Massachusetts Criminal Defense Attorney Blog
Shortly after 12:00 a.m. last Wednesday morning Gabriel Diaz was arrested by the Haverhill, Massachusetts Police Drug Unit. An informant told them that a van would be driving in the High Street area and that it would contain drugs. Using this information the police made the stop of the vehicle. They determined that Diaz did not have a driver’s license. This being an arrestable offense they detained Diaz and searched his car. While doing so they found a cocaine diluting agent, inositol and a scale. Believing that more drugs were present they called in a K-9 unit. The dog sniffed out a hiding compartment in the seat. Inside the police located a loaded nine millimeter handgun, sixty four grams of rock cocaine, nineteen grams of heroin and some cash. Diaz has been charged with trafficking cocaine, trafficking heroin, possession of a firearm, possession of ammunition and more. Charges are now pending in the Haverhill District Court. The case will ultimately be prosecuted in the Essex County Superior Court in Newburyport, Salem or Lawrence.
Drug and Gun Charges Filed Against Lawrence Man Arrested in Haverhill
Here are some things to think about with this case. Anytime police use informants as a basis for stopping a vehicle you can be sure that the defense attorney will move to suppress the stop and search. The police must establish that the information is reliable and the information he supplies must be sufficiently corroborated. Challenging the credibility of his information is a great way to get the search suppressed, the drugs thrown out and the case dismissed. You might also want to think about Diaz’s relationship to the vehicle. Was it his? If not, what evidence is there that he had knowledge about the “secret” compartment in the vehicle. Another question that comes to mind is where was the scale and inositol found? Was it located in plain view such that Diaz must have known it was there or was it secreted in another part of the car.
Defending Drug Cases in Massachusetts and throughout the country is something that we have done well for over twenty years. If you have been charged with Drug Trafficking in Massachusetts call our office now at 617-263-6800 to discuss your case or contact us online.