AG: '412' Was Code For Drugs In Monroeville Cocaine Ring

POSTED: 11:41 am EST December 3, 2007
UPDATED: 8:12 pm EST December 3, 2007


MONROEVILLE, Pa. -- Dialing 412 lets you make a phone call in Pittsburgh -- but it was also a way to get cocaine and marijuana from a Monroeville-based drug operation, according to the state attorney general's office.

About 10 kilos of cocaine were recovered and 21 people were arrested Monday in connection with the alleged drug ring, which Attorney General Tom Corbett said was worth $8.7 million and had distribution throughout Allegheny County.

The alleged leader of the alleged operation -- Victor Allen, 41, of Monroeville -- relied on Mexican dealers in Columbus, Ohio, to supply him with the drugs, Corbett said.

The investigation was dubbed "Operation Area Code" because the amounts of drugs that customers bought were determined by how many 412's they were worth, Corbett said.

For example, if somebody wanted 4½ ounces of a drug, he or she would say they needed "1 412," Corbett said.

If nine ounces were desired, the message would be "2 412s" -- which translates to 4½ times two.

"You see the model -- it's Economics 101. It's supply and demand," Corbett said. "I hate to say it, but it's probably a medium-sized program, from the cases I've handled across Pennsylvania."

Allen is charged with possession with intent to deliver, conspiracy and aggravated assault.

Other local suspects facing various drug-related charges, according to a release on Corbett's Web site, include:

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