WHITMAN — Three area men are facing drug charges after search warrants were executed on Monday, April 4 by detectives assigned to the WEB Task Force at Whitman apartments identified as being the places of suspected heroin and fentanyl sales over the past several months.

“Monday’s search warrants and this operation show that the WEB Task Force and Whitman Police Department are committed to aggressively pursuing similar ‘quality of life cases,’ in which neighborhoods are overcome with daily fentanyl and heroin transactions, as well as the drug’s use,” stated a press release issued by detective Sgt. Scott Allen of the East Bridgewater Police Department. “The WEB Task Force and Whitman Police will continue to investigate anyone suspected of selling these deadly drugs.  Nearly all opioid investigations currently involve fentanyl mixed with heroin or contain solely fentanyl which is packaged and sold on the streets.”

Monday’s search warrants were the culmination of an investigation that has been ongoing since just around the start of the year, according to Allen.

“WEB Task Force investigators had received information over the past several months identifying an apartment located at 309 Old South Ave., Whitman that was suspected of being utilized as a main meeting site where suspected fentanyl/heroin sales were taking place to persons from Whitman and other nearby communities,” a press release issued by Allen on Tuesday stated. “Information had been received from concerned citizens, numerous sources of information, as well as supported by approximately 10 prior Whitman Police calls for service at 309 Old South Ave.”

Over the past several months, at least five non-fatal suspected fentanyl/heroin overdoses have occurred either directly at 309 Old South Ave., or in close proximity to the residence which involved individuals identified as being associated to the investigation, according to police. During the investigation, police said a father of one of the targets of the probe reported to Whitman Police that he had been observing the same male subject he believed was selling suspected fentanyl/heroin to his son and his friends at 309 Old South Ave.

“During the investigation, a WEB undercover officer was able to initiate undercover fentanyl purchases from the person suspected as supplying fentanyl to persons at 309 Old South Ave.,” the release stated.

After making three undercover purchases of fentanyl, on March 24, WEB Task Force investigators and Whitman Police Officers arrested the target of this undercover operation, Saquaan R, Louis, 24, a listed resident of 1968 North Main St., Fall River. Louis had been identified as a former resident of the city of Brockton with prior drug offenses. WEB Task Force detectives had identified Louis as being a distributor of fentanyl, and suspected him of distributing fentanyl to persons at 309 Old South Ave, Whitman on multiple occasions.

Louis was arrested at the Route 18 Wendy’s parking lot in Whitman on March 24, in a vehicle while in possession of three bags of fentanyl that WEB investigators believed he was selling that day. Louis was arrested and arraigned at Brockton District Court for; possession with the intent to distribute fentanyl (a Class B Controlled Substance) and three counts of distribution of fentanyl (for prior sales to an undercover WEB detective in Whitman over the prior weeks). He was held on $25,000.00 bail at Brockton District Court and was last known to still being held at the Plymouth County House of Correction.

“Even after Mr. Louis’ arrest, WEB investigators continued to observe suspected drug transactions occurring at and/or from within Apt. 1 at 309 Old South Ave, Whitman,” the release stated.  “Several suspects of the Whitman end of the investigation had been identified and search warrants were sought by lead WEB and Whitman Detective Peter Aitken for 309 Old South Ave.,  Apt. 1 and a second location, 23 ½ South Ave, 2nd floor, also inWhitman.

On Monday evening, WEB investigators executed both search warrants.

At 309 Old South Ave., investigators located and arrested one of the main Whitman suspects, Robert Barton, 23, a resident of  309 Old South Ave., Apt. 1, according to the report.

“Mr. Barton was in possession of a small quantity of heroin when detectives executed the search warrant,” the report stated.

Detectives searched Barton’s residence and located digital scales and plastic baggies consistent with being utilized to distribute quantities of fentanyl. Also seized were multiple cellular phones police believed to be used to facilitate and arrange drug sales. A significant amount of hypodermic needles and syringes were located throughout the apartment, consistent with detective’s suspicions that the apartment was being utilized by many fentanyl/heroin users to inject and use the drugs just purchased at or near that location.

Barton was arrested and transported to Whitman Police station where he was charged with; possession with the intent to distribute a Class B substance (fentanyl) and possession of a Class B controlled substance (fentanyl).

