A Tennessee law enforcement leader says drug cartels are partnering with local gangs to distribute drugs, contributing to a spike in violent crime and highlighting the need for new agents to tackle the problem.
Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Director Mark Gwyn said the latest wave of gang violence is taking the biggest toll in rural parts of the state — probably because they lack the robust law enforcement focus on gangs that bigger cities have. He briefed Gov. Bill Haslam on the issue this month during a budget hearing.
“A lot of these gangs are just taking over these small communities because they’re going to where there’s not as much resistance," Gwyn said. "There’s a big market in a lot of these small towns, too. There’s a lot of people addicted."
Gwyn said the rise of opioid abuse has fed the demand for drugs, and thus the rise in gang involvement.
“With the opioid epidemic comes the heroin issue," he said. “All of it ties together.”
Tennessee's spike is rooted in national trend
In an interview, Gwyn said this was a national trend that had taken root in Tennessee in the last five years or so. It's a shift from a previous era that saw cartels handle drug transit and sales on their own.
According to TBI data, 384 drug-related gang offenses were reported statewide in 2011. In 2016, that number stood at 438, a jump of 14 percent.
The shift brings complexity to the state's long-running battle against gang violence, as Gwyn said the drug-related offenses likely lead to more violent crimes overall.
“We’ve always had to fight that," Gwyn said. “What we’re seeing now is we’re just having to fight that on a different level.”
Gwyn asked Haslam to approve the addition of 25 TBI drug agents, a recommendation made by a legislative task force formed to tackle the state's opioid epidemic. Those agents would deploy to local communities where a growing gang presence was suspected, he said.
Gwyn said the TBI will search local data to spot gang activity, looking for indicators like spikes in aggravated assaults and other violent crimes. Although he would not discuss specific locations the TBI might target, he did tell the governor the problem was particularly pronounced in rural West Tennessee.
'It's all about the greed'
Law enforcement experts said thechange in the cartels' business model is based on opportunity more than strategy. Cartels are not formally linked to any single gang or group.
“They’ll partner with anybody who will move their product," said Christopher Tersigni, an assistant special agent in charge with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. "For them it’s all about the greed."
Tersigni stressed that the model he sees in Tennessee is not a straight line, and if drugs end up in a gang's hands, it might not be intentional. Cartel drugs can go through several sources before they reach an individual buyer.
Sometimes, informal groups will sprout up to take advantage of the influx of drugs and cash.
"Some of them are home-grown gangs,” Gwyn said. “Just a group that will decide, 'We’re gonna be a gang today.' ”
Reach Adam Tamburin at atamburin@tennessean.com or 615-726-5986 and on Twitter @tamburintweets.