Pubdate: Thu, 21 Jul 2005 Source: Los Angeles City Beat (CA) Copyright: 2005 Southland Publishing Contact: http://www.lacitybeat.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2972 Author: Kevin Uhrich, and Joe Piasecki Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/coke.htm (Cocaine) DRUGS, GUNS, AND A CITY IN CRISIS Authorities Link A Popular Burbank Councilwoman And Her Boyfriend To An Alleged Cop-Killing Street Gang On June 7, Burbank City Council members voted unanimously to contribute $10,000 to a memorial fund for slain police officers. Though the city was still grieving for its first officer lost in the line of duty, the vote was very much routine fare for Councilperson Stacey Murphy, a single mother of three and a popular three-term incumbent. But unbeknownst to Murphy, a much more interesting, but far less pleasant discussion would occur the very next morning. In a Granada Hills home 20 minutes away from Burbank, suspected gangland smuggler Luis Alberto "Pops" Mendoza engaged in a somewhat strained chat on June 8 with David Torres, an LAPD gang task force officer. And that conversation would lead to the arrests a month later of Murphy and her politically connected boyfriend, Scott Schaffer, for alleged weapons and cocaine charges in connection with the Vineland Boyz street gang. The charges link Murphy and Schaffer -- former co-owner of City Cab Co. and a major contributor to political campaigns in Los Angeles, Burbank, Glendale, and Pasadena -- to a shadowy national network of gun and drug crimes allegedly run by the Vineland Boyz street gang, or VBS, a ruthless San Fernando Valley gang believed responsible for a variety of violent crimes: the 1998 shooting death of LAPD Officer James Beyea; the 2003 murder of 26-year-old Burbank Police Officer Matthew Pavelka, the 170-member department's first-ever death in the line of duty; and the attempted murder of fellow Burbank Officer Gregory Campbell during the incident that claimed Pavelka's life. Unlike Schaffer, who remains in federal custody awaiting post-arraignment indictment by a federal grand jury on August 1, Murphy was arrested by Burbank police for suspected child endangerment and drug possession after officers searched her North Lima Street home and found an unspecified amount of cocaine, a loaded handgun, and 900 rounds of ammunition on the garage floor and supposedly accessible to her 12-year-old son. Murphy made her $100,000 bail a few hours after her arrest and awaits an August 25 arraignment in Burbank Superior Court. According to Burbank Police Sgt. Jay Jette, the gun found at Murphy's home was legally registered but still posed a danger to the boy. Jette declined to say exactly how much cocaine was found at Murphy's house, though indicated the substance was found in a bedroom. But while Schaffer awaits the results of a grand jury investigation and Murphy prepares to enter a plea at her arraignment later next month, Jette said the investigations into the deaths of Beyea and Pavelka are far from over. On Tuesday morning, a multi-agency law enforcement task force consisting of 600 officers served search warrants at 20 locations from across the San Fernando Valley to Palmdale and arrested 14 suspected Vineland Boyz members in the second major sweep of its kind in as many months. "This has been a long investigation, and it has fingered out into a lot of different areas," said Jette, who was on patrol the night Pavelka was gunned down in a bloody exchange with alleged members of the Vineland Boyz. In the shootout, two men fired nearly 30 rounds at the officers, who had stopped a vehicle with the two suspects and called for backup when gunfire erupted. One of those men, Ramon Aranda, was killed by officers during the ensuing gun battle. The second shooter, David Garcia, escaped to Mexico, where he remained for nearly two weeks before Mexican authorities expelled him as an "undesirable," citing his U.S. citizenship. Garcia has been charged with capital murder, and prosecutors will seek the death penalty against him, said L.A. County D.A. spokesperson Jane Robison. He will appear at the Pasadena Courthouse for a pretrial conference on August 10. In June, a federal grand jury handed down indictments against 43 Vineland Boyz members, resulting in raids in a number of cities, including Sun Valley (where City Cab's corporate headquarters is located), Simi Valley, Antelope Valley, and Bakersfield. It also netted 21 of the men being sought, including two men who allegedly traded coke for guns with Schaffer and supposedly knew Murphy and Schaffer as drug connections -- identified as John Yribe, a.k.a. Johnny Boy, and James Roberts, in an affidavit filed in the case. The first unidentified witness said Schaffer was "an associate of several known VBS members who frequented Pat's Bar." That witness purportedly saw "Schaffer purchase narcotics from gang members, as well as sell weapons to Mendoza, Johnny Yribe =85 Augustine Rodriguez, a.k.a. Dog, and Gustavo Rodriguez, a.k.a. Noid." The Rodriguezes, who are not related, were both indicted in June on racketeering and drug trafficking charges. "Gustavo Rodriguez was indicted for the murder of another gang member that occurred during an internal VBS struggle," according to the affidavit. Contacted at her home by phone on Monday, Murphy declined to comment, saying she has been advised by her attorney not to speak with the press. Her attorney, Rick Santwier of Pasadena, did not return calls for comment. