Monday, February 27, 2012

In Case You Missed It - Charlotte's Heroin Hot Spot The Arboretum Shopping Center

This story ran basically unnoticed two weeks ago. WSOC TV's Natalie Pasquarella put together a closer look at heroin trafficking in Charlotte and points out that the Arboretum Shopping Center has attracted the attention of the DEA. The shopping center is a well known location to score black tar heroin, something that Cedar Posts pointed out more than a year ago. See The Dark House at the End of The Street.

From Natalie Pasquarella - "Walking through the busy Arboretum shopping center on Providence Road, most people would not believe the Drug Enforcement Agency has identified it as a hot spot for drug dealing.

The head of North Carolina’s branch of the DEA, Bill Baxley, said people are going into heavily trafficked business areas like the Arboretum to buy and sell black tar heroin, a type of heroin from Mexico with a tar --like texture that is growing in popularity among Charlotte’s teens.

Baxley said the locations make sense to the sellers.

“Traffickers aren’t dummies. They want to come to places that they’re not going to stand out,” he said.

The area around the Arboretum isn’t the DEA’s only concern. Officers have also targeted parking lots in the SouthPark area, near South Boulevard and Tyvola, and by Carolina Place Parkway.

Agents said the deals are also happening near the intersection of Monroe and Sharon Amity roads, near Monroe and Wendover roads, and near StoneCrest in Ballantyne.


Cedar Posts found this guy behind the
Harris Teeter at Providence Commons last year.

The easy access to the drug is why agents are stepping up their enforcement with a newly formed task force. They are concerned that, with all the drug activity, an increase in neighborhood crime might not be far behind."


But here is where this gets interesting:

WSOC's Report continues: Charlotte-Mecklenburg police said they have not seen an increase in heroin activity at the Arboretum or an increase in crime, but the DEA said its information is not based solely on arrests and crime.

Agents said it is also based on intelligence and tips they receive.

Officials at the Arboretum said two weeks ago that they had not heard about the task force.

WSOC's video is here.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Cedar, you are obviously insane. The chief has said there is no crime in charlotte and it is rude of you to point out something like this. Just rude. What will the rest of the nation think with eyes on Charlotte now that our politicians have done us the great favor of bringing DNC2012 and all the rest that will come with it?
The DEA is clearly insane, too.
There's no black tar heroine here.
No gangs problem--we all get along. No drugs.


Hey, are you still tracking homicides, or were there too many to keep following? (forgive me for noticing the people that have been murdered--monroe does always say he can't hide the bodies)

Anonymous said...

oops. heroin. typing hands were thinking of something else.

Anonymous said...

this story is over 3 years old. DEA has come and gone out there.

Anonymous said...

Anonymous 3:17 Pretty sure the WSOC story Cedar has posted came from ten days ago.

Even if it was 3 years old based on the other news out of CMPD Headquarters looks like this story is pretty spot on.

Anonymous said...

the written story may be ten days old....but this is nothing new. anon 3:17 is correct.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for that incorrect update, Rob.

Good to know the whole city is free and clear of drugs and crime.

Anonymous said...

Legalize it and all the societal problems go away.

Todd said...

There was a black tar heroin bust on 2 miles from the Arboretum on 9/24/13. The problem is NOT gone.