very life of our society? In the opinion of Anti Liiv, and it is hard to disagree with him, the current government benefits. What other explanation is there for the fact that Estonia, a UN member, has failed to join a single international convention forbidding trafficking in narcotic substances? One cannot help wondering, all the more so because the last document of this kind that was accepted by the international community in 1988, hinders money laundering, requiring that commercial secrets which are of certain interest be revealed. In view of the absence of a coordinating center for drug control, our country has been unable to submit information about the domestic drug trade to the UN for three years now.
Narcotic Poison in Estonia Is 10 Times Cheaper Than in Europe
This is the case on the "black" market. According to information obtained from the security police, a five-gram package of marijuana and one cubic [centimeter] of liquid opium cost 50 kroons, one gram of hashish--no less than 75 kroons, and a cubic [centimeter] of a synthetic drug (too weak for "professionals")--as little as 25 kroons. Cocaine belongs to a class of the most expensive and, apparently, least popular "substances" for this reason. It is not cheap in Europe, either--a five-gram package fetches $205. At present, drugs of both vegetable origin (marijuana, hashish, opium milk) and medicinal origin (diazepam) are common in the republic. The former are more common, after all. Depending on the specifics of transportation, their form differs widely. A drug-sniffing dog "smells" drugs of vegetable origin. However, the contrivances of drug dealers may rob it of the scent. Previously, drugs were often transported in car bumpers. The "merchandise" was placed there, and fresh epoxy resin was poured over it. There is no way that a dog would "sniff out" a drug in this hiding place for the next three or four days. Opium poppies--quite recently, this combination of words was associated solely with Central Asia, and to a lesser degree with Ukraine. However, a few years ago it was learned how to grow this crop in Estonia and Lithuania out of high-grade seeds brought in from Kazakhstan. There are hills with plantations between them. They can only be seen from a helicopter, and are not visible from the road. The owner harvests, say, one-tenth of a hectare, sells the crop, and buys a new house, a horse.... In 1989 an entire syndicate delivering drugs from Lithuania to us was uncovered. Fourteen people ended up in the dock.
The Realm of Transit
Poison comes to Estonia from Russia, Lithuania, Central Asia, and the Caucasus. Luckily we cannot afford Western products. New times have resulted in new opportunities for drug sales. The transit of drugs through the Baltic area, in particular through "us," previously without precedent, at any rate on this scale, has become established. Given the actually nonexistent border and the "most incorruptible" customs in the world, the organization of deliveries is not too exacting an endeavor. Outside groups have appeared which have ultimately established themselves solidly here. The deep pockets of their members have been helpful in securing residence permits or citizenship for them. And how many nerves do the common residents of Estonia shatter battling for the same?! According to data from the security police, everyone and his brother plies the drug trade: The drug business in Estonia is controlled by Azeri, Perm, Kemerovo, Novosibirsk, Riga, and Krasnodar groups. For example, the Azeris control the delivery of marijuana and hashish, and people from Krasnodar--that of both marijuana and opium poppy. A case in which the traffic police stopped a new Opel, in whose trunk 10 kilograms of marijuana were found, at 1915 on 4 January on the Tartu Highway close to the locality of Moega, is characteristic. It was learned later that the drug was being transported from the Viru section of the border and was controlled by an Azeri "company." Most likely they were driving to an out-of-the-way location in Harju Rayon. Practitioners are aware of these cases. The interested person locates a hamlet with a granny as old as the hills: "Here are 100 `greenbacks' for you, go buy yourself a goat. In return, put my suitcase away somewhere, and let it sit there until needed." The old woman does not care: "Son, toss it in the hayloft. I am not pressed for space." All "outsiders" have connections to local "brigades," more often than not Russian-speaking, which deliver, for example, opium poppies from the areas of the Chu Valley and Issyk-Kul in Kyrgyzstan. The pattern is as follows: the south--Estonia--our countrymen pick it up, pay for it, and transport it to Scandinavia through their own channels. Over there, dealers get the "merchandise" and dispose of it "on the spot" (the lion's share of narcotic substances remains in the region) or ship it on to Europe. According to information from the Department of Police of the Republic of Estonia, last year more than 100 kilograms of various drugs were confiscated in the territory of the republic. Specialists believe that this was quite a lot, but they state sadly right away: Certainly, more than that went abroad.
The Black Triangle
This consists of the suppliers, distributors, and consumers of poison. As a rule, those who put drugs in circulation do not "get high" themselves. They are more cunning and slippery than the usual common criminals. An alarming situation has developed in Tallinn. Police functionaries are aware of about 30 apartments in which the manufacturing of drug preparations is organized on a large scale. According to data of the law enforcement organs, gatherings of those fond of smoking or shooting up form virtually on every street! Drug addicts are becoming a class. Incidentally, there are people among them who are quite high on the social ladder. Terrifying reports have been received from some schools in the capital city--some students of senior grades (but not only them!) become links in the chain of the distributors of narcotic substances, almost inevitably getting their first taste of the latter. People in the know maintain that so-called "pure" drug addicts do not exist in nature. This means that people who have become addicted to drugs are prepared to do anything ahead of time, driven by the fear of "withdrawal throes" alone. Let us say that such a person picks up three or four kilograms of "merchandise," keeps one-third, and sells two-thirds. Chasing clientele, he would be happy to get anyone and everyone "hooked." Be that as it may, this is an income, although there is a risk of incurring criminal liability. Of course, they steal, too, but the funds procured in this manner are not major. Specialists predict it will not be long before high-capacity underground plants for manufacturing drug preparations go on line in Estonia. One does not have to be a specialist to duly appreciate the exceptionally favorable conditions that bring this "bright future" closer. There is nothing standing in the way of the time of prosperity coming to the soil of Estonia for a business which unfortunately has ranked second after the arms trade throughout the world. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |Drugs Are Cheap in Estonia | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | |Price per gram in kroons | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | |in Estonia |in Finland | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |Pure heroin |300 |3,400 | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |Cocaine |550 |550 | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |Marijuana |10 |70 | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |Hashish |75 |950 | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |LSD |1,000 |2,000 | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |Amphetamines (vial) |25 |160 | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |Source: the newspaper ARIPAEV. | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------