Increased patrols at Amtrak depot result in more drug arrests - Galesburg Register-Mail

Since Galesburg Police officers began daily crime interdiction at the Amtrak Depot in 2011, the amount of drugs seized in Galesburg has skyrocketed.

So far this year, officers have seized six times more cannabis than in 2010, from 502 grams two years ago to 3,245 grams through Nov. 15, according to data from the police department.

Drug-related arrests at the depot tripled from 2011 to 2012 and increased almost tenfold since 2010.
However, as officers' daily presence at the depot becomes more known throughout Galesburg, police have to find new ways to deter criminals, said K-9 Officer Lane Mings.

"It's effective, but with the local people, it's not as effective," Mings said. "They see the stories in the newspaper and, eventually, they find other ways."

While Mings and fellow K-9 officer Bob Sweeney attempt to be at the station each day for the two regular trains, there is an ebb-and-flow to how often they arrest someone.

"We have spurts," Mings said. "We can go two or three weeks and not get anything, and then we might be able to go a month and hit seven or eight."

This month alone, police have uncovered almost 750 grams of cannabis during crime interdiction at the Amtrak Depot. On Nov. 6, police arrested 35-year-old Justin P. Smith-Sorrells of Moline after the man attempted to avoid officers by illegally crossing the railroad tracks when he got off the train.

Smith-Sorrells allowed police to search his suitcase after a K-9 officer had a positive alert on the bag. Inside, officers found containers covered in fabric softener sheets containing 72 grams of cannabis.
Less than one week later, three more men were arrested at the station after officers found them carrying a total 1.5 pounds of cannabis.

Jeremy Tegen, 26, was charged with possession of 500-2,000 grams and intent to deliver 500-2,000 grams of cannabis after officers uncovered four one-gallon bags filled with cannabis and chocolate, which was used as an odor-masking agent.

The two other men, Charles Jones, 27, and Shane Smith, 35, surrendered more than 140 grams of cannabis for personal use and were each issued citations.

Officers watch passengers as they exit the train, keeping an eye out for unusual behavior that sets people apart from the crowd, Mings said.

For example, Smith-Sorrells was the third person officers caught carrying drugs due to his illegal crossing over railroad tracks, Mings said.

"There's certain stuff we look for, but we don't want people to know how we do it," he said. "You don't give away your secret recipe."

However, there are certain behaviors, like taking an unusual path to avoid officers or having a shaky hand, that give people away, Mings said.

That's how police caught a California man carrying 516 grams of heroin in August. Officers observed Donny Soul, 62, walking at a much faster pace than other passengers and avoiding eye contact with officers as he dodged the K-9 unit by taking an unusual route.

When police stopped Soul and questioned him, K-9 Ares had a positive alert on a Soul's large purple suitcase, which was carrying a vacuum bag of black tar heroin.

It's common for officers to stop and chat with a passenger who is acting suspiciously, Mings said.
"We just make contact with them, ask how they're doing and where they're coming from," Mings said. "Just typical questions to see how they react."

The daily interdiction at the depot is paying off for the department. GPD's total number of drug-related arrests increased from 356 in 2010 to 397 so far in 2012.

At the Amtrak Depot specifically, there were just a couple of arrests each year before 2011, when the number rose to nine arrests.

So far in 2012, the number of drug-related arrests at the station has tripled to 27.

But the K-9 officers don't just focus on the depot; from traffic stops to buses, the two officers and their K-9 units are in high demand. In fact, the largest drug bust of the year was on the interstate, Mings said.
"It's any mass transit that takes place," Mings said. "It's everything — that's interdiction."

And the benefits extend beyond the city and through the state of Illinois, Mings said.

"Say you're from Peoria and you want to go to California," he said. "You have to go through here. Davenport, Moline, Decatur, Champaign. You have to go through Galesburg."