SNEADS FERRY CITIZENS' GROUP VOWS TO FIGHT ILLEGAL DRUGS

SNEADS FERRY - A new citizens' group in Sneads Ferry is fed up with
the illegal drug trade and use in the area and they have decided to do
something about it.

Calling themselves Sneads Ferry Citizens in Action, or SFCIA, the
group consists of residents and business owners who want to see action
taken to get rid of illegal drug activity in their town.

"We are no longer going to tolerate this," said Joe Rigby, a resident
of Sneads Ferry.

Rigby and others in the group, some of whom declined to be interviewed
for fear of repercussions from drug dealers, said there is rampant
drug use in the community, and that more needs to be done to combat
the problem.

Far from taking a vigilante-like stance, the group has decided to use
the tools that Mothers Against Drunk Driving did when it first
initiated its program.

The group plans on sitting in on court cases involving illegal drug
dealers and users from Sneads Ferry, speaking out at county
commissioners' and school board meetings, and alerting the police to
drug activity.

"We are make it uncomfortable and expensive to do drugs or sell them
in Sneads Ferry" said one group member.

One problem voiced by the SFCIA is the lack of law enforcement in the
area.

"The reason drugs flourish here is because we're like a frontier
town," said Rigby, commenting on the fact that Sneads Ferry has no
local law enforcement.

Sneads Ferry is unincorporated and therefore there is not a town
government nor the services which one would provide.

Instead, the Onslow County Sheriff's Department has deputies patrol
the area, but the SFCIA says there are too few officers and that the
town is too large for one or two deputies to patrol adequately.

Danny Salese, Chief of Police in neighboring North Topsail Beach,
empathizes with the group and acknowledges the problem.

"Drugs are probably the biggest problem, and biggest industry, in
Sneads Ferry," said Salese, who is also a Sneads Ferry resident.

Salese said the problem is more than just simple supply and demand,
although that plays a part of it. He said illegal drugs come into the
area by boat as well as by vehicles, and that drug dealers monitor
police scanners.

"They know where we are and when we've been called," he
said.

According to Salese, Sneads Ferry is out of the North Topsail Beach
Police Department's jurisdiction but his officers will go to Sneads
Ferry when called or to assist officers from the sheriff's department.

Even if Sneads Ferry were to incorporate and get its own police force,
Salese said it would take a while to eradicate the drug use.

"It would not be so apparent, but some of it would just go behind
closed doors," said Salese.

Members of the SFCIA said they are not just concerned with blatant
drug use, but with how the drug industry hurts their town.

"It affects our quality of life and our businesses," said a group
member.

Others agreed, noting that this year has been one of the busiest
tourism years yet, but "if this problem isn't addressed, who's going
to want to come here?"

Other issues of concern to the SFCIA are the residual effects such as
more crime, including burglary, assault and even rape and murder;
domestic problems; and poverty.

"But it's just not found in lower income families," cautioned
Salese.

The SFCIA is appealing to the community for help. It has set up a
confidential toll free hotline at 866-239-8067 for citizens who want
to volunteer with the group or report drug or drug related activity.

Group members will monitor the hot line and report any illegal
activity to law enforcement officials.