Investigators said they found crack worth an estimated $7,000 during their raid.
LEWISTON – A local man was in federal custody Monday nearly two weeks after police and drug agents raided his Main Street home and arrested him on drug charges.
Police said Gerry Morrissette, 43, was found in possession of more than 90 grams of crack cocaine as well as several guns.
Agents from the federal High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force first searched Morrissette’s 523 Main St. home in March, officials said.
Investigators said they found crack worth an estimated $7,000 inside the home. They also found several handguns, at least one of them stolen, police said.
Morrissette was initially arrested for violating bail conditions stemming from an earlier charge. The drugs were seized and police continued to investigate the case.
In mid-April, police and drug agents returned to the Main Street home, this time carrying a federal arrest warrant.
Investigators from HIDTA were assisted by local drug agents and members of the Central Maine Violent Crime Task Force as they returned to Morrissette’s home.
Police said they found another 9 mm handgun inside the house. Morrissette was arrested for conspiracy to possess and distribute crack cocaine as a result of the earlier drug seizure.
The case was turned over to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Portland for federal prosecution. Morrissette was expected to remain in federal custody until he appears in court.
The arrest was made along with others in Lewiston as HIDTA, the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency and the Lewiston police Selective Enforcement Team maintain a presence in the Twin Cities.
The day after Morrissette was arrested, three men were arrested on drug charges after the car they were riding in was pulled over as part of a surveillance operation. In that bust, police said they found 12 grams of crack and a shotgun inside the vehicle.
One of those arrested in that search was being prosecuted federally.
Investigators say more arrests are likely as the investigation continues.
HIDTA is a federal agency formed to identify, disrupt and dismantle Colombian, Dominican and other significant drug-trafficking and money-laundering organizations in the United States.
mlaflamme@sunjournal.com
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