
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, March 26, 1991                   TAG: 9103260584
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B-1   EDITION: EVENING 
SOURCE: RON BROWN and LESLIE TAYLOR/ STAFF WRITERS
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

USED-CAR DEALER FACES DRUG CHARGE

The owner of a Williamson Road used-car dealership who was arrested Monday on federal drug conspiracy and distribution charges is believed to have financed his business with proceeds from an alleged 5-year-old cocaine enterprise.

Gary A. Daniel, 36, owner of Roanoke Valley Auto Sales, was expected to be released from the Roanoke City Jail today. A federal magistrate set his bond at $50,000.

In an affidavit filed in U.S. District Court, a special agent with the Internal Revenue Service alleges that Daniel has been involved in the "large-scale" sale of cocaine for at least five years.

An informant told authorities that Daniel started a towing business as a cover to explain his purchases of expensive vehicles, the total remodeling of his home, an expensive dragster vehicle and vacation travel, according to the affidavit.

The informant said Daniel was making between $8,000 and $10,000 profit on each kilogram of cocaine he sold, according to the affidavit.

Daniel allegedly began to sell most of his assets shortly after his interview with the IRS agent, presumably to avoid seizure by the IRS and the Drug Enforcement Administration, affidavit stated.

After selling his towing company last year, Daniel opened Roanoke Valley Auto at 2202 Williamson Road in Northeast Roanoke. Under surveillance operations over the past several months, authorities have observed on numerous occasions individuals drive onto the lot, enter the office building, stay for a brief period and leave without examining any vehicles on the lot, according to the affidavit.

Agents working for the Roanoke Valley Drug Task Force observed Daniel selling a half-kilo of cocaine to an informant about 1 1/2 hours before the 12:30 p.m. raid Monday, said Donald O. Lincoln, senior special agent for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration in Roanoke.

The informant was wired with a hidden microphone.

Police entered the premises at 2202 Williamson Road with a search warrant. They seized the car lot, three adjacent lots and two houses in addition to the cars. The real estate is appraised for taxes at a value of $93,000, Lincoln said.

Daniel could receive life imprisonment if convicted on the federal charge, Lincoln said.

The informant told police he had supplied Daniel with more than six kilos of cocaine in the past year. The informant told police he also had bought kilos of cocaine from Daniel.

Daniel had been under investigation by undercover police officers for about two years. Several informants had made multi-ounce buys of cocaine from Daniel in the past year, Lincoln said.

by CNB