PAGO PAGO (Pacnews) — The acting chief of customs in American Samoa, Jim Butler, says crystal methamphetamine, or “ice,” is the territory’s most serious drug problem.
It’s an easy drug to hide and it’s hard to intercept by humans, but not by trained dogs.
Butler is trying to secure funding to get canine customs agents to help intercept drug imports. He said the cost of two dogs and the training of handlers will be somewhere around $170,000 and he is hopeful that the U.S. Customs will provide some funding.
Butler, who has just returned from the annual conference of Pacific Rim customs offices in Hawaii, says the events of Sept. 11 have focused surveillance attention on terrorism, but combating drug trafficking is still a priority.
