ASHBURNHAM -- School officials at Oakmont Regional High School went into "lockdown mode" for about 35 minutes Tuesday morning while police searched for drugs, Ashburnham-Westminster Regional School District Superintendent Michael Zapantis said Wednesday. Four state troopers with dogs, two police officers from Ashburnham -- including Police Chief Loring Barrett Jr. -- and two Westminster officers conducted the unannounced search around 9:15 a.m. Faculty members told the students to remain in classrooms while the police searched lockers and the parking lot. The officers did not search students individually, according to Zapantis. [continues 661 words]
Many local residents say drug trafficking and drug-related crime interfere with their daily lives and harm the communities they live in. Leominster resident Thomas Burke, 64, said a robber recently broke into his Hilltop Gardens apartment and stole "a couple hundred bucks" in cash he had been saving. "It's a little scary," Burke said during a recent interview. Burke, along with other residents, pointed to several buildings where drugs are bought and sold in North Central Massachusetts. "It's known," he said. [continues 1494 words]
FITCHBURG -- The father of a suspected drug dealer said he was "floored" when he found out his son allegedly had a package full of the chemical used to make Ecstasy shipped to his home Monday morning. Gary Iannuzzi, 54, believes his computer-whiz son, Andrew, 26, likely used the Internet to find the drug supplier that sent him a container of Gamma Butyrolactone (GBL) to his home in Fitchburg. The substance ended up at Gary Iannuzzi's house at 50 Parker St., which is located in a suburban neighborhood full of single-family homes with sprawling lawns. "He's smart, he can do anything he wants with a computer," Gary Iannuzzi said during an interview in his living room Wednesday afternoon. "We're somewhat (angry) that he would put this house at risk." [continues 888 words]
FITCHBURG -- Fitchburg Police Chief Edward F. Cronin said many convicted drug dealers are receiving lenient prison sentences from local judges. "I don't pretend to be a judge," Cronin said. "I do know this, some people who are going through the state system do not get enough time." Cronin said he often turns to federal courts to prosecute violent, career criminals. "I try to push the federal system. I find the federal system to be a lot more serious," Cronin said. "They take it dead seriously." Fitchburg Police Sgt. Glenn C. Fossa said police may try to federally prosecute some of the suspects in recent crimes. [continues 263 words]
