Sting Operation

Photo Credit Keith Allison via Flickr cc

Sting Operation

The guard called me out of the cell with no explanation. This was to protect me from being labeled a snitch. I was going to be involved in a sting operation. Thundercloud had come to get me out and take me to Houston to set up my dealer.

He told me I was in his custody and his personal responsibility. If I ran again, he would not be able to help me and that I would be in a world of hurt.

We went to Jane’s house to get some of my civilian clothes and to pick her up. Jane was coming with us to legitimize the sale. She also needed some cooperation under her belt before her sentencing trial. While we were at the house, I was instructed to call Red and place an order.

First I told him I needed to call Dee, to let her know that we would be coming up to Houston. She answered right away. I informed her that Red was being set up and that I needed to do this in order not to go to prison for a very long time. Knowing that she wouldn’t say anything to him and that she would be an asset in corroborating my story, this became a very important call.

After talking to Dee, I called Red and told him that Jane and I would be there that evening and that we would need the usual amount of Ecstasy for both of us, about a hundred hits. This is the usual way I bought from him so nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

There were a lot of jurisdiction issues. The Army cops didn’t have any outside of the Post and the LA cops didn’t have any in Texas which is where we were headed. This explained why they were a day late in pulling me out of jail. Coordinating all the legalities and logistics wasn’t easy.

We were in a three car caravan on the three hour ride to Houston. I rode with Thundercloud and two other DST agents. A man and a woman who had both been involved in monitoring my activities while at club Late Nite in Alexandria.

I did not recognize them, but I am sure that at that time, I was too messed up to recognize people that were trying to be incognito. They were both really nice and treated me with respect.

They were interested in asking me a ton of questions about how I dealt, and how I dressed, how I talked, music I listened to. I told them everything they wanted to know and gave them some info on how to blend into the scene.

I showed them how to act in the clubs if they were supposed to look like they were on drugs and what to say. Maybe it was the adrenaline of being out and what was about to happen but I felt like I was being helpful. Maybe even making a difference.

Upon arriving in Houston, we met up with the Texas cops at their headquarters. Some briefings about how things were going to go down. The plan was to meet in a hotel room and make the deal. The next step was to check in to a hotel with adjoining rooms.

Once everything was in place, I called to Red to see if he was ready to make the deal. When he heard me say that we were going to meet in a hotel, he immediately got suspicious. He said no way to that. I told him everything was cool and that Jane was with me.

He wasn’t buying it. The hotel freaked him out. He said he would call me back. After he got off the phone, he immediately called Dee and asked to see if she knew what was going on. She reassured him that it was legit and that I wouldn’t try to set him up. So, he called me back and said that he would come up to the hotel.

A couple hours later, he came up to the hotel. When he stepped into the room he looked totally nervous. Jane, two undercover cops  and I were the only ones in the room. The other cops were in the adjoining room waiting for a cue to rush in.

After a couple moments, Red said he didn’t have any drugs on him but he did want to see the money. I showed him the cash that was provided to me by the Houston cops. At this point, Red said he would go get the drugs and meet me somewhere else.

This was not the plan but it had to work that way or no deal. As Red left he instructed me to meet him in a public parking lot near a grocery store a couple hours later. Once he was gone, the other cops came in the room and went over a “Plan B” scenario.

When it got to be about a half hour before the set time, we headed out. We drove in about six cars to the parking lot. Jane, two Houston undercover cops and me were all in the same car. Red pulled into a spot a couple stalls over and then walked over to the right back window where I was sitting.

He asked for the money as he clutched the plastic bag filled with Ecstasy pills. As I reached out the window, the cop in the driver seat tapped on the brakes to flash the brake lights. This was the signal for all the other cops to move in.

In a mad rush of motion, police lights started to flash. People with badges were running toward us with weapons drawn. They were shouting “Police, nobody move!”

Red was grabbed, pushed down on the trunk of the car and his hands were cuffed behind him. The other cops yelled into the car, “Everyone out of the car, with hands on your head!” At this time the four of us were “arrested” in front of Red to make it look like we were all going down.

I tried not to make eye contact with Red because he was staring me down with intense anger. I don’t think he believed that we were really getting arrested. They shoved him into a car and took him away.

That was the last time I saw Red, but later I did receive the message loud and clear that I had better never step foot in Houston again.

We had to go back to the Houston Police headquarters and fill out some paperwork. I only mention this, because in the office we walked by a pallet of cocaine, wrapped in kilos.  It was all going to be taken to the evidence room.

I cannot remember how many kilos they had but I do remember thinking that the drug problem was bigger than anyone could actually realize. This was just one bust and it made the ecstasy we were bringing in look like a drop in the bucket. I also was wondering how much time someone would get for being busted with that much cocaine.

We would be heading back to Louisiana the next day and so we checked into a Hilton to spend the night. I had never been in such a nice hotel before. Thundercloud gave me a key to my own room which I thought was a little strange.

He said he would be in the next room and that he would be able to hear me if I opened the door. I had run two times and yet for some reason he trusted me to sleep in my own room.

Believe me the thought crossed my mind. “What if I just bail again?” I decided that to do that would probably end badly for me, so I resisted the urge.

All of the cops invited me down to the hotel bar to celebrate their successful bust. I hung out with them and we all talked about the events that had happened.

At one point one of the Louisiana State Troopers told me that he was impressed with how I cooperated and how well I handled everything. He said that if I ever wanted a job to let him know. He might have been half serious but, we all knew that would never happen.

I went back to my room, still blown away that no one was really watching me.

I was tired but I did not want to go to sleep.

This would be my last night of freedom for a very long time…