Drugs, Inc.: San Francisco Meth Zombies (Full Episode)

COLBY: I'm a junky escort,
that's how I'm marketed,

as a slamming,
er, leather whore.

That's what I have to be if I
wanna keep the money coming.

I have to have more drugs.

Like I'm panicking right
now because this is gonna be

the last of it right here.

NARRATOR: Colby has been using
crystal meth for 13 years.

Now he injects himself
three times a day.

COLBY: I shoot about
half a gram at a time.

Most people that do that would
be just like out of their mind.

It usually doesn't cost me too
much because I usually trade

my ass for drugs.

If I had to buy it,
probably about...

...like 150 a day. So

...it's like pure
ecstasy over your whole body

and you immediately just feel
like really sexual and like

just really grrrrrr.
Just like an animal.

Lot of gay people do it
too, just have sex parties

it's easy to find in
the gay community.

If I wanna do it, I just offer
to have sex with who knows,

who cares.

NARRATOR: The epicentre of the
'60s psychedelic revolution,

San Francisco was
notorious for drugs.

But in the new millennium,
the summer of love has become

the winter of addiction.

And in the heart of the city
the gay community is struggling

to recover from a meth epidemic.

COLBY: It's all
over the streets.

You can get it anywhere.

NARRATOR: An entire subculture
known as 'Party and Play'

is based around
methamphetamine use.

Gay websites are used to arrange
meetings with strangers to take

crystal meth and have sex
sometimes for days on end.

COLBY: I get on five different
websites and I just go from

one to the next.

You see an ad and it's got
the T capitalised and you know

they're partying or whatever,
it says blowing clouds

which is smoking it.

Or let's get to the
point means they're ...

... they're ...
into slamming it.

And it's usually always
associated with sex.

NARRATOR: Colby is HIV positive,
but his life still revolves

around sex and meth.

COLBY: There's just
something about it.

Goes hand-in-hand
with being gay.

I can't remember the last
time I had sex without it.

It's almost ready.

NARRATOR: Colby charges $200 an
hour specialising in the most

extreme fetishes.

COLBY: There's a guy in there
and he sends me money just

for drugs. Sometimes
$1,000 at a time.

But he wants it always
spent on crystal meth.

I, in exchange, make
videos of me shooting up.

That's what turns
him on the most.

NARRATOR: He spends his earnings
on drugs and lives homeless on

the street only renting a
room when he needs to shoot

a video.

COLBY: Here we go.
Ah ... Ah, damn it! Ah

NARRATOR: In low doses
meth increases energy.

COLBY: BLEEP I
didn't get all of it.

I don't wanna waste it either.
BLEEP

NARRATOR: In higher doses
it can induce euphoria.

COLBY: I feel extremely
like hot, a hot feeling,

um ... I feel good.

I'm gonna try and get the rest
of this in. That was a big one.

NARRATOR: The initial high
is known as 'the rush'.

COLBY: Normally I would
be playing with myself ...

BLEEP That's what
I generally do right after,

usually have guys
around ready to BLEEP.

NARRATOR: Once the
rush has subsided ...

COLBY: I'm very antsy.

Like I get very antsy, I don't
wanna ... I can't sit still.

NARRATOR: ... the
adrenalin-like effects kick in.

COLBY: Coo ... I have a
lot of energy right now,

I just wanna ...
whooosh ... oh man,

I have ... phwoar ... my head
... oh ... My mouth is like

extremely dry all of a sudden.
My head hurts.

Just a little bit will
keep me up like three days.

You can't eat, you can't sleep.

Oh I've been up for
eight days before.

NARRATOR: As the meth takes
hold, addicts lives fall apart.

COLBY: I used to
make straight As.

I was always like student of
the year; didn't do any drugs;

went to Church all the time ...

... now, I am homeless, a
prostitute, a major junkie.

It's out of control.
It's like I cannot stop.

It's killing me.

ICEMAN: That BLEEP
destroys lives, man.

But that's the choice
they BLEEP make.

NARRATOR: The Asian Cartel has
been poisoning San Francisco

with meth for almost 25 years.

ICEMAN: We started the Shab
movement here in the Bay area

... then it all started
really in South of Market.

We were the first ones
to get the process done.

Before, they just had
like a lot of raw crank.

