Two former Augusta officers convicted of drug charges

AUGUSTA - A veteran Augusta narcotics officer and a former member of the Richmond County sheriff&#39;s crime suppression unit hve been convicted on federal drug and extortion charges. <br> <br> Thirty-six-year-old Ralph Tyrone Williams was convicted of conspiracy and extortion and 34-year-old Joseph Ellick was convicted of attempt to possess cocaine yesterday. <br> <br> They had been accused of conspiring from 1997 to 2000 to distribute more than 50 grams of crack. The indictment also alleged Williams extorted money from self-confessed drug dealer Ernest Smith, who testified in the trial. <br> <br> Ten tape-recorded conversations between Ellick and Smith led to Ellick&#39;s only conviction. <br> <br> Williams was acquitted on the charges related to Smith&#39;s testimony and on one extortion charge. But the testimony of Williams&#39; childhood friend, Joe Nathan Green, helped convict him of the conspiracy and possession charges. <br> <br> Green testified that Williams threw him a party when he was released from prison and brought drugs for Green to help him re-establish himself as a dealer. <br> <br> Sentencing dates have not been scheduled.