1.
SV Accused led into Federal Narcotics offices in New York City under armed guard
0.11

2.
SV & PAN as men led out of offices past comers into buses (several shots)
1.00



Initials SGM/1900 SGM/1835



Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved

Background: In the United States, Federal Narcotics Officials have now arrested ninety-one people in what they claim is their biggest ever crackdown on drugs smugglers. Initially eighty-six people were arrested in raids that began just after midnight last Friday (April 13) in New York city, New Jersey and Detroit, Michigan. Five more men were later arrested but only small amounts of cocaine and heroin were seized. The Narcotics officials say the men were too big to be involved in drug pushing themselves. They say they were in a charge of several drug rings whose operations extended outside the borders of the U.S. They say their organisation was dealing with between six and ten pounds, weight of heroin a week. The men, many of whom hid their faces as they were manhandled into the Narcotics Bureau offices and then back into police buses, each face possible sentences of up to twenty years in gaol.

The arrests climaxed eighteen months of investigations which began when unusual mob activity was noticed around a social club in the Bronx, New York city. Modern electronic surveillance was used on the accused many of whom had poorly paid jobs but expensive houses. The man described as the top man in the organisation, thirty-four years old Herbert Sperling describes himself as two hundred dollar (GBP83) a week clothing salesman. But he lived in a 250,000 dollar (GBP100,000) home on Long Island, owned two boats and a Picasso.

SYNOPSIS: In New York City, men involved in a big drugs charge case are manhandled into the Federal Narcotics Bureau offices. In all ninety-one people have been arrested.

Many of them hid their faces to keep out of the limelight as they were led from the offices into waiting police vehicles. Federal officials say they were involved in several big drug rings handling up to ten pounds weight of heroin a week. Their arrests took place after eighteen months of investigations. In a big crackdown which began shortly after midnight last Friday (April 13) eighty-six people were arrested. Five more were arrested later. The Federal officials seized only small amounts of drugs but they say this is because the men were too big to handle them personally. The accused come from New York City, New Jersey and Detroit, Michigan, but their drug ring extended outside America.