Narcotics Buy Operation (From Criminal and Civil Investigation Handbook, P 8-41 to 8-48, 1981, Joseph J Grau and Ben Johnson, ed. - See NCJ-84274)

• NCJ Number: 84327
• Author(s): V J Geberth
• Date Published: 1981
• Length: 8 pages
• Sale Source: McGraw-Hill Publishing Co
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: *This document is currently unavailable from NCJRS. Reprinted from 'Law and Order,' V 27, N 1, January 1979.

Annotation

This discussion of the narcotics buy operation considers setting up the operation, documenting the narcotics buy, and the tactical plan and sketch.

Abstract

A tactical plan should include an initial survey of the area where the buy is to occur to identify appropriate vantage points for observers and note patterns of activity and dress at the site. The team meeting should be planned for the day of the buy, so that all information needed for the operation is fresh in the minds of the participants. The undercover officer and the informant should be known to every member of the team. A written description of assignments should be composed, and a proposed meet location after the buy should be established. A critique of the buy should be conducted after all evidence has been secured. The best documentation of the buy is the taped recording of the transaction. Information to be gained in communications between the undercover agent and the seller should be clear beforehand. Backup officers should prepare official reports, and the supervisor should designate a case officer, whose responsibility will be to maintain and update the official case folder. A drawing of the location where the buy is to occur, indicating the street locations and traffic flow, is a valuable visual aid in explaining and clarifying the assignments of the personnel who will be taking part in the operation.