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Young declined to comment on possible federal charges that may be filed against Schaffer after the grand jury convenes. Nor would Young speculate on Murphy's recent implied involvement with a notoriously violent gang's drug and gun trading activities. But one thing seems sure: "Before it is over, [authorities] will have investigated every avenue that has come to their attention," Jette said. "So, no, it is not over." The case against Schaffer, and subsequently Murphy, actually began on Wednesday, June 8 -- the day after the weekly Burbank council meeting - -- when LAPD Officer David Torres, working with the Drug Enforcement Administration's Southern California Drug Task Force (SCDTF), contacted alleged Vineland Boyz member "Pops" Mendoza at his home in Granada Hills. That meeting led to Torres seizing from Mendoza a .45 caliber handgun, which Torres learned later was actually registered to Schaffer. Mendoza told Torres only that he had acquired the weapon "on the street." To find out how Mendoza had come to possess the "Sig-Sauer" handgun, Torres turned to federal registration authorities and to an unidentified member of the Vineland Boyz who had been previously convicted on drug charges and at the time faced new criminal charges in state court. That confidential source said Schaffer was a regular customer at Pat's Cocktails, a popular bar in North Hollywood. It was there that Mendoza and other members of the Vineland Boyz supposedly hung out and did business, according to Torres' subsequent affidavit. During a visit to Pat's last Sunday, bartenders declined to talk about the controversy that is now encroaching on them and their place of employment, deferring all comment to the owner, who did not return a reporter's call for comment. But it was in the parking lot behind the bar that law enforcement officials say Schaffer traded high-caliber handguns to members of the Vineland Boyz, who, at least once, gave Schaffer a "large chunk" of cocaine. After running the serial number on Mendoza's gun, Torres found that it was indeed registered to Schaffer, as were 18 other high-caliber weapons, including an Uzi, according to the affidavit. Torres wrote in the affidavit that his source, after being shown a photograph, "identified Schaffer as an individual who sold firearms to members of the VBS and other known narcotics traffickers." Further, the source stated that "Schaffer had originally met several VBS gang members and other narcotics traffickers in the rear parking lot of `Pat's' bar" and that he allowed gang members to either use his car or take one of his company's cabs "in order to transport narcotics or collect narcotics debts." At Schaffer's home on North Kenwood Street in Glendale, Torres found "numerous handguns and a large amount of ammunition; and a small amount of methamphetamine and two vials of cocaine." Even before he was formally arrested, Schaffer admitted to buying but not registering some of the weapons that he had in his possession. He also apparently told authorities that Glendale, where he shared an apartment with a roommate, wasn't his primary residence. Burbank was. He actually spent most of his time at Councilperson Murphy's house, where Schaffer told Torres he stored a large number of his firearms. Schaffer even told Torres that he had placed cocaine in Murphy's closet. Perhaps most damning, Schaffer said that Murphy, who still works as a controller at City Cab, went with him to Pat's to buy cocaine. In fact, Schaffer said, not only did Murphy personally know Vineland Boyz members, but she and Schaffer bought coke from them and two other Vineland Boyz. Three of those four men, including Gustavo Rodriguez, were named in last month's state grand jury indictments. As for the cocaine found at his apartment last week, Schaffer said he bought it "recently" from a bartender at Pat's and that "he and Murphy recently used" it, according to the affidavit. Indeed, Schaffer admitted to authorities that he and Murphy would go to Pat's specifically to buy cocaine from two men who were known Vineland Boyz members. "Schaffer further admitted that Murphy knew that [the two men] were VBS members, and that [Schaffer and Murphy] had discussed this fact," according to the affidavit. For many, the hypocrisy of Murphy's alleged behavior is beyond disappointing. Here was a woman who worked with police to help catch Pavelka's killers. She offered to help ease the grieving of Pavelka's parents long after the tragedy. She even voted to give city money to the police officer's memorial fund at the council's June 7 meeting. Good Times In Glendale, through City Cab and other transportation companies that he either owns or has a financial stake and do business in that town, Schaffer contributed some $11,000 in cash or in-kind donations