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Two Vermont residents are facing charges after 170 bags of heroin was discovered in the car they were traveling in.
(Massachusetts State Police )
BERNARDSTON, Ma - Two people from Vermont are facing charges after a traffic stop Wednesday morning led a Massachusetts State Trooper to discover 170 bags of heroin in their car.
25-year-old Samantha Poirier, of Brattleboro, and 20-year-old Zachary Rutledge were pulled over by a Massachusetts State Trooper just after midnight on Tuesday, as they traveled north along Route 91 in the area of Bernardston--a Franklin County town located near the state border.
The Trooper noted that the car had Vermont plates and that it was traveling with a defective light, according to police.
Poirier, who was driving the car, told the Trooper that she was not in possession of her driver's license. A background check further revealed that Poirier's right to drive in Massachusetts had been suspended, and she was initially arrested merely for driving with a suspended license.
However, Rutledge, the passenger of the vehicle, then apparently told the Trooper that he had a needle in his pocket.
Upon searching Rutledge, the Trooper discovered three syringes and several packets of heroin in his pocket.
A more thorough search of the vehicle revealed 170 bags of heroin and a box of empty bags--which police believed were being used for distribution of the drug.
Poirier is now charged with possession of heroin with intent to distribute, operating a vehicle with a suspended license, and a light violation.
She was taken into custody and brought to the State Police Barracks in Shelburne Falls for booking. She was later taken to the Greenfield House of Correction after she failed to make bail.
Rutledge was summonsed to court for the charge of heroin possession.
Both are due for arraignment in Greenfield District Court.