North Adams Couple Charged With Marijuana Distribution

Marijuana and cultivation paraphernalia police say the confiscated from a North Adams home.

Update on Wednesday, Jan. 8, at 3 p.m.: The identification of a third member of the family was incorrect in an earlier version of this article.

"Misidentification by the mother at the scene triggered those charges," said Det. John LeClair. "Now the charges will be amended and brought against the other adult son."

The individual's name will not be released until his identity is confirmed in court documents.

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — A former high school teacher and the owner of local toy store are facing charges related to growing and selling marijuana after police confiscated nearly $16,000 worth of cultivated weed and 14 plants.

Whitney Suters, 46, and Monique Suters, 44, and a third person to believed to be their son, have been charged with possession with the intent to distribute a Class D substance, manufacture/cultivation of a Class D substance and conspiracy to violate the Controlled Substances Act. Monique Suters operates Persnickety Toys in North Adams.

Whitney Suters is also facing a charge of assault and battery on an officer.

The family was arrested after police responded a 911 hangup redirected from state police in Northampton at about 11:30 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 4.

Police Officers Trevor Manning and David Lemieux responded to the East Quincy Street home where they said Monique Suters told them a water pipe had broken and was draining into the home's electrical service.

She asked that the officers attempt to find the shut off but police said when they went into the basement her husband attempted to prevent them from entering a basement room by pushing them, resulting in his arrest and the assault charge.

Whitney Suters said on Wedesday that he received an emergency call from his wife and drove home from Cheshire and entered the basement to find two police officers standing at a closed door. Firefighters were also there.

Officers reportedly encountered "a strong odor" of raw and harvested marijuana as well as other evidence of cultivation and requested detectives. A search warrant received from Northern Berkshire District Court was executed at about 6:40 a.m. on Sunday.

Police said they found two pounds of marijuana, 14-small to medium-height marijuana plants, plastic baggies and three digital scales with marijuana residue on the measuring plates in the basement and that a table was set up for the manicuring and production of marijuana for street-level sales. A small area was set up for the cultivation of marijuana with lighting systems and soil.

Officers said they located two more pounds of marijuana in six separate bags on the second floor in a closet, making a total of four pounds seized.

Police allege that Monique Suters and her son removed marijuana plants from the basement and placed them into black trash bags to avoid their detection and stashed the two pounds of marijuana in the upstairs closet to hide it.

The value of the marijuana seized is $4,000 a pound, said police.

Whitney Suters posted on his Facebook page on Monday that he was preparing for a roller coaster ride.

"I hope my lessons have taught me well enough to keep up the faith and the fight; peace and love to all, the calm before the storm is fading fast. Talk with you all tomorrow if your [sic] still my friend."

The former Drury Spanish teacher may find more support than he thinks. Nearly 300 comments have been posted on the Police Department's Facebook report, many decrying the arrests as a waste of taxpayer money and as "destroying the lives of people."

"We're losing good people and loved ones everyday to herione [sic] and pills but you wanna worry about some stoners," wrote commenter John Vincent Toromino.

Massachusetts, both times by ballot initiatives, has decriminalized possessing small amounts of marijuana and opened the door to medical marijuana dispensaries. Colorado and Washington have legalized (and regulated and taxed) the use of marijuana. A recent poll found that 55 percent of Americans think it should be legalized.

But even as sentiments are changing toward recreational and medicinal use of marijuana, it remains an illegal substance in most states and at the federal level.

"As a LAW Enforcement agency, we do not get to pick and choose which laws we wish to enforce and which we do not," the Police Department posted in response to the torrent of criticism.

Correction: The Persnickety Toys in Pittsfield is no longer associated with the Suters. iBerkshires regrets the error.

North Adams Police Urge Caution When Driving

A motorist collided with the back of a flatbed on Church Street, one of a half-dozen accidents on Tuesday afternoon.

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The light snow that fell over the city on Tuesday afternoon resulted in a half-dozen motor vehicle accidents in less than an hour, according to police.

