SUSPECTED DRUG DEALERS INDICTED

Undercover Cops Snare 101 Alleged Sellers In Oakland Housing Projects

OAKLAND -- A two-week undercover operation in and around some of the city's
public housing projects has led to felony indictments against 101 suspected
drug dealers.

Police began serving arrest warrants Wednesday.

The indictments, announced Wednesday, followed the Alameda County grand
jury's review of evidence from the operation intended to crack down on drug
dealing in and around Oakland Housing Authority apartment complexes in West
and North Oakland.

Grand jury indictments take the place of preliminary hearings and,
therefore, typically result in a higher rate of convictions and jail time,
said a police spokesman.

"The grand jury evidence review is much more thorough and focused, and they
have a certain standard that only pertains to these types of
investigations," said Oakland Police Capt. Mike Sims.

He said the undercover operation ran between May 16 and 30, one of about
four such operations the police carry out per year, Sims said.

The Police Department focused on West and North Oakland Housing Authority
complexes because the Housing Authority helped pay for the operation and
because they wanted to clean up city property, he said. "We felt it was
important to keep property owned by the city free of drugs," Sims said.

1998 San Francisco Examiner