CANTON TIED TO INTERNATIONAL DRUG RING

CANTON - Three Canton men were among the 76 people arrested simultaneously
nationwide Wednesday in a federal sting aimed at crippling a
multimillion-dollar, international drug-smuggling ring.

Federal officials said Wednesday that Canton is the only "distribution
cell" in Ohio of the Marquis Organization, an international drug-smuggling
operation with a "propensity for violence," said Michael L. Chapman, a
spokesman for the Drug Enforcement Administration in Washington, D.C.

"The Marquis Organization appears to be fairly typical of today's
organizations operating from Mexico - smaller groups that rely on each
other to capitalize on drug-trafficking opportunities. Nevertheless, these
organizations remain just as violent and dangerous as ever," said DEA
Administrator Donnie Marshall in a news release Wednesday.

In Canton, John "Jay" Tyson, 28, of 2337 14th St. NE; Marcus Boykins, also
known as Karon Kevin "KK" Dallas, 33, of 805 Columbus Rd. NW; and Juba
Smith, age unavailable, were in the custody of U.S. marshals Wednesday,
said Robert Bulford, assistant U.S. attorney of the Northern District of
Ohio in Akron.

Tyson and Dallas were arrested on federal warrants, each charged with
conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance. Smith, who was found with
a quarter of a kilo of cocaine, was arrested on a state warrant charging
him with possession with intent to distribute cocaine, said Special Agent
Susan Feld of the DEA's Detroit office. All three will be indicted on
federal charges, she said.

Boykins and Tyson were arrested early Wednesday morning as search warrants
were served at their homes and at four other locations throughout Stark
County, Bulford said. Internationally, the ring - run by the brother of
drug lord Amado Carrillo-Fuentes, who died in a botched plastic surgery in
1997 - warehoused large quantities of cocaine and marijuana in Mexico
before shipping the drugs into south Texas and then onto distribution cells
throughout the United States, Chapman said. The drugs were hidden primarily
under produce in tractor-trailers.

The sting targeted a drug-trafficking organization based in Nuevo Laredo,
Mexico, "responsible for putting tens of millions of dollars worth of
cocaine and marijuana on the streets of at least a dozen U.S. cities,"
Chapman said.

Vincente Carrillo-Fuentes and other suspected drug kingpins were arrested
earlier this month, according to The Associated Press.

During the investigation, agents seized 9,000 kilograms of cocaine, 28,000
pounds of marijuana and $12.5 million in cash.

A Laredo, Texas, warehouse for Corona beer was among those being searched
Wednesday, the AP reported.

The distribution cell in Ohio was in Canton, DEA officials in Detroit said.
Arrests were made in the early morning hours Wednesday in 15 other cities
across the nation, and 14 suspects in Mexico were being submitted to
Mexican authorities.

Bulford declined to give the addresses of the other local places where the
warrants were served, and he could not say whether any other arrests were
pending.

The sting, dubbed Operation Marquis, culminated an 18-monthlong
investigation by agents of the DEA, FBI and U.S. Customs Service. Several
state and local law enforcement agencies, including the Stark County
Sheriff's and the Canton Police departments and the Stark County
Metropolitan Narcotics Unit, also were involved in the investigation.

On Wednesday in Stark County, authorities seized $7,000 in cash and four
weapons, including a Tec 9 automatic weapon. They declined to name the
total amount and types of drugs confiscated.

Sheriff Tim Swanson said that his deputies and Metro Narcotics officers
searched garages at Tyson's address on 14th Street NE and at 29051/2 Second
St. NW, where they found more than $100,000 in tools "of industrial,
commercial and residential grade."

The sheriff believes these were stolen and asked that no one call the
Sheriff's Department to claim the items until they can be processed, a job
expected to be completed by Wednesday. Swanson said he would announce a
phone number for burglary and theft victims to call to find out whether any
stolen items belong to them.

Deputies used two large rental box trucks and made a few trips in each
truck with loads to a local storage facility where the items will be
inventoried and returned.

They also found a small amount of crack cocaine in one tool cabinet and
impounded a 1995 Chevrolet van, which they plan to search.

The three men arrested are scheduled to appear at 2 p.m. Friday before
federal Magistrate James Gallas in federal court in Akron.