After a hearing, U.S. District Court Judge Douglas P. Woodlock accepted
guilty pleas from JUANITA BROWN, 40, of 80 Florida Street, Dorchester; ELLEN
STONE, 44, of 11 Wachusett Street, Hyde Park; MACEO DILLARD, 44, of 39 West
Street, Randolph; DOUGLAS POUNCEY, 54, of 40 Forest Road, Wallingford,
Connecticut, and DONNA WILLIAMS, 38, of 84 Munroe Street, Roxbury.

Each of the defendants pled guilty to an indictment charging them with
conspiring to import heroin into the United States; importation of heroin
into the United States; conspiracy to possess heroin with intent to
distribute; and possession of heroin with intent to distribute. Each
defendant faces a mandatory tenyear jail term for the crimes.

Judge Woodlock also accepted guilty pleas from JASON DILLARD, 28, of 78
Woodruff Road, Dorchester, and GAIL GRAVELY, 32, of 17 Ogden Street,
Dorchester, on federal charges of misuse of a United States passport in
connection with the heroin importation conspiracy.

During the hearing, Assistant U.S. Attorneys Heidi E. Brieger and Thomas C.
Frongillo informed the Court that had the case proceeded to trial, the
government would have proved that the importation conspiracy involved the
illegal importation of large quantities of high purity heroin into
Massachusetts from the Philippines, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia and
Indonesia. The government would have proved that BROWN, DILLARD, STONE,
POUNCEY and WILLIAMS were couriers who traveled from Boston to Southeast Asia
to retrieve heroin concealed within falsesided suitcases. The government
would have further proved that each courier was paid up to $10,000 in cash
for each trip, and received airfare, plus hotel and expense money. The
couriers brought the heroinfilled suitcases to various hotels in the Boston
area where they were picked up by Laverne CottonDiaby, who paid the couriers
in cash. Each courier admitted that he or she knowingly transported drugs
into the United States. CottonDiaby has previously pled guilty to federal
heroin importation charges and is awaiting sentencing.

STONE is a former Boston Police officer. DILLARD has been employed as a
truck driver for a veterans organization. WILLIAMS has been employed with a
cable television concern. POUNCEY recently founded his own trucking business
and BROWN is not employed. Judge Woodlock scheduled their sentencing for
November 25, 1997.

Five other defendants, including Boston Police Sergeant Wilbur Brittle, are
awaiting a trial that Judge Woodlock scheduled for October 14, 1997.

This case was jointly investigated, under the auspices of the Organized Crime
Drug Enforcement Task Force, by the U.S. Customs Service, the Drug
Enforcement Administration, the Internal Revenue Service and the U.S.
Department of State. The Boston Police Department, AntiCorruption Division,
also participated in the investigation. The case is being prosecuted by
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas C. Frongillo and Heidi E. Brieger of U.S.
Attorney Stern's Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Unit.

SOURCE U.S. Attorney's Office

CO: U.S. Attorney's Office

ST: Massachusetts

IN:

SU:

07/24/97 17:49 EDT http://www.prnewswire.com