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It is not uncommon for enterprising young men to consider dealing drugs to make ends meet.
This is especially true for those that are busted-ass broke and just one bad day from having to give their landlord a handjob to stay current on the rent.
For some, slinging drugs seems like the most logical step for raking in relatively decent amounts of cash, while others just want to become the next Scarface.
Some of these movers-and-shakers figure that as long as they can keep the business small – selling only to close associates –they can rise above the poverty class in a matter of months.
What’s more, is they think that by playing it smart – and all of them think they are fucking geniuses to some degree – evading law enforcement will be a cinch.
So there is no way in Hell they would ever be sent to prison where they’d eventually have to make good with that handjob just to stay alive.
But this drug dealing lifestyle isn’t always like it is portrayed in the movies.
A person just can’t go out there and start selling meth because they’ve watched all five seasons of “Breaking Bad” two or three times in a row. It takes years to build the kind of operation that hums along seamlessly without problems erupting at every turn.
And, as we have seen in the case of Walter “Heisenberg” White and his meth-cooking sidekick Jessie Pinkman, even the best drug-selling business model still comes with its fair share of headaches, low-points, and near-death experiences.
It makes all the sense in the world that most successful drug dealers are the ones who aren’t afraid to do whatever it takes to survive another day.
They will lie, cheat, steal, and even kill to advance their business a little further and, most importantly, stay out of police custody.
Still, no matter how well-aligned a drug-selling operation might be, no matter what lengths a drug dealer might go to remain unscathed, there is always a high risk of it getting demolished at a moment’s notice.
The thing about selling drugs, regardless of whether it is a small-time operation or one that rivals a large corporation, is that a vast majority of the customers cannot be trusted to keep their mouths shut.
This is true, even if a young dealer just starts out selling eight balls to his buddies on the weekends, keeping the dealings slow and low as to avoid attracting any unwanted attention.
But, you see, a drug dealer is only as smart as his dumbest customer, so the risk of getting nabbed by police only amplifies each time another junkie gets in on the action.
Even the most loyal, ride-or-die customer is destined to turn into a spineless piece of shit, giving up everything and everybody they know, if the cops happen to bust them with drugs. There is no honor among thieves, and this goes double when those thieves are also drug addicts scared of what might happen to them if they go to jail. And don’t think the cops won’t exploit that fear.
Legal experts say it could go down as follows:
“The process involves catching someone selling or in possession of drugs,” said New York-based criminal lawyer Robert King. “Almost immediately, the defendant is offered some kind of deal, which usually includes their release on certain predetermined conditions, like providing information to the police that would allow the arrest of a bigger drug dealer. Theoretically, the defendant is spilling the beans on their sources, who are arrested, and then turn in their sources to save themselves from more severe consequences.”
It is for this reason that any “word on the street” regarding a drug dealer is bad for business.
All it takes is for one person to mention a name, and the cops (local, state or federal) add another suspected drug dealer to their shit list. If the name gets brought up time and again, that suspicion could be enough for police to launch a full-blown investigation into the matter.
And that’s not good. Because at that juncture, the chances of a dealer getting caught become elevated to the point where some severe savoir-faire needs to be employed to stay free.
This is when one must be prepared to either abandon ship or get involved in a high-stakes game of cat and mouse. The dealer is going to need some killer instincts, while also exercising immense caution unlike any ever seen since Joe Pesci in “Casino” when playing with the boys holding the handcuffs.
A strong stomach doesn’t hurt either.
If police suspect a person is dealing drugs, they may start monitoring their comings and goings to get a grip on their activity. They might employ the use of a GPS tracker to keep tabs on them day and night.
If they collect enough preliminary evidence to get a judge to sign off on a warrant, that’s when the big guns come out.
They will put a wiretap on landlines, use Stingrays and other surveillance devices to monitor cell phone activity, keeping tabs on every single person the possible suspect is talking and texting with daily.
Now everyone the dealer knows can be used as a pawn in this game.
It is also not unheard of for police to monitor a suspect’s utility usage.
Everyone has a high electric bill, sure, but someone who is growing weed or processing dope uses more than the average person.
That’s just one of the reasons that illegal cannabis grow operations (or any other for that matter) should never be done from a personal residence. Even if no one is talking, the house will.
But more than using sophisticated technology to make drug busts, the most potent technique a law enforcement agency has when it comes to taking down drug dealers is the information it receives from other dealers and those caught in possession of drugs.
These narcs are often persuaded to become confidential informants to help build a case against the big dogs. So being, a drug dealer a lot of times means not being able to trust anyone.
This can make for a lonely existence.
Therefore, the better a dealer knows how to remain anonymous, the better his chances are at staying two-steps ahead of the law.
Yet, there’s always going to be somebody capable of throwing the entire operation into a state of upheaval.
The trick is to identify those issues in advance and run damage control.
If a drug dealer isn’t capable of managing his environment, you’d better believe that the end game for them is either going to be a lengthy prison sentence or an early grave.
So, no, being a drug dealer isn’t easy. Perhaps a job with the CIA might be more your speed?
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Mike Adams is a freelance writer for High Times, Cannabis Now, and Forbes. You can follow him on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
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