WEB detectives executed a second search warrant Monday night at the , 23 ½ South Ave, 2nd floor, Whitman. This apartment had been identified as the residence of the other target of the probe, Ryan Hooper, 23.

“Mr. Hooper had been subject to surveillance during the investigation and was suspected of being involved in fentanyl/heroin sales at 309 Old South Ave., as well,” police stated. “On March 29, and prior to search warrants having been issued, Whitman Police responded to 23 ½ South Ave. related to a call involving Mr. Hooper. During this police response, Mr. Hooper was in possession of approximately 90 or more Clonazepam pills, also known as Klonopins or ‘K–pins,’ which is a benzodiazepine, a drug frequently and dangerously abused in conjunction with heroin or fentanyl use.”

Hooper is being summoned to Brockton District Court for possession with intent to distribute a Class C controlled Substance (Clonazepam) by Whitman Police related to the March 29 offense.

“Mr. Hooper had been the main probe of the 309 Old South Ave. investigation prior to March 29 and had previously resided with Mr. Barton and/or stayed at his Old South Avenue residence during this investigation,” police stated.

Hooper was also arrested by Whitman Police on Dec. 13, 2015 for a commercial Burglary at The Smoke Shop, 27 South Ave, Whitman — a business that sells electronic cigarettes and smoking paraphernalia. Hooper was charged and arraigned for breaking and entering of a building at nighttime for a felony, assault and battery on a police officer and an assortment of drug charges as he was arrested and found in possession of numerous drugs including suspected heroin/fentanyl.

Barton was arraigned on Tuesday, April 5 at Brockton District Court. He was held on $500 cash bail, which he had not posted as of Wednesday morning. Barton is due back in court May 5. No arraignment date has been set for Hooper’s newest charge.

Louis’ offenses are pending in the pre-trial session at court.

HANSON — Now there are two.

After interviews with the four final candidates — Greg Enos of Brockton, Michael McCue of Mansfield, Chawner Hurd of Lakeville and Sarah Smith of East Bridgewater — recommended by the Town Administrator Search Committee, Selectmen narrowed the field to McCue and Smith Tuesday, March 22.

It came down to experience, enthusiasm, longevity considerations, personality and opposition to using overrides to balance school operating budgets. Enos, Whitman’s assistant town administrator, also received high marks for his experience, particularly in grant writing and familiarity with the regional schools.

“I thought they were all good,” said Selectmen Chairman Bruce Young. “They all had various strengths.”

All four candidates had expressed an aversion to micro-managing and concern for the ethical use of social media, key areas of concern for selectmen.

“I think they’re all great candidates,” said Selectman James McGahan. “I thank the board for getting us some really highly qualified people. I think we’ve got some great talent.”

“I think we can take all four of them and flip a coin, they’re so close,” Selectman Don Howard said. “I’m having a difficult time because I’ve been through this twice before.”

While there was wide agreement on McCue, with Howard voting for Hurd (a businessman and former selectman), another 4-1 consensus vote selected Smith, with Selectman Bill Scott favoring Enos, following some discussion.

“I’m an experience guy,” Scott said. “We have two candidates [McCue and Enos] that bring experience to the job. … I don’t think we can afford the time to train another town administrator, with all due respect to the candidates — they were all impressive — but my feeling is it should go to someone … that can hit the ground running.”

McGahan agreed Smith is not familiar with regional schools, but noted she is friends with W-H Director of Business Services Christine Suckow, and can gain information from that relationship.

“But she made it a point in her letter that she understands there has to be a balance between the two (town and school budgets),” he said. Smith is currently business manager for West Bridgewater schools and has worked in private business as a financial officer.

Selectman Kenny Mitchell said he liked all four, but that Hurd’s résumé bordered on inscrutable.

“I’m not quite sure what he does now,” Mitchell said. He and McGahan agreed Smith’s enthusiasm for the position outweighed her lack of experience.

“I think she’s hungry for the job,” McGahan said.

The board will meet Tuesday, March 29 to make its final selection following reference checks.

Vote factors

McCue was favored for his experience and Hanson ties. He is currently town administrator in Rochester, a post he has also held in Avon, and has served as an administrative assistant to selectmen in Mendon, as an Economic Development grants officer in Walpole and was a selectman in Mansfield for six years. McCue had been a finalist for Hanson’s former executive secretary position about 12 years ago when Michael Finglas was hired, and his parents have lived in town for about 20 years.

