POLICE: RAVE CULTURE LURED FIVE OFFICERS

Drug Case Angers Hialeah Promoter

Hialeah Police say the five officers implicated in this week's Ecstasy drug
bust are decent family men who got caught up in the addictive world of
underground rave parties.

But the notion that listening to thumping electronic dance music and
hanging out at crowded teenage dance parties somehow corrupted Hialeah's
officers rankles Luis Martinez, the promoter who hired a pair of off-duty
Hialeah officers to provide security at two warehouse parties in October
1999.

"They are trying to paint me as the bad guy, when the real issue is why did
the cops even do that?" Martinez said.

So far, the scandal has led to three firings and three arrests. The case
centers on Omar Diaz, a rookie officer accused of selling four green pills
to a police informant at a warehouse party in Hialeah last year.

The other implicated officers -- Ramiro Del Nodal, Robert Hasmi, Wilson
Medina and Oscar Oliveros -- are accused of either knowing about the drug
sale or trying to cover it up.

Department officials have downplayed drug trafficking allegations, noting
that the officers are first-time offenders who are unlikely to serve any
jail time.

Meanwhile, police personnel files reviewed by The Herald reveal:

Hasmi, Del Nodal and Oliveros had previously requested transfers to the
department's narcotics unit.

Diaz's pre-employment psychological screening warned of a "mild to
moderate" deficit in his stress management. The evaluation said Diaz could
have problems keeping his emotions and worries from affecting his job
performance, or suffer "premature burnout."

Hasmi, Del Nodal and Diaz worked together at the community substation near
City Hall that patrols the city's most drug-ridden areas.

Police spokesman Frank Gonzalez blames the cult-like aspects of rave
culture for the officers' downfall.

"It wasn't an actual moneymaking thing for them. It was just a lifestyle
they were in," Gonzalez said. "In the '60s it was heroin, in the '70s it
was marijuana, in the '80s it was cocaine, and in the '90s and the new
millennium it's crack and raves."

Martinez, the party promoter, believes his industry is a scapegoat. He said
he took extra precautions to create a safe, drug-free environment -- taking
out $50,000 worth of insurance coverage and frisking patrons.

"If you cannot control your urges or you want to be a so-called drug dealer
on the side, you cannot turn around and blame the rave scene," Martinez
said.

The Bottom Line

Born and raised in Hialeah, Martinez, 33, started his Music Network
production company 12 years ago. He doesn't do drugs, he said, and operates
a nonprofit drug prevention program, Positiva Entertainment.

Martinez isn't just worried about his reputation; he's worried about his
bottom line. The three Hialeah dance parties he staged between August and
October drew an average of 700 party-goers, most of them from five area
high schools.

With tickets at $15 each, the potential for profits was good. Martinez said
he was making between $6,000 and $10,000 per party and had a deal with
Miami T.V. Productions, a company that films commercials at the
purple-colored warehouse at 7435 W. 19th Ct., to stage a party there each
month.

But Martinez now says that asking Hialeah Police to provide security was
like the classic children's tale in which the fox guards the henhouse.

In October, Martinez twice contracted with the police department for a pair
of off-duty police officers to provide protection at "teenage parties" he
was planning at the West 19th Court warehouse.

Diaz A Regular

Hasmi and Del Nodal worked both the Oct. 1 and Oct. 29 dates. But Martinez
noticed right away that he was getting a freebie.

"There was one officer I didn't have to pay. He just showed up. That was
the Omar [Diaz] guy," Martinez said. "I saw him all the time."

What Martinez didn't know was that an internal affairs surveillance team
had been tailing Diaz for three months. The investigation peaked in the
early morning hours of Oct. 2 when a confidential informant purchased $80
worth of Ecstasy from Diaz at the party.

Diaz, an 11-month rookie, was fired Nov. 6 after his arrest on felony drug
possession and sale charges. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to a year
of house arrest. In exchange, he agreed to testify against the others.

Suspicious that his customer might be an informant, Diaz told Del Nodal and
Hasmi what he had done and asked them to exchange their cash for his so
that he would not be caught with marked money, police said. Hasmi allegedly
made the exchange. Del Nodal had no cash.

Facing Charges

When questioned by state investigators, Del Nodal denied knowing why Diaz
wanted to exchange the money. For that, he was charged with perjury. Hasmi
was fired and charged with laundering money and being an accessory after
the fact.

Two other officers -- Medina and Oliveros -- have also been linked to the
drug scandal. In a Feb. 22 memo to Mayor Raul Martinez, Police Chief
Rolando Bolanos said Medina was present at the Oct. 1 rave party, was aware
that Diaz was selling drugs and even witnessed Diaz counting up to 30
Ecstasy pills while seated in Medina's car. Bolanos also stated that Medina
and Oliveros popped Ecstasy pills while socializing with Diaz.

Medina has been fired. The department is awaiting word on whether the
Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office will decide to press charges against
Medina or Oliveros.

Martinez, the party promoter, says the chat board at his Web site,
www.groovemiami.com, has been flooded with messages from young partyers who
are now feeling the heat from their parents.

Repercussions

A message signed DJ Concept reads as follows:

"The ignrant (sic) people don't realize that if their son or daughter goes
to one of these events and takes drugs that it is not a scene, rave, or
promoter problem. They have to understand that the problem comes from the
home . . . Let Us Dance. Thank You."

Business is also looking dicey. Martinez said he had to hire an attorney to
get the city to uphold its end of a deal allowing him to stage a teen dance
at Milander Auditorium in December. Police officers are now forbidden to
work off-duty at his events.

City officials say raves are not illegal -- but what goes on there often
is. Nonetheless, there is nothing in the city code regulating rave parties,
said Ted Baldyga, Hialeah's principal planner.

"When this was written in 1963 they didn't have anything like this. Whoever
heard of a rave party?" Baldyga said.