A collaboration with the Indiana Drug Enforcement Association (IDEA) will provide the funding needed for regional interdiction teams.

IDEA and highway interdiction teams (HITs) are comprised of officers and drug-sniffing dogs that are cracking down on criminals in Indiana who use the states thoroughfares to do their business.

Attorney General Hill said; “We need to fight the drug crisis on many fronts, including prevention and treatment.  “By increasing interdiction, we are both reducing the number of illicit drugs flowing into our communities and simultaneously sending a strong message to those who choose the Crossroads of America to carry out criminal activity: You will pay a heavy price for trafficking drugs in Indiana. Officers and deputies are out in force looking for you every day.”

West Lafayette Police Chief Jason Dombkowski agrees with Hill, saying that he knows the efforts made by these teams are making a difference.

All in the month of April, HITs conducted 273 drug-related investigations. These investigations led to 16 arrests, 12 pounds of marijuana seized, and a pound of methamphetamine seized. Pills and cocaine with a street value of more than $65,000 as well as a handgun and $16,000 cash were among other items that were confiscated.

So far, eight police cars and five police K-9s have been purchased for agencies to use. Also purchased were tracking software, two-way radios and emergency police equipment such as lights and sirens.