NSW: Mass police raids net drug dealers and yield murder lead.

AAP General News (Australia)
08-02-2000
NSW: Mass police raids net drug dealers and yield murder lead.

By John Kidman, Crime Reporter

SYDNEY, Aug 2 AAP - More than 200 heavily-armed police today executed a series of dawn
raids in Sydney, seizing drugs and guns and netting 14 gang members, including two linked
to the 1998 murder of a teenage boy.

Led by tactical response officers in bulletproof vests and wielding shotguns and automatic
rifles, teams of detectives swooped on 15 houses in six south-western suburbs.

With a Polair helicopter circling, scores of heavily-armed Operational Support Group
officers scaled fences and rooftops, targeting five homes in one of the city's most troubled
addresses - Telopea St, Punchbowl.

A series of raids were simultaneously conducted in Hurstville, Bankstown, Belmore,
Brighton-le-Sands and Greenacre.

Tens of thousands of dollars worth of rock heroin were recovered during the operation,
police said.

Five heavy-calibre handguns were located, along with a pair of replica pistols, scales
and other drug paraphernalia.

Among those taken into custody were a 22-year-old and a 26-year-old man later charged
with being accessaries after the fact in the fatal stabbing of schoolboy Edward Lee.

The 14-year-old was knifed to death after an argument broke out between his friends
and a group of 20 other youths as they walked to a party in Telopea St on October 17,
1998.

Senior police this afternoon had hailed the Strike Force Ranger operation a success
on several fronts.

"It is deeply gratifying to see progress in relation to the murder of Edward Lee,"

Deputy Commissioner Ken Moroney told journalists afterwards.

Acting Crime Agencies boss, Chief Superintendent Rod Harvey, said the raids and arrests
had gone off without drama and achieved everything that was intended.

"We believe we have dismantled a major organised crime group where some of the principals
are under 18 years of age."

For all 200 police involved, the day began two hours before daylight when they crammed
the State Sports Centre at Homebush - the table tennis venue for the Sydney Olympics.

After a 20-minute roll call the group was addressed by a bevy of New South Wales' most
senior officers.

The senior police told the group the day was about "restoring public confidence in
the police service throughout the city's south-west", according to one detective.

Officers were told those to be raided were suspected of long-term cannabis, cocaine
and heroin dealing.

Some, if not all, were thought to be armed. Others were allegedly concealing vital
information about Edward's Lee's death.

The raids were to be carried out with stealth and lightning speed. And it was probable
those sought would have "cockatoos" or lookouts ready to tip them off at the slightest
hint of trouble.

Raiders were broken into two 100-strong contingents: the Tango Team, or those to hit
Telopea St; and the Oscars, assigned to the other targets.

Each was to rendezvous at nearby Chullora before a series of strikes at 7am (AEST).

Late this afternoon, eight men, five male youths and a woman had been arrested and
were expected to face a variety of charges in local courts at Burwood, Bankstown and Bankstown.

Police estimate between 80 and 100 vehicles were used in the raids.

They were the result of three months of toil by undercover operatives which also produced
4,000 intercepted phonecalls and more than 500 hours of tape recordings.

In addition, police have identified 400 vehicles used to collect drugs in Telopea St.

AAP jk/ah/was/de

KEYWORD: RAIDS NIGHTLEAD (WITH PIX)

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