1970 - 1975
In
the spring and summer of 1973, the U.S. House of Representatives and
the U.S. Senate heard months of testimony on Richard Nixon’s Reorganization
Plan Number 2, which proposed the creation of a single federal agency
to consolidate and coordinate the government’s drug
control activities.
Drug use had not reached its all-time peak, but the problem
was serious enough to warrant a serious response.
The
long, proud, and honorable tradition of federal drug law enforcement began
in 1915 with the Bureau of Internal Revenue. In the following decades,
several federal agencies had drug law enforcement responsibilities. By
the 1960s, the two agencies charged with drug law enforcement were the
Bureau of Drug Abuse Control (BDAC) and the federal Bureau of Narcotics
(FBN). It was during this period that America underwent a significant
change. The introduction of drugs into American culture and the efforts
to "normalize" drug use started to take a terrible toll on the nation.
Nevertheless, American children could still walk to school in relative
safety, worrying only about report cards or the neighborhood bully. Today
however, as children approach their schools, they see barbed wire, metal
detectors, and signs warning drug dealers that school property is a "drug
free zone." In too many communities, drug dealers and gunfire force decent,
law-abiding citizens to seek refuge behind locked doors.
On December 14, 1970, at the White House,
the International Narcotic Enforcement Officers' Association
(INEOA)
presented to President Nixon a "certificate of special honor
in recognition of the outstanding loyalty and contribution to support
narcotic law enforcement." Standing with President Nixon
were (from left) John E. Ingersoll, Director of BNDD; John Bellizzi,
Executive Director of INEOA; and Matthew O'Conner, President
of
INEOA.
DEA Special Agents
1973..........1,470
1975..........2,135
DEA Budget
1973..........$74.9 million
1975..........$140.9 million |
|
In
1960, only four million Americans had ever tried drugs. Currently, that
number has risen to over 74 million. Behind these statistics are the stories
of countless families, communities, and individuals adversely affected
by drug abuse and drug trafficking.
Prior to the 1960s, Americans did not see drug use as acceptable behavior,
nor did they believe that drug use was an inevitable fact of life. Indeed,
tolerance of drug use resulted in terrible increases in crime between
the 1960s and the early 1990s, and the landscape of America has been altered
forever.
By the early 1970s, drug use had not yet reached its all-time peak, but
the problem was sufficiently serious to warrant a serious response. Consequently,
the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) was created in 1973 to deal
with America's growing drug problem.
At that time, the well-organized international drug trafficking syndicates
headquartered in Colombia and Mexico had not yet assumed their place on
the world stage as the preeminent drug suppliers. All of the heroin and
cocaine, and most of the marijuana that entered the United States was
being trafficked by lesser international drug dealers who had targeted
cities and towns within the nation. Major law enforcement investigations,
such as the French Connection made by agents in the DEA's predecessor
agency, the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs (BNDD), graphically
illustrated the complexity and scope of America's heroin problem.
In the years prior to 1973, several important developments took place
which would ultimately have a significant impact on the DEA and federal
drug control efforts for years to come. By the time that the DEA was created
by Executive Order in July 1973 to establish a single unified command,
America was beginning to see signs of the drug and crime epidemic that
lay ahead. In order to appreciate how the DEA has evolved into the important
law enforcement institution it is today, it must be understood that many
of its programs have roots in predecessor agencies.
BNDD
Before the creation of the DEA in 1973, multiple law enforcement
and intelligence organizations carried out federal drug enforcement policies.
John E. Ingersoll
Director, BNDD
1968-1973 |
John
E. Ingersoll served as Director of the U.S. Bureau of Narcotics and
Dangerous Drugs (BNDD) from 1968 until 1973. He began his career as
a patrolman and then sergeant for the Oakland, California, Police
Department from 1956 until 1961, when he became the Director of Field
Services for the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP).
He served with the IACP until 1966, when he became the chief of police
for Charlotte, North Carolina, until his appointment as Director of
BNDD in 1973. He was also the U.S. Representative to the United Nations
Commission on Narcotic Drugs from 1969 to 1973. From 1973 to 1993,
Mr. Ingersoll worked for the IBM Corporation, serving as Director
of Security for IBM's International Business Unit and the IBM World
Trae Subsidiary. Since April 1993, he has worked as an independent
consultant to business and government. |
In 1968, with the introduction into Congress of Reorganization Plan No.
1, President Johnson proposed combining two agencies into a third new
drug enforcement agency. The action merged the Bureau of Narcotics, in
the Treasury Department, which was responsible for the control of marijuana
and narcotics such as heroin, with the Bureau of Drug Abuse Control (BDAC),
in the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, which was responsible
for the control of dangerous drugs, including depressants, stimulants,
and hallucinogens, such as LSD. The new agency, the Bureau of Narcotics
and Dangerous Drugs (BNDD), was placed under the Department of Justice,
which is the government agency primarily concerned with federal law enforcement.
According to the Reorganization Plan, "the Attorney General will have
full authority and responsibility for enforcing the federal laws relating
to narcotics and dangerous drugs. The BNDD, headed by a Director appointed
by the Attorney General, would:
(1) consolidate the authority and preserve the experience and manpower of the Bureau of
Narcotics and Bureau of Drug Abuse Control;
(2) work with state and local governments in their crackdown on illegal trade in drugs and
narcotics, and help to train local agents and investigators;
(3) maintain worldwide operations, working closely with other nations, to suppress the
trade in illicit narcotics and marijuana; and
(4) conduct an extensive campaign of research and a nationwide public education program
on drug abuse and its tragic effects."
The BNDD became the primary drug law enforcement agency and concentrated its
efforts on both international and interstate activities. By 1970, the
BNDD had nine foreign offices--in Italy, Turkey, Panama, Hong Kong, Vietnam,
Thailand, Mexico, France, and Colombia--to respond to the dynamics of
the drug trade. Domestically, the agency initiated a task force approach
involving federal, state, and local officers. The first such task force
was set up in New York City.
In addition, the BNDD established Metropolitan Enforcement Groups, which were based on the
regional enforcement concept that provided for sharing undercover personnel, equipment, and
other resources from different jurisdictions. The BNDD provided training and operational
support for these units. By February 1972, the BNDD's agent strength had grown to 1,361, its
budget had more than quadrupled, and its foreign and domestic arrest totals had doubled. In
addition, the BNDD had regulatory control over more than 500,000 registrants licensed to
distribute elicit drugs, and it had six sophisticated forensic labs.
ABOVE: With Proclamation 3981, President Richard Nixon designated
the week of May 24 as Drug Abuse Prevention Week in 1970.
