The investigation began as part of Maryland's Exile program, an effort by state, local and federal authorities to identify the city's worst "violent repeat offenders" and aggressively gather evidence against them and make arrests.
TAPPED PHONES
Nine people were arrested last week and charged with possession and intent to distribute heroin. A 10th suspect is at large. An affidavit in support of search warrants from DEA officer Michael Collins details intercepted phone conversations between defendants. Here are a couple of examples:
* June 24, about 2:52 p.m., conversation between Daron Ashe and Johnnie Butler
ASHE : "Whatever you doing man, you gotta keep doing it. ... [Expletive] picking up. These [expletive] is like, it's like, they still gone of them [expletive] um, that [expletive] we did earlier this morning."
COLLINS' INTERPRETATION: Ashe was telling Butler "to keep cutting the heroin exactly how he did this time because everyone is enjoying it. Additionally, Ashe said that people are still feeling the effects from the heroin that they obtained earlier in the day."
* July 3, about 11:50 to 11:53 a.m., conversation between Johnnie Butler and Antoine Boston
BUTLER: "You ready to do the right thing, man?"
BOSTON: "I been ready, yo."
BUTLER: "You got to tighten that up, yo, cause it's like [expletive] the [expletive] only selling a pack a day!"
BOSTON: "I just got to be out there all day, yo."
COLLINS' INTERPRETATION: "Butler wanted to know if Boston wanted to begin selling heroin for his organization again. When Boston said he had been ready, Butler told him that he has to do better than just selling one package of heroin per day. Boston agreed and told him that he would be out there all day to distribute the heroin."
