By Dan Horn
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Seven Cincinnatians, including several college students, will face criminal charges in New York this week after federal investigators accused them of illegally buying and selling drugs, guns and bulletproof vests.

At a hearing Monday in U.S. District Court in Cincinnati, federal prosecutors said the seven suspects were part of a conspiracy that lasted at least two years and stretched from Alabama to Ohio to New York City.

They said the accused ringleaders of the conspiracy, Manuel Salazar and Noah O'Brien, arranged for others to buy guns from licensed dealers in Greater Cincinnati and then scraped off the guns' serial numbers so they could not be traced. Prosecutors said the pair then sold the guns, as well as drugs, for more money in New York.

At least three of the suspects, including O'Brien, were described as students at Cincinnati-area colleges, although most did not identify their school.

O'Brien told Magistrate Judge Timothy Hogan that he wanted to be released on bond so he could help resolve his legal problems - and because he needed to drop his classes at the University of Cincinnati so he could remain in good standing.

"I want to face the charges," O'Brien said. "I want to face my responsibilities."

But Hogan said O'Brien, 24, and Salazar, 25, would be detained without bond at least until they get to court in New York later this week. They face drug, firearm and conspiracy charges that carry a mandatory prison sentence of up to 10 years if they are convicted.

A total of 14 are charged in the case, and half of those are from Greater Cincinnati.

Bradley Carroll, 23, is the only other Cincinnatian detained without bond. He is charged with violating drug and firearm laws. Three other Cincinnati suspects - Jennifer Costello, 24, Robert Miller, 22, and Kriston Campbell, 30 - are accused of purchasing some of the guns that were later re-sold in New York.

Another suspect, Devor Rom, a 22-year-old student at Cincinnati State, is charged with participating in the illegal sale of drugs, including the drug ecstasy. His bond was set at $25,000.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Terry Lehmann said investigators built their case on secretly recorded telephone conversations and the sale of drugs and guns to confidential informants.

Lehmann said O'Brien and Salazar are heard on the tapes several times discussing the sale of guns or drugs. On one tape, Lehmann said, O'Brien stated he was "trying to get more guns right now."

He said investigators believe the group purchased about 60 guns - most of them 9-millimeter, semi-automatic handguns - and sold 28 of them in New York City to confidential informants. At least one of the guns sold was an AK-47 assault rifle.

The indictment also states that Salazar and O'Brien sold about 1,000 ecstasy pills in one transaction three weeks ago.

Although the other suspects did not speak in court Monday, O'Brien told the judge he deserved to go free until his case is resolved.

"I was allegedly mixed up in a bad situation for a few months," he said. "It's not a joke. It's nothing little."

But later, the judge questioned whether O'Brien appreciated the severity of the charges against him.

"He was smiling and looking around," Hogan said of O'Brien's demeanor in court. "Like he thought this was something less than serious."