MONTANA PIPE SHOP OWNERS INDICTED

The U.S. government indicted the owners of five pipe and tobacco
accessory shops in Montana this month, alleging they were distributing
illegal drug paraphernalia.

In May, Drug Enforcement Administration agents in plainclothes and
unmarked cars swept through Missoula, Bozeman, Kalispell, Great Falls
and Billings, seizing pipes, cash, clothing items and business records
from one store in each city.

Other stores selling similar merchandise in Montana were apparently
not targeted.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Josh Van de Wetering would not comment on why
the five specific stores were raided and not others.

"We want to bend over backward to ensure that the people and the five
businesses who have been indicted in Montana receive a fair trial,"
Van de Wetering said. "Part of that means I can't comment on why these
guys are being indicted and no one else, or why they're being indicted
now and not before. I need to emphasize that they are innocent until
proven guilty."

In Missoula, the seizure forced David Sil to close The Vault, a small
pipe shop he opened eight years ago on West Broadway.

"It certainly ruined my life," Sil said. "They took everything,
including all records and tax information, employee benefit money,
medical expense money, rent money and all operating capital."

Sil, 60, said even though his was a small business, The Vault provided
income for six families and individuals.

Sil's attorney, Martin Judnich, said his client is bewildered by the
unexpected seizures.

"David Sil was shocked to find out that after more than seven years at
that location and without warning or provocation, the federal
authorities seized essentially the entire store," Judnich wrote in a
letter.

Judnich said for nearly a decade, Sil believed he was operating the
store in full compliance with state and federal laws.

"It seems to me there were selected shops around the state that were
seized at the same time and without warning," Judnich said. "My client
closed his business because the DEA seized all his inventory, so there
really wasn't much of a business to continue."

In a letter addressed to "My Fellow Montanans," Sil
wrote:

"Because I wanted to be in compliance with all laws, including federal
laws, I wrote to the FBI and ATF, declaring the exact nature of my
operation.

"The last line of the letter stated, 'If there be any questions as
concerns legal compliance, please let me know.'

"On May 18, 2005, the DEA let me know by traumatizing my store manager
for 8 hours and simply taking just about everything."

Sil speculated that the seizures were government retaliation.

"Maybe they targeted Montana because the medical marijuana initiative
I-148 passed last November," Sil said.

But Van de Wetering said the raid was not part of a nationwide
investigation.

In 2003, the DEA indicted 50 individuals on charges of trafficking in
illegal drug paraphernalia.

The charges stemmed from two nationwide investigations, code-named
"Operation Pipe Dream" and "Operation Headhunter." They included
indictments against national distributors and businesses nationwide.

"The department has done other cases like these, but this is not a
part of Operation Pipe Dream," Van de Wetering said.

And while the seizures didn't close all of the shops, they left
everyone equally baffled.

Bob Holstine, store manager of The Grateful Shed in Bozeman, said
pipes and tobacco accessories are only a small part of the business.
And he can't figure out why the DEA would confiscate that merchandise
after 15 years of operations.

"We've only got two glass cases of pipe tobacco stuff," Holstine said.
"But we sell more clothes than J.C. Penney."

The owner of The Grateful Shed, Steve Andriakos, was scheduled to
appear in Missoula federal court Tuesday, but his flight was canceled
because of the fog.

An arraignment is scheduled for Dec. 1, at which time all parties
listed in the indictments are expected to appear.

The maximum penalty for selling drug paraphernalia is three years
imprisonment, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release.