We would process it, take it
to a vacuum pump, clean it,

wash it, and it came
out like shards.

You had one shard that was like
probably as big as a plate.

NARRATOR: Once cooked, the Asian
Cartel's product is distributed

by car to one of their six
safe houses within the city.

ICEMAN: The areas that we pretty
much take care of, you know,

the Tenderloin, South of Market,
the Sunset, the Richmond area.

San Francisco is 44
percent Asian, so,

we have a big market here.

We're 50 strong in this one
particular operation ...

... and we're all over the city.

NARRATOR: The Asian Cartel run
two meth super labs in the city.

One, is over 10,000 square feet.

ICEMAN: They're producing
20/30 pounds a week.

The amount of money that
they're making is pretty large.

Anywhere from a
million to three.

NARRATOR: In San
Francisco's meth trade,

there's very little
peace and love.

ICEMAN: Out of 10 dealers, maybe
two will survive throughout the

bleep and that's if they're
really, really lucky.

We're about our bread.

As long as you don't BLEEP
with our money, you know,

we're good with you, we ain't
got no problems with you.

NARRATOR: Like ninjas of
the American Underworld,

the Asian Cartel prefers to
remain hidden in the shadows.

ICEMAN: We don't stand
on the street corner,

that's just now who
the BLEEP we are.

That to us is just
sheer stupidity.

You get the guy, he might get
caught with like an eighth

and pretty soon he's gonna
start giving more BLEEP up.

Why go to the pen when
you can send a friend?

That's the ideology of other
races, that' s not our ideology.

If you have the good shards,
or good Shabu or good glass ...

... your product
speaks for itself.

You don't need to
look for clients.

NARRATOR: But the Asian Cartel's
grip on San Francisco's meth

trade is under threat.

The secret of their cooking
process has gotten into

the wrong hands.

ICEMAN: A couple of our guys
showed some of the Mexicans

on how to cook ...

... which BLEEP it
all up for all of us,

and the Mexican Cartel, they
just cut through the chase

and they just started
making crystal on their own.

NARRATOR: Now the Mexican
Cartels are intent

on taking over.

Super labs hidden in the
depths of Mexico have perfected

the process of industrial
meth production ...

... flooding the streets of San
Francisco with super strength

meth at a fraction of the cost.

Chronic meth use is on the move.

Once a party drug popular
on the rave scene,

crystal meth is now so
cheap it's replacing crack

as the favorite high
of the down and out.

Only a few miles
from the Castro,

hordes of meth addicts gather in
one of the worst drug ghettos

in the whole of America
The Tenderloin.

CHRISTY HENZI: San Francisco
has a significant drug problem.

You only need to walk through
the Tenderloin to see that.

NARRATOR: It's Probation's
job to keep recently released

prisoners on the
straight and narrow.

But in a city saturated
with meth, it's not easy.

CHRISTY HENZI: A lot of
our clients hang out

in the Tenderloin.

So yeah, we spend a lot of
time rolling around and see

if we can make contact.

The average age is about 40,
the majority of them are male,

and so they have had a long
history of substance abuse.

NARRATOR: Today CHRISTY
and David are scouring

the Tenderloin for a recently
released meth addict

who's failed to turn
up for his treatment.

CHRISTY HENZI: This is one of
the blocks where there's a lot

of illegal narcotic action.

We see a lot of hand to hand
sales going on.

... it's really saturated.

NARRATOR: A 50 block area
right in the heart of downtown

San Francisco, the Tenderloin
has long been an notoriously

violent drug supermarket.

But few drugs have caused
as much mayhem as meth,

and the Tenderloin is
plumbing new depths.

CHRISTY HENZI: We've seen
an increase in clients

that are addicted
to methamphetamine.

A new strand out on the street
and it's very addictive

and it's causing ...

... them to have
extreme paranoia.

NARRATOR: CHRISTY's department
is feeling the effects of

the recent flood of extra potent
Mexican meth on the market.

CHRISTY HENZI: They'll come
in convinced that somebody's

following 'em, trying to
kill them and there's really

no calming them down.

So it's really
difficult to navigate...

...that psychosis.

NARRATOR: As a
probation officer,

CHRISTY has seen horrific
effects that even short term

meth use can have on the body.

