CHARGES DROPPED AGAINST BELLA, BUT FEDS STILL HOLD PLANE

El Paso pilot Charles "Cheater" Bella was jailed in April along with two
other El Pasoans on federal drug charges in Wichita, Kan., but the charges
against Bella were soon dismissed, officials said.

Bella, 56, said Wednesday that U.S. federal authorities are trying to seize
his $500,000 aircraft, which was impounded in connection with the drug
bust. He said he didn't know his passengers had marijuana.

While marijuana possession charges against Bella were dismissed, federal
prosecutors in Wichita are proceeding with their case against Daniel J.
Ortega, 21, of Fabens, and Alfredo Delgado Reyes, 19, of El Paso, according
to court records. They are accused of possession with intent to distribute
300 pounds of marijuana, said Shirley Armstead, spokeswoman for the Drug
Enforcement Administration in St. Louis.

Ortega bonded out on a $20,000 cash security bond and Delgado is still in
custody, said Kena Rice, spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's office in Wichita.

Armstead said she could not discuss other aspects of the case or the status
of the airplane.

In a prepared statement for the El Paso Times, Bella said, "On April 17, I
flew two passengers with their baggage to Wichita, Kansas. Upon my arrival,
my aircraft was searched by DEA, and drugs were found in the baggage of my
two passengers.

"I was arrested along with the two men I had flown to Kansas. Later, all
charges against me were dismissed, and I was released. To this day, my
aircraft has not been released. Now I find myself involved in a legal
process to seek justice and to preserve my primary livelihood. ... This has
not been the nature of my business. I have worked with many law-enforcement
agencies, such as DEA, U.S. Customs, Special Task Forces, federal, state,
and foreign agencies, along with being credited with making the largest
drug bust in New Mexico in 1988."

The criminal complaint against the three El Pasoans said "Alfredo Delgado
Reyes indicated that Charles Bella had knowledge that he was transporting
the marijuana inside the boxes in the aircraft," and that Ortega told
officials he (Ortega) helped load the marijuana in El Paso.

According to court records, Bella was jailed April 20-25 at the Sedgwick
County Jail in Wichita. The court complaint filed against him in the U.S.
District Court for the Kansas District was dismissed April 25, and he was
released from custody.

The marijuana was found April 17 in an Aero Commander that Bella flew from
El Paso to Jabara Airport in Wichita, court records said.

DEA investigators said they were acting on a tip when they intercepted the
airplane at the airport, according to court records.

DEA officials said the marijuana was packed in several brown boxes labeled
"Customs Metals, P.O. Box 721, Tornillo, Texas," and inside two duffel
bags. Officials said the estimated street value of the marijuana was $250,000.

In his prepared statement, Bella said, "An air charter company shall not be
held accountable for their passengers' baggage or cargo as long as they
have no knowledge of any illegal activity or wrongdoing. However, some
agencies go beyond the law to hold innocent charter companies accountable
for things they have not done and believe that they themselves are not
accountable for their own actions."

Last month, Bella flew a different twin-engine airplane into northern
Chihuahua, Mexico, to search for Mark Rasmusson, a fellow pilot whose plane
made an emergency landing about 50 miles south of Juarez. City Rep. Larry
Medina and County Commissioner Carlos Aguilar III were among five
passengers on that plane.

Bella was the first person to spot Rasmusson's Cessna 210 on a desert lake bed.

Bella returned with Rasmusson and one other passenger. The other four
passengers, who took off looking for help, were rescued by two U.S.
military helicopter ambulances.

In 1988, a woman who hired Bella for a flight pulled a gun and forced him
to help three inmates escape from the New Mexico state prison near Santa
Fe. He was charged with aiding in the escape, but was acquitted.