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The Caddo-Shreveport Narcotics Unit will mark its 10th anniversary on Saturday. Leaders of both the Caddo Sheriff’s Office and the Shreveport Police Department say the merger of the two departments’ drug units a decade ago was a successful move that continues to benefit the community today.
“The citizens of Caddo Parish, including Shreveport, expect government to serve them efficiently and effectively, “ said Sheriff Steve Prator. “Ten years of combining our narcotics units has proved the whole is indeed greater than the sum of the parts.”
The merger officially took place on March 8, 2004 - just over a year after CPSO and SPD combined their financial crimes units. “The goal of a joint narcotics unit was to better manage our time and investigative efforts,” said Police Chief Willie Shaw. “There was often a duplication of services where the Sheriff’s Office and the Police Department were targeting the same offenders. By combining our resources, both agencies were able to make more efficient use of citizens’ tax dollars.”
Over the next 10 years, agents assigned to the Caddo-Shreveport Narcotics Unit made 7,644 arrests, executed 945 search warrants, seized 1,171 weapons, and confiscated nearly $6 million in cash. The total value of drugs seized is estimated at $14,680,716.
The Narcotics Unit includes agents who investigate mid-level and street-level drug crimes. They respond to citizen complaints, conduct tactical patrols, undercover operations, and short and long-term investigations.
In a cooperative endeavor agreement, the two departments share work space and expenses. City officers are deputized by the Sheriff to extend their jurisdiction into the parish. Sheriff's deputies already have jurisdiction within the city.
Working under the same roof isn’t the only change agents have seen over the past 10 years. The types of drugs they find on the streets are changing too.
In 2007, agents seized a new form of heroin called “cheese” that was blamed for the deaths of numerous teen-agers in the Dallas area. Local agents seized about 93 grams of the drug, marijuana, methamphetamine, heroin, cash, and guns.
In 2013, they recovered 34 pounds of synthetic marijuana and $634,482 in cash during a long-term investigation that ended with state charges.
