OFFICER DENIES THEFT OF DRUGS

LOS ANGELES A Long Beach police officer accused of stealing narcotics
from drug traffickers pleaded not guilty Monday in federal court.

Julio Alcaraz, a 15-year veteran of the Long Beach Police Department,
and his alleged co-conspirator, Ismael Rodriguez, of Compton, are
scheduled to return to court April 4, said Assistant U.S. Attorney
Jeffrey Rawitz.

Both men are being held without bail.

Alcaraz, under investigation since March 1997, was arrested Jan. 27
after he allegedly stole six kilograms of cocaine from an undercover
narcotics agent posing as a trafficker.

In a five-count indictment handed down last Friday, the 36-year-old
West division patrol officer is also accused of stealing 200 pounds of
marijuana from a drug trafficker and of planning a home-invasion
robbery of 10 kilograms of cocaine.

According to court documents, Alcaraz conspired with several members
of the drug trade to steal narcotics as they were transported through
Long Beach. Then he allegedly sold the drugs to informants.

A multi-agency task force including FBI agents, members of the Bureau
of Narcotics Enforcement and Long Beach police used wire tapping and
surveillance throughout their lengthy investigation, records show.

The charges including conspiracy to possess a controlled substance
with intent to distribute it and use of a firearm during a
drug-trafficking crime carry a mandatory minimum sentence of 40 years
in prison.