Each candidate was allotted 45 minutes, with all but McCue taking less time to exhaust selectmen’s prepared questions and follow-ups. All four interviews were recorded for later broadcast by Whitman-Hanson Community Access Television.

Questions ranged from familiarity with the Town Administrator Act and the role of the office to management style, relations with selectmen and the regional school district and use of social media.

“I see myself as generally providing oversight to all departments, making sure all departments work cohesively, without being invasive,” McCue said of the role of town administrator. “My chief role would be shepherd of the budget.”

“Facilitating your visions and goals for the town” is job one, Smith said. “The residents elected you. I just want to make sure that we fulfill what you want to do legally, ethically and make the town better that way.”

She added that she advocates an open-door policy, listens to all sides and doesn’t take things personally.

“The town administrator doesn’t run the town, you people do,” she said.

Both McCue and Smith were conversant that Hanson’s current budget is $22 million. Neither favors overrides as a method of balancing the school district’s operational budget.

“I am aware your growth has been down this year and that you do have some debt exclusions out there,” Smith said. “Overrides for balancing budgets, I’m just not a fan of.”

While appropriate in some circumstances, she said a “major discussion” must happen before it comes to that.

“I believe that is the last resort,” McCue said. The law allows us to do it. I think that, in extreme circumstances, it can be warranted. I can safely say that I have not been party to an operational override. … It is the option of last resort, I believe.”

McCue also said his role would also be to investigate and foster economic expansion for the town, while serving as spokesman and go-between for the Board of Selectmen. The commuter rail station area is one he sees as a prime area for that type of expansion.

“Having served on a board of selectmen for six years, I do think I bring to the position an understanding of what you all deal with and need to work through on a daily basis,” McCue said.

Like all four candidates, McCue said communication was key to avoiding or resolving conflicts between subordinates, peers and board members.

“I don’t stand over people’s shoulders,” McCue said. “I expect people, who get paid very well and who are professionals, to do their job. That being said, there are occasions where I need to get involved and I try to keep those lines of communication open on a regular basis so I can nip problems in the bud.”

Smith agreed.

“I’m definitely a team player,” she said. “I’m not a micro-manager. I understand that sometimes you need to be firm, but you can always do that in a respectful way.”

One question outlined a hypothetical situation in which selectmen approach a town administrator for help setting up a social media page in support of a multi-million dollar project, requiring a debt exclusion, on which only favorable posts are permitted. All candidates said they could not ethically do that, nor would they use social media to advocate for extension of their contract.

“I cannot ethically do that,” Smith said of the project scenario. “I feel that social media, for a town, is to get information out to the people. … I’m not one to air my political views or anything like that.”

“There are constraints in terms of what one can do in terms of political function,” McCue said. “I would do my best to get the information out there, to deal with any questions that people might have … I’d hold public meetings — and they wouldn’t necessarily be here in Town Hall.

“One needs to be a little careful with social media because you can lose that person-to-person contact that I think a lot of people still want,” McCue said.

BOSTON — It’s said all good things have to come to an end, and for the Whitman-Hanson boys’ basketball team, that was their season. The Panthers (22-3) lost a tough fought battle in the Division 2 State semifinals, held at the TD Bank Garden Tuesday, to New Mission 62-50.

“I give my kids so much credit for how hard they played,” head coach Bob Rodgers said. “They were very aware of New Mission’s athleticism and I think that prevented us from sharing the ball as well as we usually do.”

In what was a back-and-forth game all night, a three-point basket by senior guard Alonzo Cooper, which put his team up by three with under 2:30 left in regulation, would be the nail in the coffin for the Panthers’ season.

The Panthers notched the first two points in this one, not even 30 seconds in, but New Mission was relentless on the offensive glass, like they were all night, and came back to tie it at six. A putback by six-foot-one junior forward, Kevin Nunez (11 points), with under 50 seconds remaining in the quarter pushed the Titans ahead 14-13 at the end of the first.

The Panthers weren’t about to roll over just yet and captured their first lead in over three minutes at the 5:10 mark of the second quarter, after senior captain Nick Smith (14 points, two rebounds) knocked down two free-throws. Smiths’ makes would ignite a three-point barrage by senior guard Brenndan Rogers, who would hit a three to tie the game at 21. Tied at 24, Rogers would go on a 6-0 run of his own to give the Panthers their biggest lead of the night so far, 30-24. Though, a three-pointer by junior guard Alexander Delarosa put the Titans right back in this one heading into the half as they trailed, 30-27.