Within minutes, officers and firefighters responded to a car in ditch off West Shaft Road near the Zavattaro Athletic Complex in which an occupant in the car needed help in getting out, a single-car accident by Brown Street, a car into a flatbed truck on Church Street near the Berkshire Tower dormitories and a two-vehicle collision near Walmart.  

Police used their Facebook page to remind motorists to drive carefully.

"As the winter progresses, allow yourselves a little bit of extra time to get where you are going. Take a look at your tires and if they are getting low on tread depth, don't risk driving in the snow. It's just not worth it. The amount of money spent on damage to your vehicle, or injuries sustained as a result of an accident, will far surpass what it would cost to get new tires. Have a good day everyone!"

North Adams Man Arrested in Scooter Theft, Multiple Warrants

Patrick Gaffey, 45, and Debra Gaffey, 41, of North Adams were arrested in Hartford, Conn., on Wednesday.

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — A North Adams man wanted in the robbery of a local woman's scooter two months ago, among numerous other charges, was arrested Wednesday in Hartford, Conn.

Patrick Gaffey, 45, and his wife, Debra Gaffey, 41, both were taken into custody at the behest of the North Adams Police Department after receiving information that they may do harm to themselves or their autistic son.

Patrick Gaffey was arrested by the Hartford Police Department as a fugitive from justice based on an active warrant in Massachusetts. Both were also charged with possession of narcotics after police said they found more than 100 bags of heroin in their minivan and possession of narcotics within 1,500 feet of a school. They are also facing third-degree larceny for allegedly stealing the minivan they were driving.

Their son was transported to Hartford Hospital for evaluation and then released to the care of the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families.

Hartford Police apprehended the pair at about 2 p.m. on Wednesday. North Adams and state police detectives and state police Violent Fugitive Apprehension Section relayed the general area where they were believed to be and Hartford Police picked them up minutes later.

Patrick Gaffey has multiple arrest warrants in Massachusetts for which he will be brought to back to face once waiving extradition; if not, a governor's warrant will be requested.

Gaffey is wanted by North Adams, Holyoke and Clarksburg police departments and state police for nine arrest warrants.

Gaffey and Jesse Sprague, 31, of Cliff Street, were also arrested in a purse snatching in October at Ingleside Mall in Holyoke.

In September, police began an investigation into the theft of more than $50,000 worth of collectable toy trains, toys and other collectables from a storage unit in North Adams. Detectives were able to locate that some of the items were being sold on eBay by a man located in Ludlow. With the assistance of Ludlow Police detectives, a North Adams detective working undercover purchased multiple toy train accessories from the man in Ludlow.

Oct. 12, 2013, North Adams and Ludlow detectives with the assistance of the Adams, Lenox, Great Barrington and Wilbraham police departments executed a search warrant for the stolen collectables and recovered approximately $35,000 worth.

Gaffey is also charged with the following offenses:

North Adams
Larceny more than $250, scrap metal in March 2013; six counts of larceny by check less than $250 and three counts of uttering a false check in May 2013; possession of heroin from a motor vehicle stop in August 2013; and four counts of uttering a false check and three counts of forgery for allegedly stealing a checkbook in November 2013.

He and another as-yet unnamed man are also charged with larceny more than $250 related to the scooter theft in September. Police were investigating the theft of Suzanne Williams' scooter. Williams, always accompanied by her doll, Suzy, is well known around the city and community members have been raising funds to replace her scooter.

Regarding the collectibles theft: Larceny more than $250, breaking and entering in the daytime with the intent to commit a felony and malicious destruction of property more than $250. Warrants issued by Northern Berkshire District Court.

Clarksburg
Larceny more than $250 in the theft of a motorcycle in August 2013

Holyoke
Unarmed robbery of a person 65 years old or older in relation to the purse snatching from a 73-year-old woman in October (with Jesse Sprague).
        
Charlemont
Possession of burglarious tools, from an investigation in October 2013.

The North Adams Police Department continues to investigate other similar related crimes for which Gaffey is a person of interest. With the assistance of the Williamstown Police Department, detectives are attempting to locate the owner of 1960s-era scooter that has been stolen from the Northwest Hill area of Williamstown or possibly in Pownal, Vt., in September or October 2013.  If anyone has information concerning the scooter they are asked to call the North Adams or Williamstown police departments.
 