BELOW: Vol.III No.I BNDD Bulletin
|
Myles J. Ambrose
Director, ODALE
1972-1973
|
ODALE
On January 28, 1972, President Nixon created
the Office of Drug Abuse Law Enforcement (ODALE), within the
Department
of Justice
by Executive Order 11641. The Office was headed by Myles Ambrose,
who had served as U.S. Commissioner of Customs at the Treasury
Department from 1969 until 1972. As Director of ODALE, Mr. Ambrose
served as Special Assistant Attorney General and as Special Consultant
to the President. ODALE was established for an 18-month period
as an experimental approach to the problem of drug abuse in America.
During that time, ODALE conducted intensive operations throughout
the country, then evaluated their impact on heroin trafficking
at the middle and lower distribution levels. ODALE's objective
was "to bring substantial federal resources to bear on the
street-level heroin pusher."
Organizationally, the office drew heavily upon the expertise of
existing federal law enforcement agencies to coordinate and focus
resources and manpower. ODALE programs involved close, full-time
working relationships among participating federal, state, and local
officers who, while reporting administratively to their respective
agencies, took direction from ODALE.
ODALE provided common office space for the personnel assigned
to it, and all salaries and other costs were borne by the parent
organization on a nonreimbursable basis. Justice Department entities
involved included the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs,
Immigration and Naturalization Service, US Marshals Service, the
Tax Division, and offices of the US Attorneys in the cities where
the heroin problem was concentrated. Treasury Department entities
included the Internal Revenue Service, the Bureau of Customs, and
the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms. In addition, non-law
enforcement federal agencies contributing personnel and other assistance
included the Atomic Energy Commission, the US Air Force, the Environmental
Protection Agency, and the Interstate Commerce Commission.
By 1972, ODALE headquarters had 79 authorized positions and nine
regional offices. It targeted street-level drug dealers through
special grand juries and pooled intelligence data for federal,
state, and local law enforcement agencies. Regional offices were
based in Los Angeles, Denver, Houston, Kansas City, Chicago, Cleveland,
Atlanta, New York City, and Philadelphia. ODALE task forces operated
in 38 target cities through investigation-prosecution teams and
special grand juries which considered indictments.
In 1998, Mr. Ambrose was with Arter and Hadden, LLP, in Washington,
D.C. |
Foreign Offices Opened |
1960 |
Paris, France |
1970 |
Madrid, Spain |
1972 |
New Dehli, India |
1960 |
Rome, Italy |
1970 |
Manila, Phillippines |
1972 |
Panama City, Panama |
1961 |
Istanbul, Turkey |
1970 |
Santiago, Chile |
1972 |
Quito, Ecuador |
1963 |
Bangkok, Thailand |
1970 |
Tokyo, Japan |
1973 |
Islamabad, Pakistan |
1963 |
Mexico City, Mexico |
1971 |
Ankara, Turkey |
1973 |
Mazatlan, Mexico |
1963 |
Monterrey, Mexico |
1971 |
Asuncion, Paraguay |
1973 |
Ottawa, Canada |
1963 |
Hong Kong |
1971 |
Caracas, Venezuela |
1974 |
Guayaquil, Equador |
1963 |
Singapore |
1971 |
Chiang Mai, Thailand |
1974 |
Karachi, Pakistan |
1966 |
Lima, Peru |
1971 |
Brasilia, Brazil |
1974 |
Kingston, Jamaica |
1966 |
Seoul, S. Korea |
1971 |
Hermosillo, Mexico |
1974 |
San Jose, Costa Rica |
1969 |
Guadalajara, Mexico |
1971 |
Milan, Italy |
1974 |
Songkhla, Thailand |
1970 |
Buenos Aires, Agentina |
1972 |
Bogota, Colombia |
1974 |
The Hague, Netherlands |
1970 |
Frankfurt, Germany |
1972 |
Bonn, Germany |
1974 |
Vienna, Austria |
1970 |
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia |
1972 |
Brussels, Belgium |
|
|
1970 |
London, England |
1972 |
La Paz, Bolivia |
|
|
New York Task Force (1970)
In 1970, the first narcotics task force was established
in New York under the auspices of the BNDD to maximize the impact of cooperating
federal, state, and local law enforcement elements working on complex
drug investigations. Bruce Jensen, former chief of the New York Drug Enforcement
Task Force, described it "not as a monument...but a foundation firm enough
to withstand the test of time." At the time, heroin was a significant
problem, and law enforcement officials were seeking ways to reduce availability
and identify and prosecute those responsible for heroin trafficking. Federal,
state, and municipal law enforcement organizations put aside rivalries
and agreed to collaborate within the framework of the New York Joint Task
Force. The task force program also became an essential part of the DEA's
operations and reflected the belief that success is only possible through
cooperative investigative efforts. The BNDD, the New York State Police,
and the New York City Police Department contributed personnel to work
with Department of Justice lawyers and support staff. The rationale behind
the Task Force was that each representative brought different and valuable
perspectives and experiences to the table and that close collaboration
among the membership could result in cross-training and the sharing of
expertise. Since then, the Task Force expanded from the original 43 members.
In 1971 it increased to 172 members, and by 1998 it had 261 law enforcement
personnel assigned.
|
|
Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act (1970)
1970: BNDD's Compliance Investigators
frequently found that pharmacy violators of narcotics and drug
laws also lacked professional responsibility in other areas. The
unsavory sanitary conditions of the storage room pictured here
were found during a BNDD pharmacy investigation in Louisiana.
|
In response to America's growing drug problem, Congress passed the Controlled
Substances Act (CSA), Title II of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention
and Control Act of 1970. It replaced more than 50 pieces of drug legislation,
went into effect on May 1, 1971, and was enforced by the BNDD, the DEA's
predecessor agency. This law, along with its implementing regulations,
established a single system of control for both narcotic and psychotropic
drugs for the first time in U.S. history.
It also established five schedules that classify controlled substances
according to how dangerous they are, their potential for abuse and addiction,
and whether they possess legitimate medical value. Twenty-eight years
later, the CSA, though amended on several occasions, remained the legal
framework from which the DEA derived its authority.
Diversion Control Program (1971)
In the 1969 U.S. Senate hearings on the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), witnesses
estimated that 50 percent of the amphetamine being produced annually during
the 1960s had found its way into the illicit drug traffic. Following the
passage of the CSA in 1970, it was imperative that the U.S. Government
establish mechanisms to ensure that this growing diversion of legal drugs
into the illicit market be addressed. In 1970, over two billion dosage
units of amphetamine and methamphetamine were legally manufactured, equalling
more than 10 dosage units for every man, woman, and child in the United
States. Compounding the already serious problem of diverted drugs was
the fact that many drug manufacturers were producing excessive amounts
of pharmaceuticals.
