May 1, 2000

DRUG INVESTIGATION AT SCHOOL NETS 11 ARRESTS

      Mercer County Prosecutor Daniel G. Giaquinto and West Windsor Police Chief Frank Cox announced the coordination of a five-month joint investigation between the prosecutor’s Special Investigations Unit and township police resulting today in the arrest of 11 suspected high school drug dealers.

      “The success of the investigation would have been impossible without the involvement and on-going cooperation of school officials and the relationship forged between West Windsor police and the school district. They deserve a tremendous amount of credit,” Giaquinto said.

      Drug use and sales is the number one threat to our youth and is a constant challenge to law enforcement to stop, Giaquinto said.

      “It is a common misconception that this is an urban problem only – it is not. This investigation underscores that it is equally problematic in suburban schools,” Giaquinto said.

      “West Windsor is not unique – we have the same problems as any other community. With the continued cooperation of the West Windsor-Plainsboro School System our Police Department will continue to monitor and investigate any source of drug activity in our schools and community,” Chief Cox said.

      The investigation began about five months ago when officials at West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South became concerned after receiving reports from parents that drug dealing involving marijuana, powder cocaine, LSD and the designer drug Ecstasy was going on at or near the Clarksville Road campus.

      As a result, Principal Michael Carr contacted township police and Detective Sgt. Dave Mansue and Detective Pat McCormick launched an investigation. Police asked for the assistance of the prosecutor’s Special Investigations Unit, led by Lt. Al Paglione, which utilized undercover officers to make controlled drug buys from the suspects, often recording or videotaping the alleged illicit transactions. During the investigation, at least 30 undercover buys were made.

      It is believed that the suspects worked in tandem with one another in a loosely controlled network and that they brought drugs into Mercer County from Philadelphia and New York.

      Today, officers arrested three adult students and eight male juvenile students, ranging in age from 15 to 17, on a variety of charges including drug possession, drug distribution, and drug possession and drug distribution in a school zone, Giaquinto said.

      The adults arrested were Tyrone Madison (DOB 12/4/81), of the first block of Hampshire Drive, Plainsboro; Ankit Parikh (DOB 11/28/81), of the first block of LeParc Court, West Windsor; and Manish Patel (DOB 10/23/81), of the first block of West Kincaid Drive, West Windsor, Giaquinto said.

      An arrest warrant has been issued for a fourth adult suspect, Anuraag Kalra (DOB 11/14/77), of the first block of Bernard Place in Princeton Junction, who faces similar charges as the other three adults when he is apprehended.

      The names of the juveniles arrested cannot be released because of their ages.

      Principal Carr said the school’s goal in becoming involved was to be responsive to the community, which it works closely with, to ensure that a safe environment for students is maintained at the campus – not to make examples of those arrested.

      “If a message is also drawn from this that drug dealing at West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South will not be tolerated, that’s all right, too,” Carr said.

      Carr said the school also works closely with the Municipal Alliance, which emphasizes protecting the health of all teens.

      Prosecutor Giaquinto noted that the investigation is a perfect example of what should happen under the 1999 Memorandum of Agreement Between Education and Law Enforcement Officials, issued by the state Attorney General’s Office. The agreement was drawn to foster dialog between educators and law enforcement officials, leading to a greater awareness and understanding of the legitimate needs and problems faced by each. The agreement was signed separately in each of New Jersey’s counties, Mercer officials having signed the memorandum earlier this year.

      “The actions by West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South and the West Windsor police in this investigation should be viewed as a blueprint of cooperation that is at the heart of the Memorandum of Agreement,” Giaquinto said.