DEA not talking about NLV probe

Saturday, Oct. 4, 1997 | 1:59 a.m.

But on Friday, a spokesman for the agency said the results of its internal inquiry into the investigation at Lab-Kem Supplies may never be released to the public.

"The results are nothing that we can give you," said Van Quarles, Drug Enforcement Administration spokesman.

Despite repeated inquiries, the agency has remained quiet about the case other than to confirm its Office of Professional Responsibility opened the investigation after Clark County Sheriff Jerry Keller complained that the agency had ties to Lab-Kem.

Police say the store was selling large amounts of chemicals that were used to produce methamphetamine.

Those chemicals, red phosphorous and iodine, turned up in at least 50 percent of the methamphetamine labs that the Police Department raided in a six-month span. It is legal to sell the chemicals as long as the seller doesn't know the chemicals will be used for illegal means.

But Drug Enforcement Administration officials have issued contradictory statements about the case.

About four weeks ago, agency spokesman Ron Lard said portions of the results of the Office of Professional Responsibility investigation would likely be released. But Quarles said Friday that would probably not be the case because the investigation is an internal matter.

Also, Lard had said repeatedly that the investigation was complete and was being reviewed by agency administrators. On Friday, Quarles said the investigation was not complete, and even if it was, he was "not authorized" to release the results.

The office of U.S. drug czar Barry McCaffrey was asked to provide information about the case, but a spokesman referred the newspaper back to Drug Enforcement Administration headquarters.

"This is a matter that is between the Las Vegas police and the DEA," Quarles said.

Eric Sterling, who served as counsel to a House subcommittee on crime, said the federal agency, since its inception, has had a hard time understanding the concept of public accountability. As counsel to the committee, Sterling was responsible for monitoring the agency's conduct. He now heads the Criminal Justice Policy Foundation in Washington.

"If there is a mistake, the agency at a minimum ought to admit it," Sterling said. "Was it a breakdown in internal controls or were procedures disregarded? Or are there not enough adequate internal controls in place to begin with?"

Privately, Las Vegas police have questioned why the Drug Enforcement Administration, which was overseeing an extensive undercover investigation at Lab-Kem, did nothing to stop the distribution of a seemingly disproportionate amount of the chemicals.

The owner of Lab-Kem, James Brown, is the target of a Clark County grand jury investigation concerning possible narcotics violations.