NEWS RELEASE

SEARCH WARRANTS EXECUTED IN TWO BUSINESSES AND ONE RESIDENCE IN SEASIDE

Thursday at approximately 11:00 a.m. Special Agents from the US Department of Treasury, assisted by members of the Clatsop County Interagency Narcotics Team executed three federal search warrants today in Seaside as part of a several month investigation into Seaside Resident and Business owner Soloman Sibony. Warrants were executed on Sibony’s residence, a t-shirt shop and another office space in Seaside that Sibony operated. The investigation comes after the Clatsop County Interagency Narcotics Team (CCINT) and the Seaside Police Department each opened investigations.

During the summer of 2006, CCINT began investigating information about possible narcotics trafficking from within the Freedom USA t-shirt store located on Broadway near the Seaside Turnaround. As CCINT continued the investigation, more than one controlled purchase of narcotics was made from within the Freedom USA t-shirt shop.

Days later, the Seaside Police Department began to investigate possible fraudulent internet business from Sibony owned companies operating out of an office space located in the downtown area of Seaside. The investigation revealed that Sibony’s internet businesses offered services for compensation to several hundred persons however the business did not provide the advertised services after the collection of money. Seaside detectives received multiple complaints from persons alleging to be victims of the fraud.

Both the Seaside Police Department and the CCINT investigations revealed information that they could be connected and the US Treasury Department, criminal division of the Internal Revenue Service was enlisted to assist the investigation at a federal level. Several items were seized by the Federal Agents but no persons were taken into custody as this is a continuing investigation.

Robert Gross

Chief of Police