LAYTON -- Two members of the Davis Metro Narcotics Strike Force received awards as outstanding narcotics officers at a meeting last month of the Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area executive board meeting in Denver.

Lt. Allen Swanson, received the 2006 Outstanding Task Force Commander award, and Det. Michael Howard received the 2006 Outstanding Investigator Award. Both are members of the Layton Police Department assigned to the strike force.

This is the first time that these two awards have been given agents from the same task force and the same agency.

According to an RMHIDTA the Davis force was on probation and in danger of losing federal funding just two years ago.

However, under Swanson's leadership the force is not only off probation, but is now one of the most respected and productive forces in the area the organization serves, which includes, Utah, Colorado, Montana and Wyoming.

An example of the strike force's work came in the recent arrests of major drug traffickers in Layton and Clearfield, which was part of a larger investigation involving the Salt Lake City Drug Enforcement Agency.

That investigation culminated in the seizure of 11 pounds of methamphetamine, 16 pounds of cocaine, 16 pounds of marijuana, and $40,000 cash.