CHANGE-OF-PLEA HEARINGS SET FOR FORMER OFFICERS

Three former Davidson County narcotics officers and three co-defendants
accused of distributing drugs are scheduled to appear Thursday in U.S.
District Court in Greensboro for change-of-plea hearings.

The hearing comes four days before the six men were to go on trial.

According to records in the federal clerk's office, former 1st Lt. David
Scott Woodall, 34, and former Lt. Douglas Edward Westmoreland, 50, of the
Davidson County Sheriff's Office, former Sgt. Christopher James Shetley,
41, of the Archdale police and Lexington-area residents Wyatt Nathan
Kepley, 26, and Marco Aurelio Acosta-Soza, 26, will appear before U.S.
District Judge William Osteen Thursday at 9:30 a.m. for change-of-plea
hearings.

Former Sgt. William Monroe Rankin, 32, of the sheriff's office will appear
before Osteen at 2 p.m. for a change-of-plea hearing.

Lynn Klauer, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office, said this
morning she could not discuss the hearings.

After an eight-month investigation by the FBI and the State Bureau of
Investigation, a federal grand jury indicted the six men Dec. 7 on charges
of distributing cocaine, marijuana, steroids and Ecstasy. Federal and state
agents arrested the defendants on Dec. 11 and Dec. 12. A federal affidavit
alleged that the four law enforcement officers, operating with great
freedom, stole cash, drugs and guns that they seized in busts, sold the
drugs, fabricated search warrants, committed burglaries and extortion, and
intimidated witnesses.

The officers all resigned or were fired after their arrests.

On Jan. 25, the grand jury issued a superseding indictment adding more
charges. Woodall, Westmoreland and Rankin face a civil rights violation
charge for an alleged illegal search of Kepley's home.

Woodall also faces two counts of extortion and one count of firearm
possession during the commission of a felony. Westmoreland and Shetley face
one count of extortion each. Kepley faces one count of possession of a
handgun by a convicted felon.

All six men have pleaded innocent.

The defendants potentially face life in prison and $4 million or more in
fines. They also might have to forfeit the proceeds of illegal drug
activity. The superseding indictment seeks $2 million from Kepley, $250,000
from Woodall and Westmoreland and much smaller amounts of cash or property
from Rankin and Shetley.

Much of the information used to indict the six defendants was provided by
an unnamed Triad police officer charged Nov. 5 with intent to distribute
cocaine, marijuana and Ecstasy. As described in a federal affidavit, the
confidential witness bears a striking resemblance to former Thomasville
police Sgt. Russell Earl McHenry Jr., 32. McHenry entered a guilty plea in
federal court on Jan. 29 and is scheduled for sentencing on May 21.