CHRISTY HENZI: Some of
our clients develop sores

on their face from scratching
...

... physically, it's a
very, er, damaging drug.

Hair gets brittle and
they've lost their teeth.

Literally like zombies.

NARRATOR: And like zombies, the
denizens of the Tenderloin come

alive at night.

MAN #1: He just took a hit,
right here on the block.

And you can go up this street
and you will see lighters going.

All of 'em standing out here
taking their last little hits.

Some of 'em then picked
up off the ground,

don't know whatever it is.
They tweaking so hard out here.

METH GIRL: Somebody told me when
I first moved here a couple

of months ago, people
don't come here to live,

they come here to die.

I'm hoping that I don't make
that statistic true, you know.

I got my addictions and
it's tough out here.

MAN #2: A lot of us have been
tricked in thinking the thing

is selling dope and all of
that is an American dream.

It's not. It's feeding
our penal system.

MAN #3: That's the only outlet
that we have, is to sell drugs.

Prostitution for the
women, drugs for the men.

This is the destruction of the
whole community right here.

GANG MEMBER: I'm going
on a perimeter check,

man I'll see you later

NARRATOR: This footage from
a safe house in the heart

of the Tenderloin
was shot by a gang member.

GANG MEMBER: Secure
that door, man.

This how we living, man
That's grade A product,

man You see that there, man

NARRATOR: On the street this
pound of crystalized Mexican

super meth is worth
almost £100,000.

GANG MEMBER: Check out thisxxxx,
man This is what it is, man

We eat, man look at that
there, man Oh man that's work,

man Look at that there,
man come on, man.

Check out thisxxxx, man
This is what it is, man

NARRATOR: Heading up a
sizeable operation is Chi.

CHI: I manufacture crank.

Crystal Cheese I mean whatever
you choose to call it

We got a nice little
operation going on here

NARRATOR: Crews like Chi's are
receiving industrial strength

raw meth from Mexico which
they manufacture into crystals.

CHI: Look at that there,
man those shards, man

NARRATOR: A process
known as re-rocking.

CHI: Look at that man, that's
grade A Crystal right there, man

NARRATOR: They churn out 10 to
15 pounds every single week.

CHI: It ain't much to some guys,
man but it's enough for us, man

NARRATOR: It's enough to supply
not just the Tenderloin,

but also Daly City the
largest city in neighbouring

San Mateo County.

CHI: We're doing that
on a weekly basis,

man You're looking
at $100,000 man,

on the minimum It depends
on how we serve it,

man but bottom line, man We want
to see them six digits and we

won't see nothing else, man 'cos
that's what we're striving for

NARRATOR: An operation like this
requires some serious muscle.

CHI: We got fifteen to twenty
plus on the payroll That's

about the size of our mob Is
fifteen to twenty of us but

CHI: Yeah

GANG MEMBER: You
alright up in there?

CHI: Yeah we alright,
brother Good looking out,

brother Safety, that's
first and foremost

NARRATOR: Born into
the drug trade,

Chi puts his success
down to experience.

CHI: This is what I was born to
do this is all I've ever known

This is all I was ever raised
around this is all I've seen

in life so I guess that's what
makes me so good at what I do,

man That's why we
eating round here,

man Product speaks for itself,
man Look at that joint there man

NARRATOR: By using crews like
Chi's to flood the streets with

cheap industrial super meth, the
Mexican Cartels have succeeded

in creating a whole new
market for their product.

That's work, man San Francisco's
finest, man We eating, man

NARRATOR: To supply
their new market,

the Mexican Cartels have
established a drug superhighway

that runs from the Mexican
Border towards the Bay area,

injecting meth right into
the heart of San Francisco.

But there's one choke point ...

... and that's where
Sergeant Bonsall is waiting.

SERGEANT BONSALL: I would
say 95 to 98 percent of the

methamphetamine in this area
comes from Mexico across

the border.

... copy, and I'm, er, heading
to back to our location.

NARRATOR: Sergeant Bonsall
and his team are working

to infiltrate and disrupt the
Cartels distribution network.

It's painstaking and risky.

SERGEANT BONSALL: Today we're
strictly doing surveillance

on a mid- level distributor.
This particular target is...

... picking up anywhere from
a pound to a half a pound

of methamphetamine
every three days.

