by Dave O'Brien
Record-Courier staff writer
Stow -- The seizure of 66 pounds of cocaine and an airplane at Kent State University Airport May 2 is one of the five largest drug busts in Summit County history, according to Stow Police Chief Louis Dirker.
Standing next to a stack of 30 1-kilo packages during a press conference May 5, Dirker said the arrest was "an excellent example of several agencies working together" and predicted some of his officers will "never see anything like this again in their careers."
"It's significant because we've uncovered a source of supply," said John Ferster, resident agent in charge of the DEA's Cleveland office. "It's hard to tell if it will hurt [the dealers] but it's a significant loss in the short term."
"This is the tip of the iceberg, we hope," Dirker added.
Acting on a tip from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Los Angeles, several area police agencies conducted a joint drug bust May 2 at the Kent State University Airport in Stow, resulting in the seizure of approximately 30 kilograms, or 66 pounds, of cocaine worth approximately $750,000.
"Cutting" or "stepping on" the cocaine to increase the street value could have boosted its value to between $1.5 million and $2.25 million, officials said.
The haul also included a $300,000-plus airplane, a 2007 Toyota truck and resulted in the arrests of three men -- one from Cleveland and two from California -- whose final destination, according to their flight plan, was the KSU Airport. Officials suspect this means the cocaine was bound for somewhere in Northeastern Ohio.
Dirker and Ferster stood next to the seized drugs at a press conference May 5 at the Stow Police Department and lauded the cooperation of the numerous federal and local agencies involved.
The operation kicked into high gear at 9:42 p.m. May 2, Dirker said, when KSU police called Stow police to alert them that ICE had called in a tip about a suspected drug shipment bound for the KSU Airport, which is within Stow city limits.
Dirker and Ferster said they did not know how ICE came to obtain the information leading to the tip.
Stow Officer Jim Barker, who also happens to be the department's DARE officer, staked out the airport with the aid of a trooper from the Ohio Highway Patrol. Shortly after 10 p.m., Barker observed a dark-colored 2007 Toyota Tundra truck parked at the airport.
The driver, 35-year-old Robert W. Hawes Jr. of Cleveland, said he was waiting to pick someone up who was flying into the airport, which is open to general aviation. He was detained at the scene prior to the arrival of the plane, as more units arrived as backup.
Minutes later, Dirker said, a single-engine 2006 Cessna 182 Skylane, registration number N668LB and state-of-art avionics and computers, landed and immediately was surrounded by cruisers from the various agencies involved and officers with their weapons drawn.
The pilot, identified as Malcolm A. Sales, 45, of Westminster, Calif, and passenger Tommy A. Gonzales, 27, of Riverside, Calif., were detained. Dirker said it was the first time his officers had to stop a plane, comparing it to a felony traffic stop.
Sales "couldn't have gotten away," Dirker said.
Kent Police Officer Marty Gilliland and his drug-sniffing dog Felo arrived later, and Felo discovered the presence of drugs on the plane, Dirker said, giving police probable cause to search it. A compartment behind the pilot's seat subsequently yielded "30 1-kilo packages" of cocaine, all marked "Chuko" in black felt-tipped marker.
Officials said they do not yet know what the markings mean, nor the ultimate destination for the drugs. KSU Airport was the plane's final destination, according to a flight plan filed with the Federal Aviation Administration. The flight arrived in Stow from New Century Air Center in Olathe, Kan.
Hawes, Sales and Gonzales were arrested and charged with possession of drugs, a first-degree felony, and put in the Summit County Jail.
They were set to be arraigned in Cuyahoga Falls Municipal Court. All three are U.S. citizens, Dirker and Ferster said, and Hawes apparently has a criminal record with at least one charge of drug trafficking in Ohio.
None of the suspects have any ties or affiliations with KSU, police and the university said.
Isaac Nettey, director of KSU's aeronautics program, said the plane is based at Long Beach/Dougherty Field Airport in California and currently is listed for sale.
As for why the suspects chose the KSU airport, Nettey said, "one may surmise that the airport is a well maintained, public-use airport that is unattended after hours."
"Normally, transients seldom come to the airport because pilots of transient flights are not comfortable mixing with student traffic generated from flight training operations at university airports," he said.
The plane is registered to a corporation called United Consultants Group Inc. out of Garden Grove, Calif., according to Nettey and FAA records.
Stow police have handed the investigation over to the DEA, and formal federal charges of possession with intent to distribute and conspiracy are pending, Ferster said.