Opinion ID: 539182
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Events Prior to July 14, 1987

Text: 4 In 1985, Villegas, a Colombian native who had been employed full-time since 1968 as a custodian at a New York City hospital at an annual salary of less than $18,000, went shopping for a farm. In early 1986, in the name of B & V Village Farms, Inc., Villegas bought a 377-acre dairy farm on Johnnycake Road in Herkimer County (Johnnycake farm). Villegas paid the $310,000 purchase price in several installments, consisting of cash and checks; there was no mortgage. At one meeting with the sellers, Villegas paid them $11,000 in cash pulled from his parka. 5 Soon after Villegas took possession of the premises, local residents, including some hired by Villegas to tend the farm, began noticing a number of unusual occurrences at the farm, including arrivals and departures of rental trucks; arrivals of large numbers of Hispanic men, women, and children, with the men remaining at the farm for three or four weeks; in the garage, large numbers of grey rubber trash barrels ([m]aybe 75), though only three were needed at any one time for farming operations; and unusual smells not associated with farming. 6 During the period April 1985 to May 1987, local agents of the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) ferreted out three operating cocaine factories on farm-type properties in the Northern District of New York. These properties had been purchased by natives of Colombia, with title placed in the names of nominal individuals or entities; two were purchased for cash without mortgages, and one was financed with a private mortgage; some of the persons associated with the operations lived or worked in the New York City area; the factory equipment included plastic barrels; the operations involved the importation of workers and materials at irregular times. 7 In April 1987, a confidential informant advised a DEA agent that there was an operational cocaine factory located approximately 25 minutes from Utica, New York. The informant stated that the factory was being operated by a person named Ricardo, who transported chemicals to the farm in a red Ford van, and whose New York City telephone number was (718) 805-2872. Investigation revealed that that telephone number, which was unlisted, belonged to Villegas; further investigation revealed that Villegas had subscribed to telephone service for the Johnnycake farm, which was less than a 30-minute drive from Utica. Toll records showed, inter alia, that calls had been made (1) from Villegas's New York City number to (a) a telephone number used by a person believed to control a cocaine distribution organization, (b) the business number of a person suspected of smuggling cocaine paste into the United States from South America; and (2) from Johnnycake farm to a number used by a suspected purchaser of chemicals used in cocaine factories. 8 The agents learned of Villegas's purchase of the farm for cash and checks. They attempted to observe the goings-on at the farm by driving past it. On one drive-by, they saw a red vehicle similar to that described by the informant. On another drive-by they saw a stack of plastic garbage cans of the type known to be used in clandestine cocaine factories and a black 55-gallon drum of the type known to contain ether. 9 On May 12, 1987, the agents applied for a warrant to search the Johnnycake farm premises. The affidavit of Special Agent Ulises R. Delgado, submitted in support of the application, included a recitation of the above information known to the agents. It also stated, inter alia, that covert physical surveillance of the premises was difficult by reason of the farm's remote location, that pen register surveillance revealed only infrequent use of the farm telephone, that there was no informant who could infiltrate the operation, and that numerous coconspirators remained to be identified. Accordingly, the Delgado affidavit stated that the agents did not wish to seize the evidence believed to be on the premises; rather, the agents requested authorization to conduct a search, at any time in the day or night, in order to take photographs but not physically to seize any tangible items of evidence at this time. The agents also requested permission to postpone giving Villegas notice of the search for seven days, or for a longer period if the period were extended by the court. 10 Judge Cholakis signed the search warrant, as requested, on May 12 (May 12 warrant), and it was executed on May 13. The agents entered the premises late at night when no one else was present. They observed that [t]he place looked like a camp when you close it down for the winter, with few dishes in the kitchen, no clothes in the closets, and no linen on the beds or in any of the drawers. In the basement, the agents observed a stack of 10 to 15 plastic garbage cans, a multi-gallon container containing a greenish substance, and a large hydraulic press of the type used in other laboratories for compacting finished cocaine for packaging, storage, and transportation. In the garage, were, inter alia, 40-50 more plastic garbage cans; a large ceramic pot in which there was a white powdery residue; several empty 55- and 30-gallon drums of a type known to be used for ether and acetone, which are necessary to the manufacture of cocaine; a rack for drying cocaine, consisting of a large plywood board to which 16 light fixtures had been affixed; and another hydraulic press. 11 The agents seized nothing tangible but took photographs of various parts of the house, the garage, and their contents. The agents did not leave a copy of the May 12 warrant at the house, and thereafter they repeatedly sought extensions, eight in all, to allow them to continue the investigation without alerting the targets. In support of each request, they filed an affidavit reporting on the progress of the investigation and explaining the need for the additional delay. The extensions were granted, authorizing delay of service of notice through July 15. 12 In the period between May 13 and July 15, the investigation developed additional information. Late in May, Heriberto Torrez, accompanied by several other men, picked up a large shipment of chemicals from Florida, paying for the shipment with $2,710 in cash. The chemicals, after remaining in storage for some weeks, were transported to the Johnnycake farm in late June and early July. 13 On a 4:00 a.m. drive-by on July 9, agents observed two men carry a garbage can down the driveway and dump its liquid contents, which gave off strong chemical odors. On a 2:30 a.m. drive-by on July 14, the agents smelled ether, an aroma they had encountered in investigations of other clandestine cocaine factories. 14 On July 14, the agents applied for and obtained another search warrant (July 14 warrant), based on, inter alia, the affidavit submitted in support of the May 12 warrant, the observations made in the May 13 search, and the information gained thereafter. The July 14 warrant directed that the premises be searched and that any cocaine, cocaine base, and other indicia of the manufacture and processing of cocaine be seized.