Thus, the controls mandated by the CSA encompassed scheduling, manufacturing,
distributing, prescribing, importing, exporting, and other related activities.
They also provided the BNDD with the legal tools needed to deal with the
diversion problem as it existed at that time. Prior to the CSA, investigations
involving the diversion of legitimate pharmaceuticals were conducted solely
by special agents as part of their enforcement activities. However, shortly
after implementation of the CSA, BNDD management recognized that the investigation
of diversion cases differed significantly from investigation of traditional
narcotics cases.
In late 1971, the Compliance Program, later renamed the Diversion Control
Program, was created to provide a specialized work force that could focus
exclusively on the diversion issue and take full advantage of the controls
and penalties established by the CSA.
This work force developed an in-depth knowledge of the legitimate pharmaceutical
industry and the investigative techniques needed to make cases that were
essential to investigate legitimate organizations and professionals engaged
in drug diversion. The program was placed under the BNDD's Office of Enforcement
and staffed by compliance investigators, later called diversion investigators.
The first major challenge these investigators faced was the extraordinary
amount of amphetamines and barbiturates being diverted at the manufacturer
and distributor levels. The year the CSA went into effect, over 2,000
provisional registrations were issued to manufacturers and distributors
who had been operating under the Harrison Narcotics Act of 1914 and the
Drug Abuse Control Amendments. In order to stem the diversion problem,
it was necessary to enlist the support of manufacturers, wholesalers,
distributors, and pharmacists for regular inspections of records and premises.
It was also necessary to establish a system of registration to ensure
that law enforcement investigators had access to the records and physical
plants maintained by those responsible for the manufacture and distribution
of drugs.
The first inspections of registrants revealed instances where drug handlers
were operating out of basements and garages with little or no security
and were unable to account for the receipt or distribution of the drugs
they handled. In order to ensure that the diversion of dangerous drugs
did not continue, it was critical that meaningful punitive measures could
be taken against the minority of registrants responsible for the diversion
of drugs into the illegal market. Offenders were given the option of either
surrendering their controlled substances registration or instituting strict
controls necessary to prevent diversion in their offices and organizations.
Establishments and individuals who continued to violate the law were subject
to criminal, civil, or administrative actions.
As the program developed, it became clear that the diversion of drugs
was not simply a domestic issue. It became essential that controls on
international supplies of legal drugs also be established. In the early
1970s, there were several examples of foreign subsidiaries of U.S. drug
manufacturers becoming the main suppliers of illicit drugs, such as amphetamine,
to the black market in the United States. Through revocation of drug manufacturers'
export licenses, the BNDD, and then the DEA, were able to successfully
reduce the influx of illegal licit drugs into the United States.
Drug Abuse Prevention
Commemorative
U.S. Postage Stamp
On October 4, 1971, the U.S. Postal Service issued a stamp to commemorate
the Prevention efforts of the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs.
It was designed by Suzanne Rice and K. Gardner Perine of the BNDD Graphic
Section.
French Connection (1971-1972)
Diplomat-trafficker Mauricio Rosales,
the Guatemalan ambassador to Belgium, was using his diplomatic status to
smuggle in 100 kilos of heroin in these three suitcases. |
At Idlewild Airport (now JFK) in New York, Etienne Tarditi, a French
Corsican trafficker (trenchcoat),. He was coming to meet his drug courier,
help deliver heroin to New York gangsters, and collect payment. |
Bureau of Narcotics agents who worked on Rosales case pose with suitcases
filled with heroin. |
Illegal heroin labs were first discovered near Marseilles, France, in 1937. These labs were run by
the legendary Corsican gang leader Paul Carbone. For years, the French underworld had been
involved in the manufacturing and trafficking of illegal heroin abroad, primarily in the United
States. It was this heroin network that eventually became known as the French Connection.
Historically, the raw material for most of the heroin consumed in the United
States came from Turkey. Turkish farmers were licensed to grow opium poppies
for sale to legal drug companies, but many sold their excess to the underworld
market, where it was manufactured into heroin and transported to the United
States. It was refined in Corsican laboratories in Marseilles, one of
the busiest ports in the western Mediterranean. Marseilles served as a
perfect shipping point for all types of illegal goods, including the excess
opium that Turkish farmers cultivated for profit.
The convenience of the port at Marseilles and the frequent arrival of
ships from opium-producing countries made it easy to smuggle the morphine
base to Marseilles from the Far East or the Near East. The French underground
would then ship large quantities of heroin from Marseilles to Manhattan,
New York.
The first significant post-World War II seizure was made in New York
on February 5, 1947, when seven pounds of heroin were seized from a Corsican
seaman disembarking from a vessel that had just arrived from France.
It
soon became clear that the French underground was increasing not only
its participation in the illegal trade of opium, but also its expertise
and efficiency in heroin trafficking. On March 17, 1947, 28 pounds of
heroin were found on the French liner, St. Tropez. On January
7, 1949, more than 50 pounds of opium and heroin were seized on the French
ship, Batista.
The first major French Connection case occurred in 1960. In June, an
informant told a drug agent in Lebanon that Mauricio Rosal, the Guatemalan
Ambassador to Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg, was smuggling
morphine base from Beirut, Lebanon, to Marseilles. Narcotics agents had
been seizing about 200 pounds of heroin in a typical year, but intelligence
showed that the Corsican traffickers were smuggling in 200 pounds every
other week. Rosal alone, in one year, had used his diplomatic status to
bring in about 440 pounds.
The FBN's 1960 annual report estimated that from 2,600 to 5,000 pounds
of heroin were coming into the United States annually from France. The
French traffickers continued to exploit the demand for their illegal product,
and by 1969, they were supplying the United States with 80 to 90 percent
of the heroin consumed by addicts. The heroin they supplied was approximately
85 percent pure.
Because of this increasing volume, heroin became readily available throughout
the United States. In an effort to limit the source, U.S. officials went
to Turkey to negotiate the phasing out of opium production. Initially,
the Turkish Government agreed to limit their opium production starting
with the 1968 crop.
February 14, 1973: A 20-kilo heroin seizure
in Paris, France. Pictured left to right are,S/A Pierre Charette,
S/A Kevin Finnerty, and French anti-drug counterparts. |
Following five subsequent years of concessions, combined
with international cooperation, the Turkish government finally agreed
in 1971 to a complete ban on the growing of Turkish opium, effective June
30, 1972. During these protracted negotiations, law enforcement personnel
went into action. One of the major roundups began on January 4, 1972,
when BNDD agents and French authorities seized 110 pounds of heroin at
the Paris airport. Subsequently, traffickers Jean-Baptiste Croce and Joseph
Mari were arrested in Marseilles.
