The Nation - News from Sept. 26, 1988

Patrons at two taverns in Freeport, N.Y., found themselves with a new host--Uncle Sam. Narcotics agents raided the two bars and invoked aggressive federal forfeiture laws to seize and shut them down in a drive to halt violent crack dealers in the area. The laws allow seizure of properties used in the commission of drug-related crimes and have been used to take possession of drug-dealers’ cars, homes and buildings. The goal of the operation was not to make arrests or find drugs, but to shut down Wiggins Pub and the nearby Stadium Tavern, identified by federal officers in a three-month investigation as the “center of drug trafficking” in Freeport.