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U.S. Charges 48 Alleged "Mafia Insane Vice Lords" Leaders and Cohorts in West Side Drug Ring
Cocaine, Cash and Weapons Seized

Alleged "king" Troy Martin arrested;
at least 55 others sought on state charges

MAY 20--CHICAGO – The Drug Enforcement Administration and Chicago police began executing both state and federal arrest and search warrants early today, seeking more than 100 members and associates of the Mafia Insane Vice Lords, including many of the highest-ranking leaders of the street gang based on the city’s west side and their narcotics suppliers. Forty-eight of the defendants, including the gang’s alleged leader, Troy Martin, were arrested or are still being sought on federal charges of participating in a retail narcotics distribution conspiracy that featured luring loyal customers with free samples at dozens of street corner locations. In addition, at least 55 defendants were arrested or wanted on state warrants for various drug offenses. This investigation, code-named Operation Day Trader, is part of a sustained, coordinated effort by local, state and federal law enforcement agencies to dismantle the leadership of Chicago’s highly-organized, and often-violent, drug-trafficking street gangs.

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False Prescription Scam Settled
Doctor Agrees to $200,000 Civil Fine

MAR 22--Minneapolis, MN - A Mankato, Minnesota neurosurgeon has admitted that he used his DEA registration number to fraudulently obtain prescriptions for himself by writing 68 false prescriptions in order to obtain more than 8,700 tablets of the painkiller Hydrocodone. Dr. Guy Mark Sava agreed to pay a civil monetary penalty of $200,000 to settle claims that between March 2000 and June 2001, he used the names of relatives and friends as fictitious patients to fraudulently obtain the prescription painkillers for himself.

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DEA Arrests 10 Defendants In Alleged Texas-Chicago Drug Ring
Hundreds of Kilos of Cocaine, Cash Seized

FEB 11--CHICAGO – Ten defendants, including the alleged leaders in Chicago and Texas of a large-scale cocaine and marijuana trafficking organization were arrested in Chicago on federal drug-trafficking charges, Richard W. Sanders, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration announced today. The defendants, charged in two separate criminal complaints, include Gustavo Campos, the alleged leader of the Campos organization in Chicago, and Felix Herrera, the alleged leader of the Campos organization in Texas along the southwest border of Mexico. The investigation, which began in 2001, has resulted in the seizure of more than 600 kilograms of cocaine, including some 360 kilograms this week; 2,000 pounds of marijuana; and more than $215,000 in cash, including approximately$85,000 this week.

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Rick Sanders, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Division (center), Mark Prosperi Deputy U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois (left) and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stuart Fullerton and Monica Krusik appear before the Chicago News Media to announce the criminal complaints.

DEA Official Testifies About the Meth Situation in Indiana

FEB 6--CHICAGO, IL - Today, Armand McClintock the Assistant Special Agent in Charge of DEA's Indianapolis District Office testifies about the Methamphetamine situation in Indiana. McClintock's testimony, entitled "Fighting Methamphetamine in the Heartland: How can the Federal Government Assist State and Local Efforts?" was given before the House Committee on Government Reform and the Subcommittee on Criminal Justice, Drug Policy, and Human Resources.

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Addressing the Tough Issues

DEA Special Agent in Charge Rick Sanders sitting down 'one to one' with FOX 32 News Anchor Mark Suppelsa.

DEA Special Agent in Charge Rick Sanders recently met FOX News Anchor Mark Suppelsa to discuss illicit drug trends in Chicago and what DEA agents are seeing on the street. FOX News Chicago recently aired a broadcast concerning the Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN) Data (2002). Mr. Suppelsa reported that according to these statistics, released by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Chicago had one of the nation's highest rates of emergency room visits related to drug abuse last year.

The FOX News report also pointed out that the data suggests alarming levels of cocaine and heroin usage here. However, the story also noted the continuing decline in local reports of marijuana, ecstasy, hallucinogens, and inhalants - even despite the national trends.

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