DRUG DEALERS DEALT A NEW BLOW

COLLINSVILLE - Earlier this week, Henry County Sheriff H.F. Cassell
called a news conference to announce another successful drug raid in
Sandy Level.

The early Monday morning excursion was so successful that officers were
in one of the homes and answered a phone call warning its occupants
about the bust, Cassell said.

It was a day to celebrate a yearlong investigation, what officers called
the crippling of a loose confederation of dealers, and another bust in
the tiny community that has become synonymous with drugs.

Sandy Level's drug infestation had been around for years, local
authorities say, but it drew national publicity with a U.S. News & World
Report article.

The April 22, 1996, article, "Crack invades a small town," described the
brazenness of the community's drug dealers and the fears of the area's
250-plus residents.

Sandy Level's location, in southeastern Henry County just across the
state line from North Carolina and about a safe 20-minute drive from the
Sheriff's Department, made it appealing to dealers.

Most of them in their teens, the dealers were so violent that they were
as likely to shoot a buyer as sell him some drugs, officers said.

The publicity proved a double-edged sword, Cassell said recently.

While embarrassing for Henry County, it also "got us the help we were
asking for," Cassell said. "People were throwing money and manpower at
us for two or three years."

Extra state troopers were assigned to the area and the county
supervisors provided money to hire two additional vice officers that the
Sheriff's Department had sought but previously had no luck getting.

On Monday, in what was clearly a proud moment for his office, Cassell
talked about Sandy Level's reputation and what he felt were
misperceptions about the community.

In response to repeated questions about the community, he complained
that the U.S. News article misrepresented Sandy Level as a haven for
dealers and local authorities as helpless.

Cassell and other officers said they doubt its drug problem was worse
than that in many other communities, and the publicity did a disservice
to a number of solid citizens who live there.

Even as the article was being researched, the sheriff's office, assisted
by state and federal authorities, was in the midst of an undercover drug
operation.

"We were within two weeks of busting in," Cassell said. "The article hit
and complicated things."

Even so, Cassell said, the 1996 raid saw eight houses hit almost
simultaneously. "It was perfect," Cassell said. "We caught everybody in
bed."

U.S. News covered the raid, but it took the tone that "the cavalry comes
to town," Capt. K.G. Nester complained.

"We were on top of it and we knew as much as anyone, but we couldn't say
anything," Nester said. "We were caught between a rock and a hard place.
When they talked to us we couldn't say we were doing a drug
investigation. We had to bite our lip."

Eleven people were arrested in the raid and all were convicted, most in
federal court.

Since then, a number of other raids have been conducted in the county,
including several in Sandy Level.

Monday's raid was the result of an investigation conducted between May
2000 and June this year and focused on drug activity in not only Sandy
Level but also in the communities of Piedmont Estates and Ridgeway.

The raid came after a grand jury handed up 32 felony indictments against
11 adults. Nearly all have been arrested. Officers seized $2,000, a half
kilogram of cocaine with a street value of $21,000, a truck, six cars,
three all-terrain vehicles and two handguns, Cassell said.

Henry County Commonwealth's Attorney Robert Bushnell said few people
realize how long it takes for undercover officers to ingratiate
themselves with dealers. And during that time, the drug activity
continues.

"You've got to have the evidence," Bushnell said.

"There are more drug dealers out there than have been busted today, and
they are known to the police," he said. "It's just a matter of time
before they are busted."