A mixture of 4-chloromethyl-2-(N-methylacetamido)thiazole (2.05 g), 1-benzhydrylpiperazine (2.5 g) and potassium carbonate (1.4 g) in N,N-dimethylformamide (20 ml) was stirred at 80° C. for 1.5 hours. After the reaction mixture was poured into ice-water, the precipitated crystals were washed with water and then dried, followed by recrystallization from a mixture of ethyl acetate and n-hexane to obtain pale yellow crystals of 4-(4-benzhydrylpiperazin-1-ylmethyl)-2-(N-methylacetamido)thiazole (1.3 g), mp 140°-142° C.