In February 1972, French traffickers offered a U.S. Army Sergeant $96,000
to smuggle 240 pounds of heroin into the United States. He informed his
superior who in turn notified the BNDD. As a result of this investigation,
five men in New York and two in Paris were arrested with 264 pounds of
heroin, which had a street value of $50 million. In a 14-month period,
starting in February 1972, six major illicit heroin laboratories were
seized and dismantled in the suburbs of Marseilles by French national
narcotics police in collaboration with U.S. drug agents. On February 29,
1972, French authorities seized the shrimp boat, Caprice de Temps,
as it put to sea near Marseilles heading towards Miami. It was carrying
415 kilos of heroin. Drug arrests in France skyrocketed from 57 in 1970
to 3,016 in 1972. The French Connection investigation demonstrated that
international trafficking networks were best disabled by the combined
efforts of drug enforcement agencies from multiple countries. In this
case, agents from the United States, Canada, Italy, and France had worked
together to achieve success.
First Female Special Agents
1933:
Mrs. Elizabeth Bass was appointed the first of many female narcotics
agents in the United States and served as District Supervisor in
Chicago. A longtime friend of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, she
played a prominent role in gaining political support for the Uniform
Narcotic Drug Act.
1971: The DEA's predecessor agency, the BNDD, became one
of the first federal agencies to implement a program for hiring
female special agents.
1973: Ms. Mary Turner became the first female DEA special
agent to graduate from the DEA's training program. She finished
first in her class.
1974: Twenty-three female special agents were working in
DEA field offices throughout the United States.
|
Creation of the DEA (July 1, 1973)
No. 11727
July 10, 1973,
38 F.R. 18357
DRUG LAW ENFORCEMENT
Reorganization Plan No. 2 of 1973, which becomes effective
on July 1, 1973, among other things establishes a Drug Enforcement
Administration in the Department of Justice. In my message
to the Congress transmitting that plan, I stated that all functions
of the Office for Drug Abuse Law Enforcement (established pursuant
to Executive Order No. 11641 of January 28, 1972) and the Office of
National Narcotics Intelligence (established pursuant to Executive
Order No. 16676 of July 27, 1972) would, together with other related
functions be merged in the new Drug Enforcement Administration.
NOW, THEREFORE, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the
United States, including section 5317 of title 5 of the United States Code, as amended, it is
hereby ordered as follows:
Section 1. The Attorney General, to the extent permitted by law, is authorized to coordinate all
activities of executive branch departments and agencies which are directly related to the
enforcement of laws respecting narcotics and dangerous drugs. Each department and agency of
the Federal Government shall, upon request and to the extent permitted by law, assist the
Attorney General in the performance of functions assigned to him pursuant to this order, and the
Attorney General may, in carrying out those functions, utilize the services of any other agencies,
federal and state, as may be available and appropriate.
Sec. 2. Executive Order No. 11641 of January 28, 1972,1 is hereby revoked and the Attorney
General shall provide for the reassignment of the functions of the Office for Drug Abuse Law
Enforcement and for the abolishment of that Office.
Sec. 3. Executive Order No. 11676 of July 27, 1972,1 is hereby revoked and the Attorney
General shall provide for the reassignment of the functions of the Office of Narcotics Intelligence
and for the abolishment of that Office.
Sec. 4. Section 1 of Executive Order No. 11708 of March 23, 1973,2 as amended, placing
certain positions in level IV of the Executive Schedule is hereby further amended by deleting--
(1) "(6) Director, Office for Drug Abuse Law Enforcement, Department of
Justice"; and
(2) "(7) Director, Office of Narcotics Intelligence, Department of Justice."
Sec. 5. The Attorney General shall provide for the winding up of the affairs of the two offices
and for the reassignment of their functions.
Sec 6. This order shall be effective as of July 1, 1973.
Richard Nixon THE WHITE HOUSE, July 6,
1973 |
In 1973, President Richard Nixon declared "an all-out global war on the
drug menace" and sent Reorganization Plan No. 2 to Congress. "Right now,"
he pointed out, "the federal government is fighting the war on drug abuse
under a distinct handicap, for its efforts are those of a loosely confederated
alliance facing a resourceful, elusive, worldwide enemy. Certainly, the
cold- blooded underworld networks that funnel narcotics from suppliers
all over the world are no respecters of the bureaucratic dividing lines
that now complicate our anti-drug efforts."
In the spring and summer of 1973, the U.S. House of Representatives and
the U.S. Senate heard months of testimony on President Nixon's Reorganization
Plan Number 2, which proposed the creation of a single federal agency
to consolidate and coordinate the government's drug control activities.
At that time, the BNDD, within the Department of Justice, was responsible for enforcing the
federal drug laws. However, the U.S. Customs Service and several other Justice entities (ODALE
and the Office of National Narcotics Intelligence) were also responsible for various aspects of
federal drug law enforcement. Of great concern to the Administration and the Congress were the
growing availability of drugs in most areas of the United States, the lack of coordination and the
perceived lack of cooperation between the U.S. Customs Service and the BNDD, and the need
for better intelligence collection on drug trafficking organizations.
According to the final report from the Senate Committee on Government
Operations issued on October 16, 1973, the benefits anticipated from
the creation of the DEA included:
1. Putting an end to the interagency rivalries that have undermined
federal drug law enforcement, especially the rivalry between the BNDD
and the U.S. Customs Service;
2. Giving the FBI its first significant role in drug enforcement by
requiring that the DEA draw on the FBI’s expertise in combatting
organized crime’s role in the trafficking of illicit drugs;
3. Providing a focal point for coordinating federal drug enforcement
efforts with those of state and local authorities, as well as with foreign
police forces;
4. Placing a single Administrator in charge of federal drug law enforcement
in order to make the new DEA more accountable than its component parts
had ever been, thereby safeguarding against corruption and enforcement
abuses;
5. Consolidating drug enforcement operations in the DEA and establishing
the Narcotics Division in Justice to maximize coordination between federal
investigation and prosecution efforts and eliminate rivalries within
each sphere; and
6. Establishing the DEA as a superagency to provide the momentum needed
to coordinate all federal efforts related to drug enforcement outside
the Justice Department, especially the gathering of intelligence on international
narcotics smuggling.
John R. Bartels, Jr.
DEA Administrator
1973-1975
|
DEA
On September 12, 1973, the White House selected
John R. Bartels, Jr., a native of Brooklyn, New York, a former
federal prosecutor,
and Deputy Director of the ODALE, to be the DEA's first Administrator.
