Police charge 11 students with dealing
By: David Campbell
WEST WINDSOR — Township police charged 11 West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South students Monday with drug dealing.
The arrests were the outcome of a five-month joint investigation by the Special Investigations Unit of the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office and township police, with the cooperation of the school district, according to the Prosecutor’s Office.
Tyrone Madison, 19, of Hampshire Drive, Plainsboro; Ankit Parikh, 19, of LeParc Court, West Windsor; and Manish Patel, 19, of West Kincaid Drive, West Windsor, were charged with drug possession, drug distribution and possession and distribution of drugs in a school zone, County Prosecutor Daniel G. Giaquinto said.
Also charged with the same offenses were eight male juveniles, ranging in age from 15 to 17, and an arrest warrant was issued for a fourth adult suspect, Anuraag Kalra, 23, of Princeton Junction, Mr. Giaquinto said.
The investigation began about five months ago after officials at High School South got reports from parents that drug dealing — involving marijuana, cocaine, LSD and Ecstasy — was taking place on school grounds, according to Prosecutor’s Office spokeswoman Emily Hornaday.
High School South Principal Michael Carr contacted township police, and Detective Sgt. Dave Mansue and Detective Pat McCormick launched the investigation, Ms. Hornaday said.
Police asked for assistance from the prosecutor’s Special Investigations Unit. Under the direction of the unit, undercover officers made controlled drug buys from the suspects, sometimes recording or videotaping the alleged transactions.
Over the course of the investigation, at least 30 undercover buys were made, Ms. Hornaday said.
Police believe the suspects worked with each other in a loosely controlled network, and that they brought drugs into Mercer County from Philadelphia and New York, she said.
Principal Carr said the arrests were not made to make examples of the students, but to be responsive to the community to ensure a safe environment for all students.
“If a message is also drawn from this, that drug dealing at West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South will not be tolerated, that’s all right too,” he said.
School district spokeswoman Gerri Hutner called the arrests “disturbing to all, and clearly show that no community is immune from the effects of drugs.”
Ms. Hutner said the district provides a number of programs to alert students to the dangers of drugs, including the Drug and Alcohol Abuse Education program, and works closely with the West Windsor-Plainsboro Alliance for the Prevention of Drug and Alcohol Abuse.
“The (district) is committed to educational excellence achieved within safe and nurturing schools,” she said.
West Windsor Police Chief Frank Cox said the township “is not unique — we have the same problems as any other community.
“With the continued cooperation of the West Windsor-Plainsboro school system, our police department will continue to monitor and investigate any source of drug activity in our schools and community,” he said.
The investigation was a joint effort of school and law enforcement officials under the 1999 Memorandum of Agreement between Education and Law Enforcement Officials, which established uniform statewide policies and procedures for ensuring cooperation between education officials and law-enforcement agencies to work together to address drug use and distribution in schools, the Prosecutor’s Office said.
“The actions by West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South and the West Windsor police in this investigation should be viewed as a blueprint of cooperation that is at the heart of the Memorandum of Agreement,” Prosecutor Giaquinto said.