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Attorney General Katherine Hanaway touts ‘vice squad’ action on illegal gaming, synthetic opioid sellers
Summary
Attorney General Katherine Hanaway told the board her office has focused on illegal gaming, unlicensed cannabis sellers and a synthetic opioid called '70H'; she said the AG’s office has shut down thousands of illegal slot machines and persuaded major sellers of the opioid to stop sales, and that the FDA recently scheduled the drug as a controlled substance.
Missouri Attorney General Katherine Hanaway addressed the St. Louis Board of Police Commissioners on July 15, describing a multi-pronged enforcement approach she said is intended to reduce violent crime by targeting the revenue sources that fund illegal activity.
Hanaway said her office created a unit she called a “vice squad” to go after illegal gaming and unlicensed cannabis retailers, which she identified as sources of untaxed cash that can fuel other crime. She told the board she estimates the illegal gaming trade in Missouri at about $1,000,000,000 per year and said the state has shut down substantial numbers of illegal slot machines: “We think we’ve shut down to date about 17,000,” she said.
On a synthetic opioid described in the meeting transcript as “70H,” Hanaway said coroners reported overdose deaths attributed to the drug and that her office persuaded several large sellers (including a major seller identified in Kansas City) to stop sales in Missouri. She noted the FDA recently scheduled the substance as a controlled substance, which she said enables prosecution for possession and dealing.
Hanaway also discussed nuisance properties and the need to relocate residents living in unsafe structures while pursuing closures of dangerous buildings, and she described the AG’s office role in representing the police department in cases. She said her office currently has more than 80 active cases in St. Louis and emphasized coordination with the city on settlements and enforcement.
Commissioners thanked the attorney general’s office for the partnership and for legal resources provided to the department; the board did not take action on the remarks but acknowledged the role of the AG’s office in ongoing enforcement and litigation support.