Today we're just trying to make
our suspect go into the door

that we believe
that he's living.

NARRATOR: The cops suspect
that the dealer is using

his transgender roommate's
apartment as a stash house.

SERGEANT BONSALL:
According to our source,

he's putting out about
$4,000 every three days.

So he's probably making a
couple of grand profit a week.

So, he's paying his bills.

NARRATOR: If the cops can
confirm that this is where the

dealer is staying, a judge will
issue a warrant for a raid.

The Sergeant also has
intel on the dealer's car.

SERGEANT BONSALL: Copy,
I got 4 BLEEP 620.

We're expecting an arrival
of a black Mercedes, um,

that our target drives.

It's not here at the
target location now, so,

and we're just waiting.

NARRATOR: To get
this information,

the team have already 'flipped'
a lower level dealer.

The Sergeant is hoping that
busting this dealer will

take them even higher.

SERGEANT BONSALL: Our main
objective is to go up the ladder

Eventually it'll work
to the cell boss ...

of the Cartel, whoever's
providing those narcotics

down the line.

NARRATOR: He may be
only a mid-level dealer,

but Bonsall suspects that he
could lead them all the way

to the Sinaloa Cartel.

The Sinaloas use the same
organizational structure

as terrorists.

SERGEANT BONSALL:
They're very organized.

There might be 15 cells of
cartel dealers

in Northern California.

Each one of those cells will
have contact with the cartel

across the border, but each cell
may not know that the other

cell's operating.

NARRATOR: This makes them
almost impossible to stamp out.

If one cell is caught, it cannot
give evidence on another.

SERGEANT BONSALL: The Cartel
in Mexico is sending hundreds

of pounds of methamphetamine
to these cells to distribute

throughout all of
Northern California.

NARRATOR: Despite being
500 miles from Mexico,

the Bay area is still
very much Cartel turf.

SERGEANT BONSALL: We definitely
have Cartel connected people

at the top ...

... running these, um, cells
and these organisations

on this side of the border.

If we can keep 'em
out of our area,

it'll make it harder for
them to operate in our area,

that's our goal.

RADIO VOICE: ... change ...

SERGEANT BONSALL: Copy,
no change, go ahead.

NARRATOR: The dealer's black
Mercedes is not showing.

SERGEANT BONSALL: It
is now almost 5.15.

We've been sitting in these cars
for the past six and a half

hours with not much action.

NARRATOR: Just as the cops are
on the verge of calling it

a night, there's a
sign of activity.

SERGEANT BONSALL: Point,
you copy? Trannie is out.

You should have her walking
Southbound black sweater,

I think over red shirt,
black pants, blonde hair.

RADIO VOICE: ... pulling in now.

SERGEANT BONSALL: Yeah, see that
Merc ... Mercedes coming in?

NARRATOR: Then within minutes
the black Mercedes arrives.

SERGEANT BONSALL: Target
vehicle's pulling into

the driveway now.
Get our driver side door open.

RADIO VOICE: Driver's
side door is open.

NARRATOR: It's critical the
team get 100 percent ID,

so the Sergeant sends a
detective in on foot.

RADIO VOICE: ... vehicle ...

NARRATOR: Hood up for disguise.

RADIO VOICE: I have him
going up the stairs now ...

SERGEANT BONSALL: Somebody
going up the stairs ...

NARRATOR: But if the
target gets suspicious,

it could blow the
entire operation.

SERGEANT BONSALL: Affirmative,
you have eyes on the suspect?

RADIO VOICE: Affirmative.

SERGEANT BONSALL: Make
the door and we're good.

RADIO VOICE: Copy, I got
him going in the door now.

NARRATOR: After nine hours
of surveillance the team

can finally link the
suspect to this address.

SERGEANT BONSALL: Took a lot
longer than we thought

it was gonna take, but our
search warrant is iron clad.

We have to make sure that we
get somebody else behind bars.

NARRATOR: For the moment, the
drug superhighway remains

wide open and raw super meth
from Mexico is pouring

into the Bay area.

Once the meth is re-rocked
in local stash houses,

it's distributed to street
dealers back in the Tenderloin.

BAYOU: My office is located
on the corner of Turk

and Leavenworth.
And I guess you could say

... my job is make
money and get high.

I buy wholesale
and I sell retail.

