Police Plan To Continue Undercover Drug Investigations

By Andrew Gorosko

Although the annual stipend that the state will pay the town for the town’s participation in the state police’s Statewide Narcotics Task Force (SNTF) will decrease significantly, Police Commission members say the town will continue its involvement in the organization, which conducts undercover drug investigations across the state.

Police Chief Michael Kehoe told Police Commission members July 5 that recent state funding cuts mean that the state will only provide a stipend of $1,200 to the town during fiscal 2005-06 for one local police officer’s participation in the undercover activities. Until now, the state had paid the town a $2,000 annual stipend for such participation.

Chief Kehoe said that although the stipend would decrease, the police department should continue participating in the undercover investigations.

Police Commission member Richard Simon said, “We need to keep doing this.”

In a discussion, Police Commission members concurred that the town’s participating in the SNTF organization provides local police officers with good experience in undercover drug investigations, plus provides networking opportunities with other law enforcement organizations.

Besides Mr Simon, members Gerald Finnegan and Duane Giannini were present at the July 6 session. They unanimously agreed to have the police department continue participating in the SNTF program.

Many municipal police departments across the state participate in SNTF activities.

Typically, the town has one police officer assigned to SNTF. Officers who have participated in the undercover operations often have later advanced in rank in the police department. The police department has 43 members.

The SNTF mission is to enforce state law concerning the manufacture, distribution, sale, and possession of narcotics and controlled substances. The organization is divided into an administrative section with five regional field offices covering the eastern, south central, northwestern, north central, and southwestern regions of the state, according to state police.

The administrative section coordinates and supervises SNTF policies, procedures, investigations, finances, manpower allocations, and liaisons with other law enforcement agencies.

SNTF focuses its efforts on “street dealers” and their suppliers to reduce and deter increasing street violence and other crimes related to drug sale and use within cities and towns. SNTF also targets “low- to middle-level” dealers, and/or those who profit from the illegal drug trade. Investigations include the use of wiretaps, according to state police.

With the exception of participating municipal police officers’ salaries, all other SNTF expenses for personnel, facilities, vehicles, equipment, confidential expenditure funds, and civil liability are absorbed by the state, or covered through the use of drug asset forfeiture funds, according to state police.

Within the SNTF network, information on drug investigations is freely exchanged among various law enforcement organizations. SNTF started operations in July 1977.