After hitting four three-pointers and scoring 16 points in the first half, the Titans were able to hold Rogers in check after the halftime break.

“We went cold, we couldn’t get anything off,” Rodgers said. “They started to face guard Brenndan. [He] was playing so well for us, and we still got some good looks for him, but I think that kind of changed the momentum a bit.”

Five points by senior captain Joshua Rice (13 points, three rebounds), contributed to a 10-3 Panthers run to start the third quarter as they led by their largest lead of the game at 40-31. But like the second, the Titans answered with a run of their own and a Delarosa bucket with under 20 seconds remaining cut his team’s deficit to two heading into the final eight minutes.

“We got the stops tonight, we just didn’t score the ball as well as we usually do,” Rodgers said in regard to the Titans’ third quarter run.

Tied at 45 with under 3:50 remaining, a two-point basket by junior guard Nikko Raftes would push the Titans ahead. Rice, who scored all eight of the Panthers’ fourth quarter points, notched it back up at the 2:46 mark. Following Cooper’s make, Delarosa would score four points in the final two minutes as his team held on.

The Titans hauled down 17 rebounds in their win.

“You’re not going to win many games when that happens,” Rodgers said.

Eight of the Panthers’ players, including their entire starting five, played their last game on the court for the Whitman-Hanson this season. Rdogers said that is a stat that hurts more than the loss.

“Those seniors are very special,” Rodgers said. “They’re very special to each other, they’re special to me, they’ve been special to this program. That to me, is honestly, the hardest part of the night. You knew there was going to become a time which you wouldn’t be able to coach them anymore. They’ve had an impact on this program that is bigger than I think any of them realize.”

Rodgers said he couldn’t even put into words as to what they’ve meant to this program as a whole.

“They’re character kids who do things the right way,” Rodgers explained. “They set a standard for how hard you have to work, the good decisions you have to make away from basketball and being unselfish. I told them, there are a lot of little kids from Whitman and Hanson that they’ve coached in the camps that we have, that will be back here in Boston because of them.”

WHITMAN — After a failed child abduction attempt on Lazel Street Friday, Whitman Police have asked for the public’s help in identifying the male who reportedly grabbed a 9-year-old girl in her front yard.

The girl’s grandmother, who talked to the Express on Sunday, was still visibly upset as she recalled the previous day’s events. Whitman police and the Express are not identifying the family name because of safety concerns.

Just after 4:15 p.m. Friday, when her two granddaughters and their friend — all elementary age — were playing outside in the driveway of the family’s Lazel Street home a man came and put his gloved hands over one girl’s mouth.

“She came in the house and said, ‘Nanny there was a man in the driveway, he was whispering something to me and he put his hand on my mouth and he unzipped my jacket,’” the woman said. “She said the man ran away when the other girls came towards the yard.”

The child didn’t hear what the white male whispered but she told police he jumped over a fence and ran when the other girls approached —perhaps startling him, according to police who released the following information:

The suspect is a white male, 5’10”, in his late 20s to early 30s, thin build, clean shaven, with acne on his face. He was wearing black stocking hat, brown jacket, blue jeans, black shoes, and black fingerless gloves.
“My granddaughter is very articulate and she described him in detail to police,” the woman said. “She was comfortable talking with the officer (School Resource Officer Kevin Harrington) who assured her that the school and her teachers would be aware of what happened.

“She had the presence of mind not to panic,” the grandmother continued. “She told the neighbor, her grandfather and the police were here in minutes.  She was calm Friday night and was still OK. We thought maybe she would have a tough night sleeping.  We clarified with her that this was in fact an event and she was very clear in recalling what happened.”

Whitman police sent out several community alerts regarding the description of the suspect immediately following the occurrence.  Whitman Police Department received several reports of persons matching the description of the suspect.  Each report was followed up and although the descriptions were close, the suspect was not identified, said police in a press release.

“After an extensive search by the K-9 teams, the suspect was not located.  Anyone with information regarding this incident should call the Whitman Police Department at 781-447-1212.  Detective Pete Aitken is the lead investigator for this incident.

Deputy Chief Timothy Hanlon said the department is also analyzing surveillance video from area businesses.