2008 Woodie Awards
Student IDed in 27-lb drug bust
Senior posts $25,000 bail after Wed. arrest
By: Wenjia Zhang
Issue date: 2/29/08 Section: News
Last update: 2/29/08 at 7:22 AM EST
Last update: 2/29/08 at 7:22 AM EST
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Police officers served Halperin with a search warrant at around 12:30 p.m. Wednesday at his current residence of 1026 W. Trinity Ave. He was released on $25,000 bond Wednesday from the Durham County Jail, according to a Durham County Government Web site.
Duke University Police Department Maj. Gloria Graham said DPD told DUPD that 27 pounds of marijuana are involved in the case.
Dean of Students Sue Wasiolek said Halperin has not been suspended by the University, and the school is currently reviewing information related to the case.
"Each case is considered on an individual basis," she said.
Halperin and his father declined to comment for this article.
Larry Moneta, vice president for student affairs, said administrators have been in contact with Halperin, and their primary concern is to provide students with support through the investigation.
"We're thankful the student is not in any way physically harmed," he said.
Halperin's neighbors told The Chronicle Wednesday that a man wearing a DHL logo shirt delivered a wine-case-sized package to the house. Police officers approached the residence after a resident signed for the package.
Eleanor Richardson, who lives next to Halperin, said Wednesday that she saw police officers, who had "helmets on, armor, carrying machine-gun-looking things," in an adjacent alleyway. She added that there were also two SUVs with dark windows parked in the alleyway.
"It is standard procedure for our tactical officers (Selective Enforcement Team) to make entry during drug raids for safety reasons," Kammie Michael, DPD's public information officer, said in a statement.
Michael said that DPD would not be releasing further details at this time because the investigation is ongoing.
Moneta previously told The Chronicle that he heard the arrest was "pretty traumatic."
According to DPD's incident/investigation report, cigarette papers and a box label were seized from the property.
Last April, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation conducted a similar investigation involving another student, who was arrested in his Craven Quadrangle dorm room after signing for a package containing 17 pounds of marijuana sent through DHL. The student was suspended, but was reinstated when all charges were dropped two weeks later because of insufficient evidence.
Both Halperin and the other student are members of Alpha Tau Omega fraternity.
"I think it's odd that the facts of this case are remarkably similar to a case last year," Wasiolek said.
ATO President Peter Allen, a junior, declined to comment. Other residents of the Trinity Avenue house either declined to comment or could not be reached Thursday.
Viewing Comments 1 - 10 of 45
Reader
posted 2/29/08 @ 8:11 AM EST
The Chronicle's message board had many more details yesterday, some that indicated the police rioted in making this arrest. Did the Chronicle check this out?
Why is there no exploration of what L-Mo meant by "tramatic. (Continued…)
Doris
posted 2/29/08 @ 9:31 AM EST
Danged! Moneta must have learned something after Lacrosse. He says that the university's primary role is to "provide support to the student"!!!! Well, well. (Continued…)
anonymous
posted 2/29/08 @ 10:27 AM EST
Fear Not - The LS board is all over this and solving the case. Of course, the DPD are being pictured as Jack Booted Nazi Thugs. Who was the package addreessed to at the house. (Continued…)
roper
posted 2/29/08 @ 11:03 AM EST
So Larry Moneta now wants to emphasize the University's obligation to provide support to a member of its community.
Why is this so different to his reported statement to a number of the lacrosse players (as alleged in the Complaint filing) that there was nothing he or his office could do. (Continued…)
Locomotive Breath
posted 2/29/08 @ 11:21 AM EST
One of the Duke lacrosse lawsuits complains about the storm trooper tactics selectively used against Duke students (not lacrosse team members) and Durham PD turns around and provides a perfect example. (Continued…)
Mike Kell
posted 2/29/08 @ 12:05 PM EST
I wonder if the Chronicle could "ask one more question" about why Dean Wasiolek thinks that it is odd that the facts of the two cases are so similar. Does she expect them to end similarly?
anonymous
posted 2/29/08 @ 12:09 PM EST
why did this guy not refuse the package when it was addressed to someone he did not know? why sign for it? Who was he going to give it to if he did not know the addressee? This makes no sense. (Continued…)
Anon
posted 2/29/08 @ 1:11 PM EST
Whatever the facts of this incident, there is a good lesson here:
1. Never sign for a package not addressed to you.
2. Never sign for a package addressed to you for which you do not know the sender or the contents. (Continued…)
common tactic
posted 2/29/08 @ 1:35 PM EST
RE: package delivery
Having the package sent to a person not at the address is a common tactic used when the package contains something illegal. It provides and immediate defense if something goes amiss(like in this case), much like an alias. (Continued…)
No One Has learned a thing!
posted 2/29/08 @ 2:22 PM EST
Has no one learned a thing from the events of Spring 2006 & 2007?
Perhaps we should wait until the facts are known before we rush to judgement? Especially given that there was a very similar incident (also involving DHL by the way) where the student was a victim of ID theft and was cleared of all charges. (Continued…)
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