He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on October 4, 1973. Prior to
his employment with the ODALE and the DEA, Mr. Bartels had been
an Assistant U.S. Attorney, Southern District of New York, from
1964-1968. From 1969-1971, he was an Adjunct Professor, Rutgers
University School of Law. From 1972-1973, Mr. Bartels was the Chief
of the Organized Crime Strike-Force, U.S. Department of Justice,
Newark, New Jersey; Counsel to Governor Nelson Rockefeller; and
Deputy Assistant Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice,
Criminal Division. He was later a delegate for the United Nations
Commission on Narcotic Drugs in 1974. He currently resides in White
Plains, New York.
|
Early Developments in the DEA
When John R. Bartels, Jr., was confirmed as the DEA's first Administrator on October 4, 1973,
he had two goals for the new agency: (1) to integrate narcotics agents and U.S. Customs agents
into one effective force; and (2) to restore public confidence in narcotics law enforcement. From
the very beginning, Mr. Bartels was faced with the unenviable task of unifying the efforts of
several drug law enforcement entities. One of the most serious obstacles arose from conflicting
philosophies of various agencies, particularly the BNDD and the U.S. Customs Service. To ease
the process, U.S. Customs agents were placed in top positions throughout the DEA. For example,
Fred Rody, Regional Director in Miami, became the DEA's Deputy Administrator in December
1979; John Lund was appointed as Deputy Assistant Administrator; and John Fallon named as
Regional Director in New York. Administrator Bartels issued specific instructions to federal
narcotics agents: "This Statement of Policy outlines the measures taken by the Drug Enforcement
Administration to prevent incidents which might infringe on individual rights or jeopardize the
successful prosecution of a case. The guidelines require clear-cut lines of command and control
in enforcement situations and stress that operations must be carried out in a manner that is legally
correct, morally sound, with full respect for the civil rights, human dignity of persons involved,
and the sanctity of the home." The guidelines also restricted vehicular arrests and prohibited
participation in raids by non-law enforcement personnel.
Creation of the DEA Intelligence Program (1973)
Intelligence had long been recognized as an essential
element in the success of any investigative or law enforcement agency.
Accurate and up-to-date information was required to assess the operations
and vulnerabilities of criminal networks, to interdict drugs in a systematic
way, to forecast new methods of trafficking, to evaluate the impact of
previous activities, and to establish long-range drug strategies and policies.
Included in the DEA mission was a mandate for drug intelligence. The DEA's
Office of Intelligence came into being on July 1, 1973, upon implementation
of Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 2. The Code of Federal Regulations
charged the Administrator of the DEA with:
The development and maintenance of a National Narcotics Intelligence
system in cooperation with federal, state, and local officials, and the
provision of narcotics intelligence to any federal, state, or local official
that the Administrator determines has a legitimate official need to have
access to such intelligence.
To support this mission, specific functions were identified as follows:
- Collect and produce intelligence to support the Administrator and other federal, state, and
local agencies;
- Establish/maintain close working relationships with all agencies that produce or use drug
intelligence;
- Increase the efficiency in the reporting, analysis, storage, retrieval, and exchange of such
information; and
- Undertake a continuing review of the narcotics intelligence effort to identify and correct
deficiencies.
The DEA divided drug intelligence into three broad categories: tactical, operational,
and strategic. Tactical intelligence provides immediate support to investigative
efforts by identifying traffickers and movement of drugs. Operational
intelligence provides analytical support to investigations and structuring
organizations. Strategic intelligence focuses on developing a comprehensive
and current picture of the entire system by which drugs are cultivated,
produced, transported, smuggled, and distributed around the world. These
definitions remain valid in 1998.
To build upon its drug intelligence mandate in 1973, the DEA’s
Intelligence Program consisted of two major elements: the Office of Intelligence
at Headquarters and the Regional Intelligence Units (RIU) in domestic
and foreign field offices. The structure of the Office of Intelligence
was divided into five entities: International and Domestic Divisions,
Strategic Intelligence Staff, Special Operations and Field Support Staff,
and the Intelligence Systems Staff. Its structure paralleled that of
the Office of Enforcement.
The RIUs had four objectives: (1) Provide a continuing flow of actionable
intelligence to enhance the tactical effectiveness of regional enforcement
efforts; (2) Support management planning of the overall regional enforcement
program; (3) Contribute to interregional and strategic collection programs
of the Office of Intelligence; and (4) Facilitate exchange of intelligence
information with state and local law enforcement domestically and with
host-country enforcement abroad.
Initially, the Intelligence Program was staffed by DEA special agents,
with very few professional intelligence analysts (I/As). In DEA’s
first I/A class in 1974, there were only eleven I/As. However, during
the last 30 years, the Intelligence Program has grown significantly.
From only a few I/As in the field and Headquarters in 1973, the cadre
of I/As now numbers 730.
The Unified Intelligence Division (UID) (1973)
In October 1973, the DEA’s first field intelligence unit based
on the task force concept was created. The unit, named the Unified Intelligence
Division (UID), included DEA special agents, DEA intelligence analysts,
New York State Police investigators, and New York City detectives. Along
with its unique status as an intelligence task force, the UID was also
one of the first field intelligence units to systematically engage all
aspects of the intelligence process, specifically collection, evaluation,
analysis, and dissemination. This pioneering role expanded the horizons
of drug law enforcement field intelligence units, which, at the time,
were often limited to collecting information, maintaining dossiers, and
providing limited case support. This proactive stance was immediately
successful as UID was able to develop and disseminate extensive intelligence
on traditional organized crime-related drug traffickers and identify
not only the leaders, but also those who were likely to become leaders.
UID also developed and disseminated intelligence throughout the federal,
state, and local law enforcement community on the members, associates,
and contacts of infamous heroin violator Leroy “Nicky” Barnes.
Significant intelligence operations continued through the 1980s, with UID
taking a leading role in providing intelligence on the crack cocaine
epidemic and on Cali cocaine mafia operations in New York. The UID’s
proactive intelligence task force concept continues to build upon successes
of the past.
Shortly after the creation of UID, the Drug Enforcement Coordinating
System (DECS) was developed. DECS is a repository index system of all
active drug cases in the New York metropolitan area. The DECS system
connects agencies that have common investigative targets or common addresses
that are part of their investigations. It was created to enhance officer
safety and to promote greater cooperation and coordination among drug
law enforcement agencies by preventing duplication of effort on overlapping
investigations being conducted by member agencies. DECS, which began
as a joint venture of DEA/NYSP/NYPD housed in the UID, now has a membership
of 40 investigative units involved in drug law enforcement, and is the
prototype for many similar systems that have since been developed across
the country.
