How to Become a DEA Agent in Mississippi by Meeting Requirements

Mississippi is in the middle of a high-intensity drug trafficking region. The Gulf Coast High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) includes the Mississippi counties of Hancock, Hinds, Harrison and Jefferson. This site is the location of DEA operations intent on disrupting the flow of cocaine, marijuana, methamphetamine and heroin that comes into the country through the international waterways surrounding this area. DEA careers in Mississippi are spent dismantling drug trafficking operations in the state by enlisting the help of the Mississippi Highway Patrol, the Mississippi Department of Transportation, the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics, local law enforcement, and drug task forces.

How to Become a DEA Agent in Mississippi by Meeting Requirements

Before applying to become a DEA agent in Mississippi, candidates should have an advanced law degree (such as an L.L.B. or J.D.) A bachelor’s degree with specialized experience in areas including maritime, flight or foreign languages may be acceptable. Additionally, at least one year of experience in drug/narcotic investigations is necessary.  Becoming a DEA agent in Mississippi requires much training, even for those who meet these strict requirements.

Mississippi is part of the DEA’s New Orleans Division. The state houses a District Office in Jackson and Resident Offices in Oxford and Gulfport. For recruiting information, contact Special Agent Don Holmes at (504) 840-1280.

Major Drug Busts in Mississippi

The DEA has conducted and/or assisted in some major drug bust operations in Mississippi in the past few years. One such operation occurred in Jackson in September 2012, and involved the indictment of three men for intent to distribute cocaine. Another large drug bust occurred in March 2012, and targeted a money laundering and marijuana distribution operation in the Jackson area. In this operation, DEA agents and law enforcement officials seized thousands of pounds of marijuana, $854,000 in cash, three houses, 12 cars, jewelry, 10 tractor trucks and eight tractor trailers.

The Gulf Coast of Mississippi, in Hancock County, was the site of a major drug bust in September 2011. Officials stopped the transportation of 7000 pounds of marijuana on a tractor-trailer. In August 2011, a major drug ring bust with ties as far away as Amsterdam was dismantled in Mississippi, involving marijuana and oxycodone. The operation originated from the Hattiesburg area of Mississippi.

Major Drugs of Abuse in Mississippi

Per the 2009 Mississippi Drug Threat Assessment report, cocaine and methamphetamine are two of the biggest drugs of abuse in Mississippi. A January 2013 report from the director of the Hancock County Narcotics Task Force, however, notes that that county’s largest drug abuse problem stems from prescription painkillers. Hydrocodone, oxycodone and methadone are three of the major drugs of abuse in this area. Methamphetamine remains a big problem in Mississippi, but with the state’s recent enacting of the Sudafed law, it is illegal to obtain pseudoephedrine, a component of methamphetamine, without a prescription. This law has halted some of the methamphetamine producers’ businesses in Mississippi.

Other areas of the state, however, have noted that the Sudafed law has done little to curb the production of methamphetamine. In Pearl River County, Mississippi, the Sheriff’s Department’s Chief Investigator says that methamphetamine is still a large problem, due to the county’s close proximity to Louisiana (where it is easier to obtain pseudoephedrine).

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