State Police make local arrest after 3 guns, fentanyl, cocaine, press, extended magazine, money counter, seized
The Rhode Island State Police said that a drug and firearms investigation in the City of Pawtucket was completed on Wednesday by the Rhode Island State Police HIDTA Task Force and Drug Enforcement Administration Providence Resident Office. This investigation led to the execution of a court-authorized search warrant at the home on Woodhaven Road in Pawtucket. Members of the HIDTA Task Force charged 38-year-old Pawtucket resident Erick Santana with multiple guns and drug violations based on unlawful contraband found and confiscated on the scene.
Members of the State Police HIDTA Task Force and Drug Enforcement Administration Providence Resident Office found and recovered significant quantities of illicit guns and equipment used to process and manufacture illegal drugs while carrying out a court-authorized search warrant. In particular, a Smith and Wesson.357 revolver, a Ruger 9mm semi-automatic handgun, an extended magazine, and an Omni.556 caliber semi-automatic assault rifle were confiscated. A money counter, kilogram press, equipment used to further process, repackage, and distribute illegal drugs, as well as about 266 grams of fentanyl and 221 grams of cocaine, were also confiscated.
Charges related to narcotics include possession with intent to deliver more than one ounce of a Schedule II controlled substance (fentanyl), possession with intent to deliver more than one ounce of a Schedule II controlled substance (cocaine), and possession with intent to deliver both cocaine and fentanyl. Charges related to weapons include Prohibition of Large Capacity Feeding Devices, Prohibition of Firearms by Certain Persons, and Prohibition of Firearms While Committing Controlled Substance Violations.
Numerous law enforcement agencies working together to support the Rhode Island State Police in their hunt for aggressive, frequently armed drug dealers are directly responsible for this seizure. The collaborations between the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Rhode Island State Police, as well as the agencies involved in their respective Task Forces, are responsible for the accomplishment of these investigations.
Members of the Rhode Island State Police, Providence Police Department, Cranston Police Department, North Providence Police Department, Lincoln Police Department, Drug Enforcement Administration, and Rhode Island National Guard Counterdrug Program make up the Rhode Island State Police High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force.