North Adams Police Keep Pressure on Criminal Element

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Police say a major drug bust on Tuesday is a successful example of how they're keeping the pressure on outside criminal elements — and a warning to those considering a return.

"The lion's share of the people we've been dealing with — starting about January and this summer — are outsiders, out-of-town problem people," said Police Director Michael Cozzaglio on Wednesday. "They were from Brooklyn and the Bronx; they came back in."

Three of the eight people arrested during the raid at a Mohawk Forest apartment were from the Bronx, N.Y.; a fifth gave no known address and a sixth was from Springfield. Three were local: Jaycee Bressette, 22, Pownal, Vt., Ronni Hart of Barbour Street and Paul Dugal Jr., a former Florida Mountain resident now living in Mohawk Forest.

Police found 150 grams of crack cocaine, worth about $10,000 on the street, said Cozzaglio, 80 packages of heroin worth about $1,200 and $4,000 in cash.

The police director said the suspects were not unknown to authorities, and two had outstanding warrants. Johnte Smith, 25, and Derrick Witter, 31, of the Bronx were arraigned in Superior Court on Wednesday on counts of assault and battery and intimidation of a witness from earlier this year. Smith was also charged with aggravated rape.

"We put a lot of pressure on our problem people over the summer and the out-of-town people," said Cozzaglio. "Two had outstanding warrants, which also caused them to flee. Subsequently, they had returned and, working with the public, we were able to find out where they were and what they were doing.  

"They were back in the business of dealing drugs."

The raid came together very quickly after authorities learned of the alleged dealers' return. North Adams Police, working with sheriff's office and the task force through the district attorney's office, obtained a warrant and moved fast.

"It was well executed and done very efficiently and done very well," said Cozzaglio.

He said the alleged dealers may have been testing to see if the "pressure was off."

"We are not easing off one little bit. This pressure will stay on until we feel there is a difference being made," he said. "This is part of the problem but not the full problem."

Dealers coming from outside the area inevitably need a place to stay or set up operations; that means they need one or more local people's help as well as customers.

"This type of activity has no borders," said the police director, and pulls in people of all ages and backgrounds. He credited local groups working to prevent addiction and aiding current addicts as a critical effort to attacking the problem.

"Let's work with the addicts and remove the drug dealers ... they have no mercy for these people, they are truly criminal and deserve what they get," he said.

North Adams Police Arrest Eight In Drug Bust

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Eight people were arrested Tuesday during a heroin bust in Mohawk Forest.

According to the police log, two people were arrested on warrants during the 2 p.m. bust and six others were arrested on being present where heroin-is-kept charges.

Those arrested include Derrick Witter, 31, Christopher Gaynor, 27, and Hammad Singleton, 36, all of Bronx, N.Y.; Johnte Smith, 25, no address given; Carla Robinson, 58, of Springfield; Jaycee Bressette, 22, of Pownal Vt., Ronni Hart, 31, of Barbour Street and Paul P. Dugal Jr., 51, of Mohawk Forest.

Witter and Smith were arrested on warrants and were in Berkshire Superior Court on Wednesday.

Witter has not-guilty pleas entered on his behalf on two counts of intimidation of a witness and a single count of assault and battery by means of a dangerous weapon. He was ordered to be held at the Berkshire County House of Correction on $70,000 cash or $700,000 surety bail. Those incidents allegedly occurred in North Adams between July 17 and July 29, 2013, and involved a 40-year-old woman.

Smith had not-guilty pleas entered on his behalf on three counts of assault and battery and single counts of aggravated rape, assault and battery by means of a dangerous weapon and intimidation of a witness. He was ordered to be held at the Berkshire County House of Correction on $50,000 cash or $500,000 surety bail. The incidents allegedly occurred in North Adam between April 30 and July 17, 2013, and involved a 40-year-old woman.

No further information was immediately available.

Updated on November 27, 2013 at 10:40 a.m. with the court actions.