from May 2004 to February to the campaigns of Council members Dave Weaver, Bob Yousefian and Ara Najarian, according to Glendale election records. And according to Burbank campaign finance records, Schaffer was no less generous with his favorites in that city, including Murphy. Schaffer and others at City Cab Co. have contributed thousands to the campaign war chests of some of Burbank and Glendale's top elected officials. That includes more than $3,000 to Murphy, whose address Schaffer used when donating to other candidates. A former Glendale Water and Power Commissioner, Schaffer, along with his affiliates, gave numerous contributions to Glendale City Councilmen Bob Yousefian, Dave Weaver and Ara Najarian, according to published reports. Yousefian took $2,000 from Taxicab Transportation Services Management, partially owned by Schaffer, who paid $1,000 toward the campaign as an individual. Schaffer gave Weaver $2,500 toward a July 2004 fundraiser, and his City Cab Co. gave $500 that year. Najarian received $2,000 from Schaffer through the Schaffer Business Group, an entity which lists its location as Murphy's home address. A member of Glendale's Transportation and Parking Commission for more than a decade, Najarian also accepted as much as $3,200 from employees of San Gabriel Transit, G&S Transit Management and Taxicab Transportation Services Management. According to a 2004 commission document, San Gabriel Transit does business in Glendale as Bell Cab, and G&S Transit does business as City Cab. In Burbank races, Schaffer and friends also gave quite a bit to three candidates, according to campaign finance records kept by that city. In 2005, Schaffer gave $500 to Burbank City Councilman Dave Golonski, who listed Schaffer on documents as head of both City Cab and the Schaffer Business Group, which operated out of Murphy's home. Sedik Mardirossian, listed as an employee of San Gabriel Transit, gave another $500. Edik Mardirossian, identified as an employee of Taxicab Transportation Services Management -- which currently holds an $8,000 contract with the Burbank School District -- gave $250. Current Burbank Mayor Jef Vander Borght, who according to campaign finance records served as Murphy's treasurer for City Council campaigns until 1997, also benefited from Schaffer and associates during his 2003 council re-election bid. Identified as head of G&S Transit Management doing business as City Cab, Schaffer gave $250 to Vander Borght in October 2002 and March 2003. Murphy gave $250. Timmy Mardirossian, this time identified as an executive for a Burbank-based Super Shuttle franchise that shares an address with City Cab Co., gave $500. Murphy herself was not shy about taking money from her boyfriend and his friends, and has done so since early 2001. In January of that year, Schaffer gave $250 to her campaign, as did City Cab Vice President Kevin Schaffer, Scott's brother. Murphy also accepted $500 from Super Shuttle employees and $250 each from San Gabriel Transit and the Arcadia Transit Co., which was identified as another name for Super Shuttle. For her 2005 reelection bid, Murphy received one $250 donation each from a Taxicab Transportation Services Management employee, a Super Shuttle employee, an Arcadia Transit employee and an operations manager for City Cab. San Gabriel Transit's Sedik Mardirossian, this time listed as an employee of City Cab, gave $250, as did Timmy Mardirossian. G&S Transit Management, another name for City Cab, gave $250. A Tough Spot Burbank Councilperson Marsha Ramos, who had served as chair of the city's Police Commission before being elected in 2001, sees a long road ahead for the city. Should Murphy be convicted, she would be barred from holding office, which would mean a vacancy on the council, another election and more politicking. "Hopefully, we'll just move forward and do our business and deliberate, as we always do," said the mother of two and onetime mayor who, according to finance records, appears did not accept donations from the abovementioned contributors. "There is a potentially long road ahead of us, and the process will move along. It is important that we do our work. The business of the city is of primary importance. We will go on with our business as we have before. At least that's what I plan on doing." But if Murphy was using cocaine as much as her boyfriend claimed, wouldn't someone have noticed? "What would I know about cocaine?" Ramos said. "I didn't think anyone did it. I work with her on Tuesday night, and that's all I know." Jette said the implications of what Murphy may have done are staggering. At least on the surface, Murphy gave the impression that she cared deeply for the fallen officers and their families. Now, it appears, at least according to the affidavit used to justify the search of her house, she actually knew members of the same gang that killed Pavelko. "It's a difficult position for a great many people in the city and the citizens themselves," said Jette. "It puts us in a difficult position, one where we do think about all of that." V * Andre Coleman contributed to this story. - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin