“It’s quite a substantial amount of heroin,” the DEA agent in charge said. He estimated that the agents seized approximately a kilo of heroin and two to four ounces of crack. “As everybody knows, we’re having a huge problem in Montgomery County with heroin. This is part of our efforts to combat that.”
The agent also said, as far as street value is concerned, the price is down for a kilo of heroin. “It’s actually fairly cheap right now...You can make an excess of $100,000 off a kilo of heroin. Depends on how far you want to break the actual drug down.”
The searches are part of an ongoing investigation of an operation that spans to Mexico and Texas. “It’s an international organization,” the agent in charge said.
No arrests had been made Wednesday at any of the locations.
“I’d rather not comment on how many people we’re looking at,” the agent in charge said.
Agents confiscated four cars from the 6,100-square-foot home at 1701 Ladera Trail that is owned by Hale. Anthony Cicero, an attorney for Hale, said his client has not been living at the home and was not the target of the search.
“Lee has been renting this house out,” Cicero said. “From what we can see, it doesn’t have anything to do with Lee.”
Hale was not at the house during the time that the agents were there and the agent in charge was not sure if Hale actually lived at the house.
The agent in charge would not confirm if Hale was the person being targeted by the search warrant, but he called the person the DEA was interested in, “a fairly large-scale trafficker to be linked to a kilo of heroin that we seized at another location.”
Several flatbed tow trucks arrived outside the home about 10:15 a.m. and subsequently hauled away two Cadillac Escalades, one BMW and a Dodge Challenger. The agent in charge said he believed the cars were not registered to the owner or the occupants of the Ladera Trail address.
“We consider those the fruits of the drug trafficking trade. Either used to facilitate or the direct result of the monetary gain from drug trafficking,” the agent in charge said of the vehicles seized.
The agent in charge would not comment on what else was taken from the Ladera Trail address. He noted that agents have been focused on the address for several months.
“Generally we try to focus above, on the suppliers. So, we’ve done a pretty good job of taking those suppliers out. So, we came back down a level to try and identify this retail deal,” the agent in charge said.
Hale, who was convicted last year of three counts of filing a false corporate income tax return, is awaiting sentencing. He has a hearing before U.S. Magistrate Judge Sharon L. Ovington scheduled for May 26 and 27.
A jury convicted Hale on March 24 after a week-long trial. Hale was convicted of charges concerning the 2002, 2003 and 2004 income tax years. The jury acquitted him of 23 counts of structuring financial transactions.
The jury convicted his ex-wife Joyce, also on trial that week, of one count of making a false statement to federal investigators, but acquitted her of a second count of the same charge.
Elbert Hale has owned and operated Cheeks, 906 Watertower Lane, since 1998.
The DEA agent in charge said agents did not visit Cheeks on Wednesday.
The DEA agent in charge said the DEA does it’s best to combat the drug trafficking problem, but he recognizes that “it’s a highly skilled, highly financed organizations that are bringing those drugs into our country.”
The law enforcement agencies involved in the serving of Wednesday’s search warrants included Dayton Police Department, Huber Heights, Trotwood, Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, Greene County Sheriff’s Office, Clay Twp. and Miami Twp.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2414 or kwynn@DaytonDailyNews.com.
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