BY GAYLA CAWLEY
LYNN — A Dorchester man and a Lynn woman were arrested following an alleged drug deal on Friday.
Officers said they observed a 34-year-old Lynn man and known heroin user inside Stop & Shop at the gift card exchange vending machine, selling gift cards, acting nervous, while looking around and sweating profusely. Heroin users are known to steal gift cards and exchange them for cash, purchasing drugs in return, according to the police report.
After watching the man, officers followed him when he got into a white Jeep Grand Cherokee, suspecting an impending heroin deal. After the vehicle turned right on Green Street, it pulled over. Police observed a woman, later identified as Katie Dyer-Garcia, 32, walk up to the window. The man then handed Dyer-Garcia something, the report said.
She walked down Green Street, turned left onto Violet Street, where she approached a vehicle and sat in the passenger seat. An officer, suspecting a drug deal, drove up to the vehicle and saw Dyer-Garcia hand something to the male driver, later identified as Hamlet Cruz Gonzalez, 35. In return, Cruz Gonzalez handed her something, police said.
An officer approached the pair and saw Dyer-Garcia drop something between the passenger seat and console. After asking about the hand-to-hand transaction, she told police that she owed Cruz Gonzalez money, according to the report.
Cruz Gonzalez was arrested for unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle and for not having a valid Massachusetts driver’s license. A search of the vehicle yielded two twist bags between the passenger seat and console where Dyer-Garcia had dropped something. One bag contained a brown substance, suspected to be heroin. The other contained a hard, white substance, believed to be crack cocaine, police said.
Dyer-Garcia was arrested and charged with heroin and cocaine possession. A further search of the driver’s side of the vehicle yielded a $50 bill, where Cruz Gonzalez had been observed dropping something. Paper documents were also found for prices for brown and white in the middle console. He was also charged with heroin and cocaine distribution. The drugs and cash were seized, according to the report.
Gayla Cawley can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @GaylaCawley.
