ANTI-HEROIN EFFORTS PLEASE PLANO POLICE

Recent Convictions Are Called Encouraging, But Officials Say
Investigations Will Continue

COLLIN COUNTY - The convictions in Sherman last week of four men on
federal drug trafficking charges leave five people at large in an
area heroin-conspiracy investigation.

On Thursday, a federal jury found Jesus Carbajal, 21; Julian Solis
Perez, 35; Andres Milan, 33; and Favian Ramos, 24, guilty of
conspiracy to distribute heroin and cocaine in Plano. The four are
being held at an undisclosed federal prison and are scheduled for
sentencing by U.S. District Judge Paul Brown on March 23, officials
said. Each faces a maximum of life in prison and a $4 million fine,
officials said.

"We are happy with the verdicts," Plano Police Department spokesman
Carl Duke said. "It reinforces our efforts we have had here with our
fight against drugs."

In 1997, the Police Department reacted to a rash of heroin-related
deaths involving young people who lived or attended school in the
Plano area. The next year, local and federal officials announced the
indictments of 29 people in connection with the heroin-related deaths
of four teenagers who had Plano ties. All but one were convicted.

"The availability of heroin in Plano is much less than it was in the
'90s," Officer Duke said. "But it's not totally gone. It will never
be totally gone. If someone wants a drug they will find it. Just
because we have these convictions, our investigations have not
stopped. If we trace narcotics back to dealers, we will prosecute in
the same fashion."

Thursday's verdicts were a result of investigations conducted by the
Collin/Denton Counties Drug Task Force into black-tar heroin and
cocaine trafficking in Dallas, Plano and several other area cities,
officials said. In May, 32 people were indicted on federal drug
charges as a result of that operation, police said. Twenty-one have
pleaded guilty, one defendant is being evaluated to determine whether
he is competent to stand trial, another had charges dismissed and
five remain at large.

Duncan Woodford, a spokesman with the U.S. Attorney's Office,
applauded the task force for getting his office vital evidence to
present to the jury during the four-day trial. About 30 audiotaped
conversations were introduced, along with handguns and heroin
samples, officials said.

That evidence helped link the four men to two organizations that were
run out of the Dallas and Denton areas, officials said. The groups
used sophisticated techniques to distribute the drugs, officials have
said.

Using drugs imported from California and Mexico, the groups fielded
calls - usually from cellular telephones - and met potential buyers
at public places such as gas stations before making the transactions,
police said. In at least three instances, the ring was identified as
the supplier of heroin that resulted in deaths, including that of
former Dallas Cowboys offensive lineman Mark Tuinei in May 1999.

On Monday, Mr. Woodford said the task force would continue to search
for the remaining suspects.

"The case remains open," he said.

This story also appears in the Plano Morning News.