CONCORD, N.H. - Acting United States Attorney John J. Farley announced today that a jury found Mark Gagnon, 54, of Candia, New Hampshire guilty of possessing heroin with the intent to distribute.
Testimony elicited at trial showed that during an ongoing wiretap investigation, investigators learned that on July 10, 2016, Gagnon and another person traveled from Manchester, New Hampshire to Lawrence, Massachusetts to pick up 50 fingers (approximately 500 grams) of heroin from a drug trafficking organization led by Alberto Guerrero Marte. Gagnon and his confederate met with Marte at a restaurant in Lawrence at approximately 10:00 p.m. on July 10, 2016. Gagnon retrieved a shopping bag containing three cans of tomato sauce from Marte’s vehicle. Gagnon placed the cans in his own vehicle and drove to New Hampshire. During a traffic stop of Gagnon’s vehicle, a drug detection dog alerted that the vehicle contained drugs. A search warrant was executed on the vehicle on July 11, 2016. Law enforcement officers opened the three cans of tomato sauce and found 51 fingers of heroin, weighing a little over 500 grams.
Gagnon will be sentenced on Nov. 17, 2017. He faces a maximum of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $1 million.
“We are dedicated to working with all of our law enforcement partners to stop the flow of heroin and other dangerous drugs into the Granite State," said Acting U.S. Attorney Farley. “While those who suffer from addiction need to have access to treatment, those who seek to profit from the distribution of heroin will be held accountable for their actions. I commend the hard work of the law enforcement officers in this case. Their industriousness led to the seizure of a very significant amount of heroin before it could be sold on the streets of New Hampshire."
"Opioid abuse is at epidemic levels in New Hampshire," said DEA Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Ferguson. "Heroin and fentanyl are causing overdose deaths across the Granite State in record numbers, and DEA is committed to aggressively pursue anyone who distributes these poisons in order to profit and destroy people's lives. This investigation demonstrates the strength and continued commitment of our local, state and federal partners and our strong relationship with the U.S. Attorney's Office."
This investigation was the product of an investigation by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). The OCDETF program is a federal multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional task force that supplies supplemental federal funding to federal and state agencies involved in the identification, investigation, and prosecution of major drug trafficking organizations. This investigation was led by the Drug Enforcement Administration and also involved the following law enforcement agencies: Homeland Security Investigations; the Massachusetts State Police; the Haverhill Police Department; the United States Marshals Service; the New Hampshire State Police; the Manchester Police Department; the Lawrence Police Department; the Lowell Police Department, the Methuen Police Department, and the Hillsborough County Drug Task Force. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Donald Feith.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
