Pubdate: Sun, 06 Feb 2005 Source: Miami Herald (FL) Copyright: 2005 The Miami Herald Contact: http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/262 Author: Kevin Deutsch of the Herald ECSTASY BUSTS NAB FIREFIGHTERS Two Miramar firefighters have been arrested on drug charges and suspended from their jobs. Other firefighters may be involved in the investigation. Two Miramar firefighters have been arrested on drug charges after one of them admitted to selling Ecstasy to seven other firefighters, and said the drugs were used during rave parties. Lt. Carey Kovacs, 29, and Capt. Valentin Srbovan, 37, were arrested this week as part of an ongoing DEA investigation. When agents searched Kovacs' home in the 200 block of Magnolia Avenue in Davie Thursday, they found one gram of cocaine, one bottle and 12 packaged doses of steroids, 20 Ecstasy pills and two other controlled substances for which he had no prescription. Kovacs, a six-year veteran of Miramar Fire Rescue, told investigators he routinely sold Ecstasy, a mood-altering drug with psychedelic and stimulant effects, to seven Miramar firefighters and used the drugs with them during rave parties he hosted, according to an arrest report. He said he purchased the anabolic steroids from another Miramar firefighter, whose name was not released. Kovacs was charged with possession with intent to sell MDMA, also known as Ecstasy, and possession of cocaine, steroids and two controlled drugs, promethazine and methocarbamol, without a prescription. He faces up to 26 years in prison. Srbovan, a native of Yugoslavia and 15-year veteran of the fire department, was arrested Friday after agents searched his home in the 5000 block of Southwest 128th Avenue in Miramar. They found 20 tablets of Ecstasy hidden inside a chair in his bedroom, according to an arrest report. He is charged with possession of MDMA, and faces up to five years in prison. Roommate Arrested Kovacs' roommate, Charles Dixon, 33, was also arrested Thursday after agents found 18 tablets of Ecstasy and nine tablets of the narcotic hydrocodone in his bedroom, an arrest report said. He is charged with trafficking in hydrocodone and possession of MDMA. Dixon was being held at Broward County Jail Saturday on $100,000 bond, and faces up to 35 years in prison. He has past arrests and convictions for insurance claim fraud, giving a false crime report and carrying a weapon, records show. Both firefighters appeared in court, according to the DEA. Kovacs was released from jail on $6,500 bond. Srbovan was released on $1,000 bond. They have been suspended with pay pending a Miramar Fire Rescue and police deparment internal investigation, said Miramar Fire Rescue Division Chief Dennis Matty. ''Our department is in shock,'' said James Hunt, head of Miramar Fire Rescue. ``[Firefighters] like to know that everyone that's with them is not in any kind of altered mood that would not make them safe to work with at a scene. They want to know that the people who work beside them on a scene are completely competent.'' Hunt said other Miramar firefighters would be suspended if they are found to be involved. The DEA did not release any names or details about other Miramar firefighters. The case echoes a similar one that shook the department in 1990, when a drug scandal left it struggling to repair its image. A paramedic was accused of trying to pay an undercover police officer for two grams of cocaine at a gas station, which set off an investigation of the department that led to other arrests. On The Job Hunt said he had no knowledge of either Kovacs or Srbovan ever having been under the influence of drugs while at work. He said they were good employees who performed their jobs well. The two firefighters worked the same shift, but at different stations. ''I've never heard of anything like this in the fire service,'' Hunt said. The DEA started an investigation in January that led them to Kovacs' and Srbovan's homes, but they did not know the men were firefighters when the investigation began, said Jeannette Moran, a DEA spokeswoman. Neither Kovacs nor Srbovan could be reached for comment Saturday. - --- MAP posted-by: SHeath(DPFFLorida)