NARRATOR: Bayou has been
dealing in the Tenderloin

for over 30 years.

BAYOU: What I do is
called supply and demand.

I supply what's in demand
and that's how I survive.

NARRATOR: His career has
followed drug trends.

In the '80s he sold coke;
in the '90s it was crack.

And the 2000's he slung smack.

Nowadays he's shifting
more and more crystal meth.

BAYOU: What we have here
is a bag of crystal,

they call it TT here
in San Francisco.

Crystal meth is one of the
cheapest products out there.

NARRATOR: Bayou pays $800 for
half an ounce at wholesale.

BAYOU: It makes 700 profit.

NARRATOR: Dealing funds Bayou's
crippling addictions to crack,

meth and heroin.

BAYOU: I spend 300
a day on habit.

This piece here is what I
choose to call my personal,

because I don't want nobody
to get this from here.

This is going in my buttocks.

They say once you go
black, you don't go back.

Ooh, doesn't that look
pretty, like a pretty woman.

Now you see it, now you don't.

NARRATOR: Like most
dealers in the Tenderloin,

he's working just to keep
the withdrawals at bay.

BAYOU: If I could
have a breakfast,

this would be my breakfast.
Breakfast on a brillo I call it.

And that's pretty much what
my life consists of.

I smoke, I poke and I get money.

NARRATOR: With the streets of
San Francisco awash with Mexican

super meth, the number of
addicts and dealers is higher

than ever.

San Francisco was pioneering
a new system called

'The Realignment'.

Street level drug criminals
remain in the community where

they are encouraged
through treatment,

into jobs by Probation Officers
like CHRISTY and Tommy.

CHRISTY HENZI: We approach it
with a social work philosophy.

At the same time, we have to
be concerned for our safety.

NARRATOR: With the new strain
of super meth on the streets,

users can be more irrational
and violent than ever.

Today CHRISTY and Tommy are
hunting down a meth addict

who's failed to turn up
for his treatment.

CHRISTY HENZI: We don't know
what we're gonna encounter;

we don't know who
else is in the room.

All the officers in
my unit will be armed.

NARRATOR: Most probationers are
housed in cheap hotels in the

Tenderloin, right back in the
middle of the drug hell many

are trying to escape.

DAVID: Hey ...
TOMMY: Morning?

DAVID: What can I do?

CHRISTY HENZI: Do you have
anything in here you're not

supposed to have?

DAVID: Name some stuff
I'm not ... paraphernalia.

CHRISTY HENZI: I got you
sweetheart, I'll take it

from here.

Got some needles and a
little tie-off there,

and a little push; Torch.

DAVID: This is a lighter.

CHRISTY HENZI: Yeah, but
what are you using it for?

DAVID: For my cigarettes.

CHRISTY HENZI: So when's
the last time you used?

DAVID: Two days ago.
CHRISTY HENZI: Okay.

My issue is that I can't
let the taxpayers think

that we're providing a free
room to you so that you can

just get high So if you
wanna gather up your stuff

from the shower here we're
gonna you're gonna go down

there with us.
DAVID: You taking me to jail?

CHRISTY HENZI: Sir, if
I was gonna take you to jail

I'd tell you that.

NARRATOR: Under the new system
the Probation Officers are

on a mission to get him off
drugs not back in a cell.

CHRISTY HENZI: We're gonna take
him over to the Department of

Public Health and get him into
some outpatient treatment today.

NARRATOR: Like many of San
Francisco's street addicts,

he's switched from crack to meth
to get more bang for his buck.

DAVID: The crack was no
longer getting me high,

it's just getting me sick,
it was making me sick,

making my stomach hurt
now ... It's all garbage.

Most people are using
drugs to shield the pain.

I've lost everybody
in my family.

I have no living members
that know where I'm at.

They don't even know
if I'm dead or alive.

And ... and I did 10 years ,
like 10 years without having

anybody on the planet to send
me a stamp to say that we give

a rat ass about you.

NARRATOR: Despite his
addiction, David is free to go.

CHRISTY HENZI: He's gonna
start outpatient treatment,

so we feel confident that he's
gonna address his substance

abuse issue, and in turn,
he'll get to stay in his room

NARRATOR: While the Probation
Department throws out a life

line most people caught up in
San Francisco's drug trade

believe there is no escape.

SPIDER: I think I'll
never get out the ghetto.

I might be stuck here
for the rest of my life.

I might just die down here, who
knows? It's hard down here.

NARRATOR: Spider
works the Tenderloin,

collecting money
for a drug dealer.

SPIDER: The people they
don't pay I rough 'em up.

I might even give 'em a black
eye or break their jaw,

break a finger, arm,
it don't matter.

NARRATOR: For just $500 a month,
Spider has sold his soul.

SPIDER: There's a couple of
people I had to chase down

and I don't like to run.

If I run and I catch you,
it's gonna be worser.

You don't have it, I
got to break something.

NARRATOR: He's been working
the Tenderloin's drug trade

since he was 12.

SPIDER: When I was young I used
to watch my mother sell drugs

and I just grew into it.

I've just seen people
get shot out here ...

... I've seen
people get stabbed,

I saw the police get beat up.
I've seen people just go crazy.

I've seen people die on the
street with needles in their arm

I've seen people die with a
crack pipe in their mouth,

be their last hit and
the heart just stopped.

I've seen it. Seen it all.

NARRATOR: Many people in the
Tenderloin have lost at least

one loved one to the drug trade,
and Spider is no exception.

SPIDER: A man was coming to make
a purchase, want some drugs ...

... he came back and
shot my best friend.

Right in front of my face.
Shot the wrong person.

That took a lot out of me.
Think about him all the time.

NARRATOR: But life is
cheap in the Tenderloin,

and it doesn't take
much to spark a murder.

SPIDER: It could have been
$5, 10, $20, who knows.

I don't even know.

NARRATOR: Fifty miles
south of San Francisco,

Sergeant Bonsall has
received some urgent intel

on their meth dealer.

SERGEANT BONSALL: Our
suspect got in a fight

with his roommate, so the
roommate kicked him out.

NARRATOR: Bonsall has no choice
but to execute the search

warrant a day early.

SERGEANT BONSALL: We just
don't want to take the chance

of losing our crook.

NARRATOR: They must raid the
stash house before their suspect

disappears.

SERGEANT BONSALL: Copy that.

I'll be, er, coming
from east to west.

NARRATOR: Sergeant Bonsall and
his team plan to fake a routine

traffic stop on the
meth dealer's car.

BAYOU: There's our marked
unit right here, er,

who will be making
the car stop for us.

NARRATOR: Once they've
stopped the car,

they should find meth in it.

SERGEANT BONSALL: Copy then,
Point, stay where you're at

and I'll be there
in 30 seconds.

NARRATOR: This will give
them probable cause to raid

the suspected stash house.

SERGEANT BONSALL: We're waiting
for our suspect to leave

the house so we can
make this car stop.

We would like to
make the car stop ...

... a few blocks
away from here,

that way if anybody else that he
knew came by they won't see him.

We want it to look like
this is a lucky car stop

and the guy found narcotics.

It's all to protect
the informant.

NARRATOR: By using a
traffic stop as a cover,

Bonsall hopes to hide the fact
that an informant has led them

to the stash house.

RADIO VOICE: Target is
at the black Mercedes.

He's got a black duffle bag
and he's putting the duffle bag

into the trunk of the Mercedes.

SERGEANT BONSALL: Oh, he's
getting ready to leave in the

Mercedes, so, that's good news.

Looks like he's away southbound.

RADIO VOICE: He's
away southbound.

NARRATOR: Bonsall's
straight on his tail.

RADIO VOICE: 10-4 He immediately
pulled over to the side

NARRATOR: But the plan's
already gone wrong.

SERGEANT BONSALL: Okay, the
stop was made right there.

NARRATOR: As soon as
he saw the marked unit,

the suspect pulled over, forcing
the officer to arrest him right

outside his apartment.

RADIO VOICE: Hey, I may have
spotted the lady man on foot.

SERGEANT BONSALL: Well our
transvestite roommate is walking

round the corner right now.

NARRATOR: By chance , the
suspect's transgender roommate

has stumbled across the scene.

SERGEANT BONSALL: Our worry
is that the roommate will go

into the apartment and ...

... start flushing any evidence
that might still be upstairs.

Hey, where you at?

RADIO VOICE: I'm just ...

SERGEANT BONSALL: Copy. It is a
confirm on the roommate.

She did notice that that is
the target's car parked there.

She's just turned around
and headed back towards

the apartment.

NARRATOR: Police fear
that if the roommate returns

to the apartment she will
destroy evidence.

RADIO VOICE: parking lot, if she
comes through I'll detain her.

POLICE OFFICER: Right now we
have actually a search warrant.

TRANSVESTITE: Okay.
POLICE OFFICER: Okay. All right?

NARRATOR: Now their
cover is blown,

they need to move on
the apartment and fast.

SERGEANT BONSALL: the building
and tack up and then hit

the house.

NARRATOR: Any police entry into
a meth dealer's house is risky.

COP: Sheriff's office,
search warrant!

NARRATOR: They're often
armed and dangerous.

COP: Clear.

Clear.

Looks like it has already
been raided. Clear.

NARRATOR: Now the
search can begin.

SERGEANT BONSALL: In the
bedroom, just out in plain view,

we have found a line of
what appears to be crystal

methamphetamine,
prepared to be snorted.

NARRATOR: The team also
discovers a hide.

But it's empty.

COP: Combination safe.

SERGEANT BONSALL: Were you able
to talk him into a safe code?

NARRATOR: They desperately need
to find more evidence to build

a case.

SERGEANT BONSALL: At this point
we're waiting for a narcotics

canine to come in, give us
direction where to search

and see if we don't
miss anything.

DOG HANDLER: Good boy.

Yeah, somebody wanna
hit on the safe. Okay.

COP: You hit on the safe, you'll
get what's called a positive

alert on the safe.

Meaning there is narcotics or
was narcotics on the safe

at one point.

NARRATOR: The dealer has denied
any knowledge of the safe.

The team is running
out of options.

NARRATOR: Then a breakthrough.

In the suspect's car they
find a hidden compartment.

COP: So we've got us money
here in a hide in the vehicle.

One bankroll. Looks like we've
got another bindle of cash.

Good boy!

It's a narc dog, dog's not
trained to hit on money,

it's trained to
hit on narcotics,

so obviously this money's been
hand-in-hand with narcotics.

NARRATOR: Unless they find
a decent quantity of meth,

this dealer will probably walk.

COP: This was in the
suspect's back pack.

When you pull it off,
and then you have a hide.

And just right at the back you
have a methamphetamine pipe.

You have his baggies, but
they're gonna be used to package

the methamphetamine for sales.

And then you have the bulk
we have to call it stash.

The methamphetamine that
he has packaged for sale.

NARRATOR: Finally, they have
enough to put the suspect

behind bars.

SERGEANT BONSALL: Looks like
we've got a pretty decent amount

But I think we're gonna find
more in the safe that he says

he doesn't know anything about.

NARRATOR: Back at the station
the team finds another use

for the battering ram.

COP: What is that? There
must be chemicals in there.

SERGEANT BONSALL: Any time we
open up the unknown and there's

liquid in there and we're
dealing with methamphetamine,

we're concerned that
there is chemicals.

NARRATOR: The chemicals involved
in meth production are extremely

toxic.

COP: It's a meth pipe.
SERGEANT BONSALL: A meth...

COP: A meth water bong.

SERGEANT BONSALL: That, that
fluid will test positive

for methamphetamine.

COP: That's a
pretty heavy smell,

let's get this out of
this enclosed room.

NARRATOR: It looks like this
dealer has been icing small

amount of raw meth, coupled with
the crystal they found bagged up

for sale it's a useful bust.

SERGEANT BONSALL:
There's a gram.

They charge about $10 a point,
and a gram is 10 points.

This is 48.

I think it could be up to
$5,000 worth of narcotics here.

We'll see if this
will lead us to more.

NARRATOR: For
Bonsall and his team,

this dealer could be a crucial
link to the top of the chain

the Cartel's sale boss.

SERGEANT BONSALL: If we're able
to get this person's source,

we would expect to find multiple
pounds and then his guy will

have multiple kilos, and that
should lead us to the border.

NARRATOR: While the cops chase
the Sinaloa Cartel's shadow ...

... San Francisco's Asian Cartel
is diversifying to capitalize

on the Mexican takeover ...

ICEMAN: We have a pretty good
relationship with the Mexicans.

NARRATOR: ... offering cartels
like the Sinaloa access

to their distribution
network at a price.

ICEMAN: We have our own shipping
our own courier service.

We'll charge you $2,000 per
P to get to its destination.

We just know people
at the airport;

we know people at
the cargo ships.

We ship out to New York,
Florida, Chicago ...

... and there's quite a
few other places as well.

NARRATOR: The Sinaloa Cartel's
aggressive expansion into

San Francisco is part of
a long term plan the domination

of the entire US
crystal meth market.

ICEMAN: It's much easier to sell
out there cos the Bay area,

everything is saturated,
everybody's got crystal out here

NARRATOR: The Iceman has
carved out his own niche.

ICEMAN: I could be dirty for
like 30 minutes and all you are

is a go to guy ...

... kinda like the middle man,
just making things happen.

Of course you get
stuff intercepted,

that's part of the game.

And you can lose a batch
every now and then.

NARRATOR: For every batch
lost, a dozen make it through.

The Iceman now gets a cut
of business worth billions.

ICEMAN: If you're shipping, you
can make $500,000 in one month.

It's night and day.

NARRATOR: While the
cartels rake in the money,

the addicts on the
street pay the price.

Colby's last meth binge
ended in a severe comedown.

COLBY: I haven't been high in
five days and I've been asleep

the entire time. Oh God,
it's been horrible.

I have been uncontrollably
crying for no reason.

Really disoriented and dizzy.

NARRATOR: Forced into cold
turkey by lack of funds,

Colby has just received payment
for his last hard core video.

COLBY: I'm just now starting
to feel better from detoxing

from the drugs.

But, I'm gonna start the
cycle all over again.

NARRATOR: Even after the
comedown has passed,

long term users can remain
severely depressed and lethargic

for up to a year.

For many, the solution is
to get back on the meth

as quick as they can.

COLBY: 100, 20, 40, 60 ... 180.
All right! And there he is.

Some ... That's my dealer.

He has the drugs ready
and he's like eight blocks

down the street.

I'm very excited and I kind of
feel high already, just now,

just thinking about it. So

NARRATOR: Colby knows he should
take this opportunity to quit.

COLBY: I was having second
thoughts because I feel good.

It's been a long time since
I've actually detoxed.

And today I was
starting to feel better.

I can change my mind right now.
Should I? No.

NARRATOR: Given the choice of
feeling suicidal or feeling

high, for most addicts
the choice is obvious.

COLBY: Took about 20 seconds
and I ended up with this.

It's an eight ball,
it's about 3h grams.

NARRATOR: When you're
homeless like Colby,

it's easier to score the drugs
than it is to find a place

to inject them.

COLBY: I'm gonna go into this
outdoor toilet here and get high

It's very very hard to get
privacy when you're homeless.

Now, I'm gonna watch out
for that cleaning cycle.

Where is that needle.
That's a used one. Oh shoot!

Definitely not the most
hygienic place to do this.

It's very nerve-racking knowing
that there's hundreds of people

right outside this door.
Yeee-ip.

Here we go. Much anticipated.
Please don't clog.

Oh ... it's starting
the cleaning cycle,

you'll need to get out.

The toilet folded up and water
was about to start gushing

everywhere.
You can hear it in there.

And I came out with a
syringe in my mouth.

NARRATOR: Colby decides to head
to the Castro to find somewhere

quieter to shoot up.

COLBY: They're
always BLEEP locked.

NARRATOR: With so many meth
heads around in this city,

everyone locks their
portapotties ...

COLBY: Yeah, it's locked.
It's locked.

NARRATOR: forcing addicts to
shoot up in the most desperate

of places.

COLBY: I'm so frickin' paranoid.

I should not be doing
this at a church but...

Sirens going off.

Oh, what a life! Ouch!
BLEEP That burned that time.

Phew, my heart's
going 90 to nothing.

NARRATOR: Without the
cravings clouding his mind,

Colby realises what
his life has become.

COLBY: If my friends and family
saw me holed up in this little

corner here shooting up,
it would probably break

their hearts.

But this drug has just ...
it's gotten hold of me.

You know ... I love
it and I hate it.

NARRATOR: As Mexican super meth
spreads like a poison across

the states, Colby's story is
set to become one amongst

hundreds of thousands.