Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
Harlem Teacher Is Charged With Selling
Drugs From Car
By KATHERINE E. FINKELSTEIN
A special education teacher who gave out cookies to students and
kept exotic pets in her Harlem classroom was charged yesterday
with possessing and selling drugs from a parked car in Manhattan.
The teacher, Veda Kaleya, 51, and a friend, Oleg Zhadanov, 30, were
arrested Thursday night on 54th Street between Ninth and 10th Avenues
after they sold cocaine to a man who earlier got into their car, according
to prosecutors with the Manhattan district attorney's office.
The man was also arrested and charged with possession of cocaine,
which was found in a bag in his pocket, said Gloria Montealegre, a
spokeswoman for the district attorney's office. Ms. Montealegre said she
did not have the man's name. Police officers saw the man get into the
backseat of the car when it stopped at 29th Street and 10th Avenue, she
said. The man then handed over some cash, and Ms. Kaleya, who was in
the passenger seat, handed him a bag, Ms. Montealegre said.
Earlier in the night, the officers had seen Mr. Zhadanov and Ms. Kaleya
driving along Seventh Avenue and making several stops near 20th Street,
she said.
After the man left the car at 29th Street, police officers followed the car
up to 54th Street, where they made the arrests.
The police said Ms. Kaleya's handbag contained 86 bags of cocaine, 12
bags of heroin, and various quantities of opium, crystal
methamphetamine, Ecstasy, Quaaludes, Valium and 100 other pills,
according to a criminal complaint.
Because the amount of drugs exceeded two ounces, Ms. Kaleya and
Mr. Zhadanov, if convicted, could face maximum sentences of up to life
in prison. Ms. Kaleya was arraigned last night and charged with criminal
possession of a controlled substance in the second and third degrees, and
criminal sale of a controlled substance in the third degree. Her bail was
set at $100,000. Officials said Mr. Zhadanov, who lives on West 56th
Street in Manhattan, was to be arraigned on the same charges late last
night.
Ms. Kaleya had an unblemished 25-year teaching record, according to
Pam McDonnell, a spokeswoman for the Board of Education.
Ms. Kaleya joined Public School 146 in East Harlem in 1993, and
teaches fourth grade. She lives alone in a penthouse apartment
overlooking Gramercy Park, people in her building said.
A spokeswoman for the district attorney said she did not know whether
Ms. Kaleya or Mr. Zhadanov had a criminal record.
Board of Education officials expressed surprise at the arrest.
"It's very hard to believe," Ms. McDonnell said. "I'm looking at this
woman's record, where she has clearly stepped up the ladder in terms of
teaching." She added that there were no complaints against Ms. Kaleya.
"I'm sure she will not be with children until this is resolved," Ms.
McDonnell said.
In the neighborhood around Ms. Kaleya's school on East 106th Street
yesterday, students and a faculty member expressed anger upon hearing
of the arrest.
If the charges are true, "It's awful and unethical," said Nolan Paird, a
social worker employed at the school for the summer.
"It's very unfair to the children that they don't have someone better
teaching them, who could be a better role model."
A group of schoolchildren who knew Ms. Kaleya described two sides to
her.
She had a quick temper and often shouted, for little reason, they recalled.
A. J. Ruiz, 14, said, "Sometimes she was mean, she would yell in my
ear."
But Ms. Kaleya often delighted them with the unusual menagerie she kept
in her classroom, as well as her streaks of generosity, they said.
The children described tanks of brightly colored fish, as well as an array
of lizards whose tanks and cages adorned her classroom.
They also said that she was known for giving out cookies, and that
recently, she had baked gingerbread cookies with her class and built a
gingerbread house, decorated with jelly beans.
And she would also reward good behavior by giving out money.
Non-violent crime. No harm, no foul. Let's move along...
Interesting names.
I heard this story on WABC last night. Now isn't this special? (the church lady)
"Harlem Teacher Is Charged With Selling Drugs From Car" THE NEXT thing you will hear will be the democraps demanding to know what kind of car it was, and then the democraps in congress (and the xlintons) will be demanding the manufacturer stop producing them immediately - for the children!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
[
Top
|
Latest Posts
|
Latest Articles
|
Self Search
|
Add Bookmark
|
Post
|
Abuse
|
Help!
]
FreeRepublic , LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794 Forum Version 2.0a Copyright © 1999 Free Republic, LLC |