The Dominican groups, in turn, retail the heroin on the street or sell to Puerto Rican, African-American, or other retail groups. Several organizations are involved in SEA heroin importation, the second most commonly encountered type after SA heroin. The primary importers are ethnic Chinese criminal organizations and, increasingly, criminal members of a minority Chinese group, the Fukinese. Chinese heroin trafficking organizations are usually loosely controlled ad hoc groups without a defined hierarchy. From Vancouver, traffickers often have couriers carry heroin in luggage to Washington State.
Couriers then transport the heroin via train to New York City.
Other SEA heroin transshipment locations commonly used include Buffalo, Dallas, Detroit, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle. Asian trafficking organizations may also use smaller cities to import heroin destined for New York. Nigerian criminals reportedly are less visible in New York than in the past. Most of the heroin imported into New York City by Nigerians is soon transshipped to other areas of the country such as Chicago. Once the SEA heroin is shipped to the New York area, it may be stashed if a buyer cannot be found.