STATE POLICE NAB 12 ON DRUG, ALCOHOL CHARGES AFTER CHARTER CRUISE

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) - Twelve people were arrested after undercover
agents sneaked onto a chartered ``babes and booze'' cruise that included
female models, marijuana and alcohol, State Police said Tuesday.

Tipped by newspaper advertisements for the ``2nd Annual Babes and Booze
Cruise,'' plainclothes officers bought $35-per-person tickets for the
journey on the Captain Applegate, a 56-foot fishing charter boat unlawfully
used as a cruise vessel, according to State Police spokesman John Hagerty.

The event, which was sponsored by ``A Special Event,'' a Pleasantville
modeling studio, featured 15 female models, a four-man band and a
two-person crew headed by Andrew Applegate III, 65, of Absecon, the owner
of the boat, Hagerty said.

It left at 8 p.m. Monday from Gardner's Basin with 40 paying patrons
aboard, and alcohol service began immediately, Hagerty said.

While the undercover agents mingled on board, other State Police operatives
watched from marked police boats throughout the three-hour cruise.

As soon as the boat returned, police were waiting.

Seven people - including Applegate and his wife, Marilyn Applegate, 63, -
were charged with aiding and abetting the sale of liquor without a license.
One was charged with selling liquor without a license.

Four others were arrested on drug charges. They were Steven T. Moore, 36,
of Egg Harbor Township; Tara M. Grosso, 18, of Egg Harbor Township; and
Helen Theresa Vaspoli, 20, of Linwood, all of whom were charged with
marijuana possession.

Robert Cherico, 42, of Linwood, was charged with possession of drug
paraphernalia.

All were released on their own recognizance pending future Municipal Court
appearances.

Cruise officials could not be reached for comment on the arrests.

Telephone messages for Applegate and for the owner of A Special Event were
not returned.

Checked-by: (Joel W. Johnson)