The Dirección Nacional de Control de Drogas sent to justice 2,179 persons for drug charges in the fist six months of the year, 25% more than in 1998 for violations to Law 50-88 on Narcotic Drugs and Controlled Substances. Of the total processed, 972 persons were arrested in Santo Domingo and 1,207 in the rest of the country. Of the total sent to justice, 143 are women and 2,036 men. The breakdown of those sent to justice includes 584 drug traffickers, 520 drug peddlers, four money launderers and 1,071 accomplices. During the first semester of the year, the US deported 611 persons that had been convicted for drug charges in the US.
