Lynn trio indicted for drugs, OUI, robbery

SALEM – Three Lynn men were indicted Friday afternoon on separate cases involving drunken driving, narcotics and unarmed robbery cases by an Essex County grand jury.Derek R. Koloski, 39, of 88 Eastern Ave., #2, charged with unarmed robbery in connection with the Feb. 5 holdup at Norm’s Variety Store on Eastern Avenue. It was just before 1:30 p.m., when a man wearing goggles and a green jacket, later identified as Koloski, walked into the store located at 423 Eastern Ave. and demanded cash from store clerk. Koloski reportedly grabbed an undisclosed amount of cash from the till and fled from the store on foot. Police immediately responding to the scene located Koloski a few minutes later on Harvest Street. Police indicated that Koloski was wearing the same items described by the store clerk when they arrested him. Assistant District Attorney Greg A. Friedholm is prosecuting the case.Jorge Soares, 35, of 15 Huss Court, #106, faces charges of operating a motor vehicle after suspension, subsequent offense, operating a motor vehicle with an alcohol blood level more than .08, fifth offense, and operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of drugs, fifth offense. The charges arise out of his arrest on the night of Dec. 27 when State Trooper Mark Blanchard pulled him over in a pick-up truck on the Lynnway for weaving and dragging a blue tarp, that apparently was suppose to cover a snow blower, on the back of his vehicle. After Soares reportedly failed several sobriety tests he was arrested. Authorities said his alcohol blood level was .20. Soares has prior drunken driving cases dating back to 1987. His most recent case was in 1995 and he reportedly still has an open drunken driving case out of Suffolk County. Assistant District Attorney Ashley Dole is assigned to prosecute the case for the state.Carlos Ruiz, 33, of 24 Surfside Road, #6, is charged with trafficking over 14 grams of cocaine stemming from his arrest in the early morning hours of May 5 when police went to his apartment on a report of a rowdy party and reportedly found cocaine. He faces a mandatory three-year prison term if convicted as charged. Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Kirshenbaum is the prosecuting attorney.Indictments are a legal process that allows a case to be transferred from District Court to Superior Court allowing for a more severe punishment. It is not an indication of guilt.