POLICE FIND DRUG CACHE AT MIT

A reputed drug den in one of the nation's most prestigious universities
offered an assortment of highs: amphetamines, marijuana, mushrooms, even
laughing gas.

But it took the death of MIT senior Richard Guy -- who was asphyxiated after
inhaling nitrous oxide in a dorm room Tuesday -- to lead investigators to
what they described as a "substantive drug operation." In the same room
where Guy lay dead, police allegedly found a cache of drugs and
paraphernalia that hinted at a substantial drug operation: packaging
supplies, tin foil with blotter LSD markings, and scales. All in Walcott 509.

"Often, cases of this type are hard to get at because they're so
underground," said MIT Police Chief Anne Glavin.

Yesterday, police charged an MIT student and her boyfriend, an alumnus, with
seven counts of possession with intent to sell drugs. But Susan Mosher and
Rene Ruiz, both 22, won't be charged with Guy's death, Glavin said. MIT
president Charles M. Vest said the university probably won't suspend or
expel Mosher, at least not until her case makes its way through the court
system.

Glavin said she did not know the whereabouts of the alleged drug dealers.
But she said her department had filed the charges against Mosher and Ruiz in
Middlesex District Court and she expects them to appear there on Sept. 10
for their arraignment. If they don't, arrest warrants will be issued. "We've
had no communication with them," Glavin said. She declined to say if the two
are cooperating with investigators.

Mosher is a senior majoring in brain and cognitive sciences, and Ruiz
graduated last year.

Before their investigation is over, Glavin said police expect to charge
others involved in the case.

Though MIT officials have been tight-lipped about the circumstances
surrounding Guy's death, court documents indicate that police had looked
into the possibility of him committing suicide.

The night Guy died, Mosher and Ruiz were out of town, records indicate.

They had asked a friend, Alison Novak, to care for their cat, Rainbow.
Tuesday night, just after midnight, when Novak entered the dorm to feed
Rainbow, she found Guy lying on a mattress on the floor. Over his head was a
plastic bag, which police believed he filled with nitrous oxide, or laughing
gas, to inhale.

Novak pulled the bag off Guy's head, then ran out of the room, screaming,
"Help! Does anyone know CPR?" Two students ran in and tried to resuscitate
Guy, but it was too late.

In the meantime, Novak also called police. Investigators questioned three of
Guy's friends, who all said Guy had been depressed and "babbled" often about
wanting to commit suicide. Students Dylan Stiles, Kevin McCormick, and Nat
Friedman all told investigators that Guy told them he hoped a new
antidepressant he was taking, Zoloft, would lift him out of his fog. MIT
officials yesterday repeated their contention that the death was an
accident. "The indications we have are that he was really `up' at this
time," said MIT spokesman Ken Campbell, adding that the medical examiner did
not rule the death a suicide.

"Our conclusion is it was accidental," Campbell said. He said the medical
examiner concluded the cause of death was asphyxiation due to acute
intoxication of nitrous oxide. When heavily inhaled, nitrous oxide can cause
oxygen deprivation.

Guy's parents were in town Thursday, speaking to university officials about
their son's death. A funeral will be held this morning at Christ Episcopal
Church in Garden City, N.Y., on Long Island. MIT is providing a bus for
students and friends who wish to attend. Guy's death refocuses attention on
substance abuse problems at MIT. In September 1997, Scott Krueger, a
freshman, died of alcohol poisoning after attending a fraternity party. The
fraternity was indicted on criminal charges but the case did not go forward.
The university later revoked the diploma of the man who purchased the
alcohol consumed by Krueger. Vest, who spoke at yesterday's news conference,
said he was saddened by Guy's death, which he called a "grim reminder of so
many other needless deaths throughout the country, every year, of young
people who foolishly involve themselves with drugs."