TROOPER CHARGED WITH THEFT OF DRUGS FROM EVIDENCE VAULT

Suspended state trooper Timothy White was arraigned in Norfolk Superior
Court yesterday on charges he stole 13 kilos of cocaine from an evidence
vault in Framingham and then tried to sell the drugs through a friend.

Sgt. White, who worked for the state narcotics unit and already was being
held on charges he assaulted his wife in January, was ordered to remain in
custody.

White, 39, allegedly gave some of the drugs to Robert Crisafulli, 47, of
Hyde Park, who sold the drugs on the street, and the two men split the
profits, according to authorities.

"It's a sad day for law enforcement," Assistant Attorney General William
Bloomer said. "Mr. White violated the oath that he took on becoming a
police officer. He violated the trust that the public bestowed upon him."

White's defense attorney, Thomas Drechsler, countered by saying, "My client
was not associated with anyone involved in drugs, and he was not involved
in any theft of any drugs from any facility anywhere." Crisafulli's defense
lawyer also said his client was not guilty of the crimes.

Crisafulli, who posted $25,000 cash bail after an earlier West Roxbury
District Court arraignment, also was arraigned in Norfolk Superior Court
yesterday on cocaine and marijuana trafficking charges.

A former press spokesman for the state police, White was arrested at his
Stoughton home after a drug-induced meltdown in which he allegedly beat and
threatened his wife with his service revolver, then stuck the gun in his
own mouth and threatened to kill himself.