JANUARY 20, 2000

Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown, joined by New York City Police Commissioner Howard Safir and Assistant Chief Charles Kammerdener, Commanding Officer of the NYPD's Narcotics Division, announced today the arrest of 17 individuals on charges of selling heroin and crack in and around the South Jamaica Housing Development.

District Attorney Brown said, "Last April a joint investigation by the New York City Police Department's Queens Narcotics District and my office's Narcotics Investigations Bureau resulted in the arrest and indictment of 25 members of a drug gang for operating a $3.0 million a year crack and heroin distribution and sales network inside the Jamaica Housing Development. Fourteen of those arrested have already plead guilty and are serving state prison sentences. Once the members of the gang were arrested, however, a vacuum was created at the housing development and, independent dealers moved in. Knowing full well that this would happen, the detectives of the Queens Narcotics District remained in place and immediately began making undercover buys from the independents arrested today."

Commissioner Howard Safir said, "Today's enforcement action resulted in 17 arrests and 4 search warrants. The successful dismantling of this narcotics gang sends a clear message that the New York Police Department and our partners in law enforcement will not relent in our efforts to extinguish the illegal drug trade operating in the South Jamaica Housing Development. Any illegal activity which threatens to erode the safety of Queens residents will not be tolerated. We intend to make it as difficult as possible for anyone engaged in illegal activities, no matter what the magnitude of the activity is."

During the course of the investigation -- dubbed the "40's Freelancers " after the South Jamaica Housing Development which was completed in the 1940's and is commonly called the 40's project -- police officers and detectives made dozens of undercover buys of crack and/or heroin from the independent dealers. Each purchase was for $10 - $20 worth of drugs. It is estimated that each dealer conducted roughly 30 transactions a day and grossed roughly $300 daily or about $50,000 in the 24-week period of this investigation.

District Attorney Brown said, "The lesson to be learned from this investigation is that we -- law enforcement -- will not go away. We will be relentless and we will be persistent. We are committed to eliminating drug trafficking in every Queens neighborhood including and especially from housing developments where so many law abiding citizens live."

District Attorney Brown said that in addition to today's arrests eight others were arrested during the holiday season inside the South Jamaica Housing Development and charged with running a drug packaging factory inside an apartment in the complex. At that time police officer seized 189 bags of crack, 28 tin foils of cocaine, 26 glassine envelopes of heroin, 1000 glassine envelopes, scales and strainers. At the time of today's arrest four search warrants were executed inside the development and additional quantities of crack and heroin were seized.

The defendants are charged individually with various counts of criminal sale or possession of a controlled substance and upon conviction face sentences ranging up to 25 years in prison.

The South Jamaica Housing Development where the arrests were made consists of 27 five to seven story brick buildings and is home to over 2,500 people. It is among the older public housing developments in New York City.

The investigation and arrests were carried out by detectives of the Queens South Narcotics District under the command of Inspector John H. Regan and Deputy Inspector Michael Waltman under the overall supervision of Assistant Chief Charles Kammerdener, commanding officer of the NYPD's Narcotics Division. District Attorney Brown would also like to thank Senior Special Agent Dennis McGowan, Special Agent in Charge Ruth A. Ritzeman from Housing and Urban Development and Jay Powers, Area Director of the New York State Division of Parole.

Assistant District Attorneys Natalya Kirsch and Philip Anderson of District Attorney Brown's Narcotics Investigation Bureau which is under the supervision of Assistant District Attorney Peter A. Crusco and the overall supervision of Executive Assistant District Attorney Robert D. Alexander are in charge of the cases.

District Attorney Brown expressed his appreciation to the New York City Housing Authority and the New York State Division of Parole for their cooperation and assistance in the investigation and to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development which helped to fund the significant overtime costs of the investigation.

It should be noted that an arrest is merely an accusation and that a defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.