THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, April 25, 1995 TAG: 9504250274
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY LYNN WALTZ, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 96 lines
Prosecution of the largest drug ring ever to operate in Hampton Roads ground to a halt in federal court Monday amid accusations that kingpin Robert Bruce Gillins has threatened witnesses.
After a witness told Judge Rebecca Beach Smith that he was afraid to continue testifying, Smith ordered an immediate investigation into allegations of witness tampering and obstruction of justice.
She ordered U.S. marshals to bring Gillins into federal court for questioning, to search Gillins' Virginia Beach jail cell and bring all personal letters and papers into court.
After Gillins was brought to court, the judge grilled him about a letter he wrote to the witness who had been testifying. The letter, written in cryptic street language, allegedly contained veiled threats against the witness.
Gillins protested Monday that he has no motivation for threatening witnesses because he already pleaded guilty to running the corporate-style drug organization. It brought hundreds of kilograms of cocaine, valued at more than $120 million, into Hampton Roads in the late '80s and early '90s.
More than a dozen members of the organization agreed to testify in return for plea agreements or immunity agreements. The eight remaining defendants, who started their third week of trial Monday, range from Gillins' alleged business partner to low-level couriers.
In the letter, Gillins writes of witnesses, ``None of them had to go out like that cause they was well taken care of, but . . . what goes around comes back. (They're) gonna get blown cause the word travels . . . I just feel so ill Yo . . . is gonna get blown up in the mountains. (They) is ruining a brothers life.''
Gillins said on the stand that he was simply warning the witness that the word was out in the ``mountains,'' or federal prisons, that witnesses were rats and snitches.
``Word was out that we were snitching so we should be on guard. I wanted him to watch his back,'' Gillins told the judge Monday.
Two witnesses, however, testified Monday that they received letters and phone messages from Gillins that they interpreted as threats. As a result, Smith ordered subpoenas for everyone who has talked to Gillins on the phone regarding the case to see if Gillins had them pass along threatening messages.
``Get subpoenas out for them,'' Smith barked. ``If they've been witness tampering, there's going to be a price to pay.''
She warned Gillins, ``You're looking at charges of obstruction of justice and tampering with witnesses. Don't add perjury. Think long and hard before you answer these questions.''
One of the fearful witnesses, who earlier pleaded guilty to his role in the drug organization, told the judge Monday he had gotten a letter from Gillins saying ``We're all going down,'' and ``Keep it real.''
``I took it as a threat,'' the witness told the judge. `` `Keep it real' means `Keep your mouth shut.' '' The witness also testified he had heard that Gillins ordered another potential witness slashed with a razor at Portsmouth jail in retaliation for agreeing to testify, and that he was scared.
Gillins said ``Keep it real'' means to tell the truth.
Smith said she didn't believe Gillins and ordered him put into solitary confinement pending the completion of the trial, which is expected to last two more weeks.
``I want him completely cut off,'' Smith said. ``With no outside communications until the outcome of the trial. I don't believe a lot of what he's saying.''
Smith said she wants to see the letters that Gillins says substantiate his claims. She ordered them brought to court Monday afternoon.
Gillins said the letters could be found in a red cookie bag under his mattress in jail. He told the judge the letters would substantiate his claim that he was encouraging witnesses to tell the truth.
While the judge had Gillins under oath and out of earshot of the jurors, she asked him which of the eight defendants worked for him. Prosecutors allege that the organization was headquartered in Newport News with spokes to other Hampton Roads cities, Richmond, Philadelphia and locations in Ohio, North Carolina and South Carolina.
The drugs originated primarily in New York and Miami and were transported, along with money and weapons, in cars with secret compartments.
One by one, Gillins denied any association with all the men sitting at the front of the courtroom except one: his alleged partner, Samuel Benjamin Kelly. Later he clarified his testimony, saying he had had no direct contact with any of the defendants in his organization.
Defense attorneys had expected Gillins to testify against their clients because of his plea agreement, which called for his cooperation.
Gillins has not been called to testify in the trial. Prosecutors said he had told U.S. marshals, ``I just can't do it. I can't be a rat.'' ILLUSTRATION: THREATS OR WARNINGS?
Robert Bruce Gillins, right, says that he was warning witnesses that
word was out in federal prisons that witnesses were rats and
snitches.
Two witnesses testified they received letters and messages they
interpreted as threats.
KEYWORDS: DRUG TRIAL by CNB