DEA Intelligence Analyst Training
School #1 (November 1974)
SA Robert McCall
SA Thomas Shreeve
SA Leonard Rzcpczynski
SA Charles Henry
SA John Hampe
SA Thomas Anderson
SA Robert Janet
SA Christopher Bean
SA Michael Campbell
SA Donald Bramwell
SA Murry Brown
SA Donald Stowell
SA Arthur Doll
SA Frank Gulich
SA Norman Noordweir
SA Lynn Williams |
SA Omar Aleman
SA Ron Garribotto
SA Angelo Saladino
IA Beverly Singleton
IA Ann Augusterfer
IA Adrianne Darnaby
IA Beverly Ager
IA Janet Gunther
IA Joan Philpott
IA Wiliam Munson
IA Brian Boyd
IA Joan Bannister
IA Jennifer Garcia-Tobar
IA Eileen Hayes |
|
National Narcotics Intelligence System (NADDIS)
In 1973, the DEA developed
the National Narcotics Intelligence System (NADDIS), which became federal
law enforcement’s
first automated index. The creation of NADDIS was possible because the DEA
was the first law
enforcement
agency
in the nation to adopt an all-electronic, centralized, computer database
for its records. NADDIS, composed of data from DEA investigative reports
and teletypes, provided agents in all DEA domestic offices with electronic
access to investigative file data. NADDIS searches could be conducted NADDIS
contained approximately 4.5 million records, with 5,000 new records being added
every week. NADDIS remains the largest and most frequently used of the 40 specialized
information systems operated by the DEA.
BA-1 Graduates
Ralph Arroyo
Terry T. Baldwin
Richard J. Barter
Richard E. Bell
Donald H. Bloch
Henry J. Braud, Jr.
Michael E. Byrnes
James W. Castillo
Andrew G. Cloke
George L. Coleman
Cruz Cordero, Jr.
Salvadore M. Dijamco
Clark S. Edwards
John H. Felts
Andrew G. Fenrich
Carliese R. Gordon
Annabelle Grimm
Bernard Harry
Richard Phillip Holmes
Antonio L. Huertas |
Dennis F. Imamura
James Jefferies, Jr.
Richard C. Kazmar
Anthony V. Lobosco
Sherman A. Lucas III
John W. Lugar, Jr.
Edward C. Maher
Charles E. Mathis
Thomas L. Mones
Donald E. Nelson
Dennis A. O Neila
Juan R. Rodriguez
Thomas J. Salvatore
Edward J. Schlachter
Arthur T. Tahuari
Frank Torres, Jr.
Mary A. Turner
Robert Bruce Upchurch
Adis J. Wells
James Hiram Williams |
|
Graduation of the First DEA Special Agents
The first DEA Special Agent Basic Training Class (BA-1) graduated on
November 16, 1973. Reverend James W. McMurtie, Principal of Bishop Denis
J. O'Connell High School in Arlington, Virginia, gave the Invocation honoring
the 40 men and women of BA-1, and DEA Administrator Bartels gave the welcome
and introductions. The Training Division chief was Paul F. Malherek, and
the class counselors were Calvin C. Campbell of the Miami Regional Office,
Allen L. Johnson of the New Orleans Regional Office, and Henry S. Lincoln
of the San Diego District Office.
BA 2 graduate Michael Vigil accepts his certificate from William
Dirken, Perry Rivkind, and Paul Malherek of DEA Training. |
Joint Efforts with Mexico (1974)
By 1972, the quantity of brown heroin from Mexico available in the United
States had risen 40 percent higher than the quantity of white heroin
from Europe. Traditional international border control was no longer effective
against the problem, and in 1974, the Government of Mexico requested
U.S. technical assistance. On January 26, 1974, Operation SEA/M (Special
Enforcement Activity in Mexico) was launched in the State of Sinaloa
to combat the opium and heroin traffic. One month later, a second joint
task force, Operation Endrun, began operations in the State of Guerrero,
concentrating on marijuana and heroin interdiction. Meanwhile, a third
effort, Operation Trident, focused on controlling the traffic of illegally
manufactured dangerous drugs produced in Mexico. Despite the fact that
law enforcement in Mexico had some successes, these early efforts did
not, in the long term, prevent the development of powerful drug trafficking
organizations based in Mexico.
The
Collapse of the DEA Miami Office Building (1974)
The DEA was still a new agency when tragedy struck the
Miami Field Division. On August 5, 1974, at 10:24 a.m., the roof of the
Miami office came crashing down, killing seven and trapping others in
a pile of twisted steel and concrete. Between 125 and 150 people worked
in the building. Those who died included: Special Agent Nicholas Fragos;
Mary Keehan, Secretary to the Acting Regional Director; Special Agent
Charles Mann; Anna Y. Mounger, Secretary; Anna Pope, Fiscal Assistant;
Martha D. Skeels, Supervisory Clerk-Typist; and Mary P. Sullivan, Clerk-Typist.
Although the people who were in the building thought it was an explosion
or an earthquake, officials initially theorized that the dozens of cars
in the parking facility on the roof were too heavy for the six-inch-thick
slab of concrete supporting them. Later, it was found that the resurfaced
parking lot, coupled with salt in the sand, had eroded and weakened the
supporting steel structure of the building. The section that collapsed
contained a processing room and a laboratory. The building was erected
in 1925, and in 1968 had undergone a full engineering inspection, at which
time it was cleared to house DEA offices.
El Paso Intelligence Center (1974)
In 1973, with increasing drug activity along the Southwest Border, the BNDD found that
information on drugs was being collected by the DEA, Customs, BNDD, FBI, and FAA, but was
not being coordinated. The DEA and the INS were also collecting information on the smuggling
of aliens and guns. In 1974, the Department of Justice submitted a report from that BNDD study
entitled, A Secure Border: An Analysis of Issues Affecting the U.S. Department of Justice to the
Office of Management and Budget that provided recommendations to improve drug and border
enforcement operations along the Southwest Border. One of the recommendations proposed the
establishment of a regional intelligence center to collect and disseminate information relating to
drug, illegal alien, and weapons smuggling to support field enforcement agencies throughout the
country. As a result, in 1974, the El Paso Intelligence Center (EPIC) was established to provide
tactical intelligence to federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies on a national scale.
Staffed by representatives of the DEA and the INS, EPIC has since expanded into a national drug
intelligence center supporting U.S. law enforcement entities that focus on worldwide drug
smuggling.
Drug
Abuse Warning Network (1974)
In 1974, the Drug Abuse
Warning Network (DAWN) was designed and developed by the scientific staff
of the DEA's Office of Science and Technology. DAWN was created to assist
the federal government in identifying and evaluating the scope and extent
of drug abuse in the United States. It was jointly funded with the National
Institute of Drug Abuse. DAWN incorporated data from various sources of
intelligence within the DEA and from such outside sources as federal, state,
and local law enforcement agencies, the pharmaceutical industry, and scientific
literature. Over 1,300 different facilities supply data to the program.
Beginning in the
early 1970s, DAWN collected information on patients seeking hospital
emergency treatment related to their use of an illegal drug or the
nonmedical use of a legal drug. Data were collected by trained reporters
(nurses and other hospital personnel) who reviewed medical charts.
They monitored notations by the hospital personnel who treated the
patients that drug use was the reason for the emergency visit. Hospitals participating
in DAWN are non-federal, short-stay general hospitals that feature
a 24-hour emergency department. Since 1988, the DAWN data was collected
from a representative sample of these hospitals located throughout
the United States, including 21 specific metropolitan areas. The data
from this sample were used to generate estimates of the total number
of emergency department drug episodes and drug mentions in all such
hospitals.
Narcotic Addict Treatment Act (1974)
Public Law 93-281
The Narcotic Addict Treatment Act was passed in 1974 and amended
the Controlled Substances Act to provide for the separate registration
of doctors and other practitioners who used narcotic drugs in the
treatment of addicts. It also provided physicians who were treating
narcotic addiction with specific guidelines and medications. This
act eliminated the indiscriminate prescription of narcotics to addicts
and reduced the diversion of pharmaceutical narcotics.
In 1972, Timothy Leary (center) was brought to
justice by DEA Special Agents Don Strange (right) and Howard
Safir (left). Leary, a psychology instructor, was fired from
his post at Harvard University as a result of his experimentation
with LSD. In 1969, he founded a clandestine drug-trafficking
ring, known as the Brotherhood of Eternal Love, that became the
largest supplier of hashish and LSD in the United States. |
A 1970 raid on a Washington, D.C., apartment by metropolitan
police officers resulted in the seizure of LSD and marijuana,
as well as the unusual antique chandelier pictured above. The
light fixtures on the chandelier had been removed and replaced
with rubber hose, creating a giant marijuana pipe. |
Aviation
In 1971, the BNDD launched its aviation program with one special agent/pilot,
one airplane, and a budget of $58,000. The concept of an Air Wing was
the brainchild of Marion Joseph, an experienced former United States
Air Force pilot and a veteran special agent stationed in Atlanta, Georgia.
Over the years, Special Agent Joseph had seen how the police used aircraft
for surveillance, search and rescue, and the recapturing of fugitives.
His analysis led him to conclude that a single plane “could do
the work of five agents and five vehicles on the ground.”
As drug trafficking increased nationwide, it became evident that it
had no boundaries and that law enforcement needed aviation capabilities.
Although Special Agent Joseph convinced his superiors of the merits of
his idea, no funding was available. Management told Agent Joseph that
if he could find an airplane, they would further consider the Air Wing
concept. At this point, Special Agent Joseph approached the United States
Air Force, and under the Bailment Property Transfer Program that allows
the military to assist other government entities, he secured one airplane—a
Vietnam war surplus Cessna Skymaster.
The benefit of air support to drug
law enforcement operations became immediately apparent, and the request
for airplanes grew rapidly. By
1973, when the DEA was formally established, the Air Wing already
had 41 special agent pilots operating 24 aircraft in several major cities
across the United States. Most of these aircraft were fixed-wing,
single-engine,
piston airplanes that were primarily used for domestic surveillance.
Training
The National Training Institute, the DEA's first training program, was located
at DEA headquarters, 1405 Eye Street in Washington, D.C. At that time,
training was divided into three major divisions: special agent training,
police training, and international training.
Trainee John Wilder |
Training was carried out in a three-story bank building adjacent to DEA
headquarters that had been converted for training purposes. The building
had a gymnasium located on the first floor, lockers and showers in the
basement, and a 5-point firing range on the second floor. Special agent
trainees were housed in hotels within walking distance of DEA headquarters.
In the absence of the realistic Hogan's Alley, a life-sized, simulated
neighborhood of today, training practicals were conducted on public streets.
The DEA had leased a 20-acre farm near Dulles Airport in rural Virginia,
as well as a house in Oxen Hill, Maryland, to practice raids and field
exercises. Basic Agent training lasted 10 weeks, and the Training Institute
supported three classes, with 53 students per class, in session at all
times. Graduations occurred every three weeks. Coordinators were from
the headquarters staff, and counselors were brought in from the field
for temporary training duty. In addition to training basic agents, the
DEA also offered training programs for compliance investigators, intelligence
analysts, chemists, supervisors, mid-level managers, executives, technical
personnel, state and local police officers, and international law enforcement
personnel.
Technology
Over
the years, the combination of technology and law enforcement have solved
some of the biggest criminal cases in the world. However, by 1998, the
DEA's technology ranked among the most sophisticated. That was not always
the case. During the DEA's formative years, technical investigative equipment
was limited both in supply and technical capabilities. In 1971, the entire
budget for investigative technology was less than $1 million. This budget
was used to buy radio and investigative equipment and to fund the teletype
system.
Video surveillance was rare because of the size and
expense of camera equipment. Cameras were tube type, required special
lighting, and could not be concealed. Early video tape recorders were
extremely expensive and were reel-to-reel or the very early version of
cassettes called U-Matic.
Pen registers, or dialed number recorders,
were more advanced than the older versions, which actually punched holes
in a tape, similar to an old ticker tape, in response to the pulses from
a rotary dialed phone. Pen registers were also limited because federal
law at the time required the same degree of probable cause as was required
for a Title III Wire Intercept.
Title IIIs were conducted with reel-to-reel
tape recorders. However, the DEA did not conduct many Title IIIs because
they were labor intensive, and the agency seldom had sufficient personnel
to work the intercepts.
In 1973, body-worn recorders used by agents
during investigations had advanced from large belt packs to smaller versions.
However, reliability was always a concern. These old belt types, called
KELsets, consisted of a transmitter and a belt of batteries worn by the
undercover agent. Unfortunately, the belt was not easily concealable,
and the batteries would occasionally overheat and burn the backs of the
agents.
When the BNDD was formed it did not have a radio system, but in 1971,
the agency began installing a nationwide UHF radio system
for operations. (The DEA's radio system was installed in 1973.) When an
early facsimile machine was installed in 1972, it took six minutes to
transmit one page, and pages often had to be re-sent due to communication
failures. No paging equipment was available because dedicated frequencies
had to be used for each pager. Only doctors and a few select individuals
could obtain pagers.
Although cellular phones did not exist, there
was a mobile telephone service. However, only the DEA Administrator had
a mobile phone, and the service was slow and unreliable.
Laboratories
Creation
of the Federal Drug Laboratory System
One of the essential functions carried out by the DEA and its predecessor
agencies was providing laboratory support. The success of cases made against
major drug traffickers depended in part upon analysis of the drug evidence
gathered during narcotics investigations. The DEA's laboratory system,
one of the finest in the world, has roots in the DEA's predecessor agencies.
Although the two predecessor agencies, BDAC and FBN, did not have laboratories
under their direct supervision, lab support was available within their
respective departments. Ultimately, the DEA's laboratory system began
to take shape through the consolidation and transfer of several lab programs
within the U.S. Government. The first laboratory personnel transferred
to the BNDD came from the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Division
of Pharmaceutical Chemistry and Microanalytical Group in Washington, D.C.
They were primarily responsible for performing the ballistics analyses
of tablets and capsules, identifying newly-encountered compounds found
in drug traffic, and conducting methods development. According to the
agreement with the FDA, the new agency would take control of one of the
FDA labs. In August 1968, six chemists formed what eventually became the
Special Testing and Research Laboratory. The first of the five regional
DEA laboratories was the Chicago Regional Laboratory that opened in December
1968. The New York, Washington, Dallas, and San Francisco Regional Laboratories
were formed in April 1969. The original chemist work force for these laboratories
came from several field laboratories run by government agencies. The professional
staffing of the six laboratories consisted of 36 bench chemists doing
physical lab research, supplemented by five supervisory chemists. In 1970,
the first full year of operation, the laboratories analyzed almost 20,000
drug exhibits. During the next two years, the laboratories work load increased
by 46 percent and 19 percent, respectively. To meet the increased work
load demand, staffing more than doubled to 94 by 1972 (including laboratory
and BNDD headquarters management personnel.) In 1971, both the Washington
and Dallas Regional Laboratories moved to larger facilities, and in January
1972, the BNDD opened its sixth regional laboratory in Miami. After the
DEA was created, a seventh field laboratory was opened in San Diego in
August 1974.
The Original DEA Forensic
Chemists
Headquarters Frederick Garfield, John Gunn, Richard
Frank, and William Butler. Special Testing and Research Laboratory Director
Stanley Sobol, Albert Tilson, Joseph C. Koles, Victor A. Folen, Robert Ferrera, Francis B.
Holmes, and Albert Sperling. Chicago Regional Laboratory Director Jerry
Nelson, Roger B. Fuelster, Ferris H. Van, David W. Parmalee, Nora L. Williams, Lawrence O.
Buer, Dennis E. Korte, and James P. Done. New York Regional
Laboratory Director Anthony Romano, Elinor R. Swide, Robert Bianchi, Roger F.
Canaff, and Paul DeZan. Washington DC Regional Laboratory Director Jack
Rosenstein, Richard Moore, Thaddeus E. Tomczak, Richard Fox, and Benjamin A.
Perillo. Dallas Regional Laboratory Director Jim Kluckhohn, Buddy R.
Goldston, Charles B. Teer, John D. Wittwer, Richard Ruybal, and Michael D.
Miller. San Francisco Regional Laboratory Director Robert Sager, Robert
Countryman, Claude G. Roe, James Look, James A. Heagy, and John D. Kirk. |
Killed in the Line of Duty
|
|
Hector Jordan
Died on October 14,
1970
Working as a
Supervisory Special
Agent with the
Bureau of Narcotics
and Dangerous
Drugs, Special Agent
Jordan died in
Chicago in an
unprovoked attack by
a roving
gang.
|
|
Nickolas Fragos
Died on August 5,
1974
DEA Special Agent
Fragos was killed on
his first day of work
as a DEA Special
Agent. He died as a
result of the collapse
of the Miami
Regional Office
Building. |
|
Gene A. Clifton
Died on November
19, 1971
Palo Alto, California
Police Officer Clifton
died from injuries
received during a
joint operation with
the Bureau of
Narcotics and
Dangerous Drugs. |
|
Mary M. Keehan
Died on August 5,
1974
Ms. Keehan,
secretary to the
Acting Regional
Director of the
DEA's Miami
Regional Office, died
as a result of the
collapse of the Miami
Regional Office
building.
|
|
Frank Tummillo
Died on October 12,
1972
Working in the
Bureau of Narcotics
and Dangerous
Drugs, Special Agent
Tummillo was killed
during an undercover
operation in New
York City. |
|
Charles H. Mann
Died on August 5,
1974
DEA Special Agent
Mann was killed on
his first day of work
after returning from
an overseas
assignment. He died
as a result of the
collapse of the Miami
Regional Office
building.
|
|
George F. White
Died on March 25,
1973
Special Agent Pilot
White of the Bureau
of Narcotics and
Dangerous Drugs
was killed when his
plane hit a power line
near Tucson,
Arizona.
|
|
Anna Y. Mounger
Died on August 5,
1974
Ms. Mounger, a
secretary at the
DEA's Miami
Regional Office, died
as a result of the
collapse of the Miami
Regional Office
building. |
|
Richard Heath, Jr.
Died on April 1,
1973
Special Agent Heath
of the Bureau of
Narcotics and
Dangerous Drugs
died in Quito,
Ecuador, from a
gunshot wound
received during an
undercover operation
in Aruba,
Netherlands
Antilles.
|
|
Anna J. Pope
Died on August 5,
1974
Mrs. Pope, a fiscal
assistant at the
DEA's Miami
Regional Office, died
as a result of the
collapse of the Miami
Regional Office
building. |
|
Emir Benitez
Died on August 9,
1973
DEA Special Agent
Benitez died from a
gunshot wound he
received during an
undercover cocaine
investigation in Fort
Lauderdale, Florida. |
|
Martha D. Skeels
Died on August 5,
1974
Ms. Skeels, a
supervisory
clerk-typist at the
DEA's Miami
Regional Office, died
as a result of the
collapse of the Miami
Regional Office
building.
|
|
Gerald Sawyer
Died on November
6, 1973
Detective Sawyer of
the Los Angeles,
California Police
Department, was
killed while working
in a joint undercover
investigation with the
DEA.
|
|
Mary P. Sullivan
Died on August 5,
1974
Ms. Sullivan, a
clerk-typist at the
DEA Miami
Regional Office, died
as a result of the
collapse of the Miami
Regional Office
building. |
|
Leslie S. Grosso
Died on May 21,
1974
Investigator Grosso
of the New York
State Police was shot
during an undercover
operation in New
York City. He was
assigned to the
DEA's New York
City Joint Task
Force. |
|
|
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