Whitman Police Department

Whitman Police Charge Man with Trafficking Heroin

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Whitman Police Department
Scott D. Benton, Chief of Police
20 Essex St
Whitman, MA 02382

For Immediate Release

Friday, Sept. 28, 2018

Contact: Benjamin Paulin
Phone: 781-742-3922
Email: [email protected]

Whitman Police Charge Man with Trafficking Heroin

Officers Seize 165 Grams of Heroin

WHITMAN — Chief Scott D. Benton reports that the Whitman Police Department arrested and charged a man with trafficking heroin after a motor vehicle stop Thursday night.

JEAN CARLOS BATISTA-ROSARIO, AGE 26, OF MATTAPAN was charged with:

  • Trafficking in Heroin
  • Drug Violation Near a School/Park
  • Possession to With Intent to Distribute Cocaine
  • Possession of a Class A Drug (Fentanyl)

At approximately 5 p.m., Whitman Police Officer Paul Young was driving an unmarked cruiser on School Street when he noticed a suspicious vehicle in the driveway of a home, with a man, later identified as BATISTA-ROSARIO, in the driver’s seat.

Officer Young stopped and observed a man, who is known to police, exit the residence and get inside of BATISTA-ROSARIO’S red Hyundai sedan. After observing what he believed to be a drug transaction, Officer Young called for backup and then began to follow the Hyundai as BATISTA-ROSARIO quickly drove away from the home.

The vehicle was stopped a short time later on nearby Park Avenue, near the intersection of Hayden Avenue.

BATISTA-ROSARIO, was detained and his vehicle was searched.

Officers located a hidden compartment, known as a “hide,” under the front passenger’s seat of the vehicle and inside the compartment was several small baggies of heroin.

Seized from the vehicle were 67 baggies of heroin weighing approximately 165 grams, five bags of crack cocaine weighing three grams, two blue pills containing fentanyl, two cell phones and $129 in cash.

BATISTA-ROSARIO was placed under arrest without further incident and taken to the Whitman Police Department to be booked.

BATISTA-ROSARIO is expected to be arraigned Friday at Brockton District Court.

“The horrendous impact of the nationwide opioid epidemic is well-documented, and the Whitman Police Department works very hard to support those suffering from addiction and their families,” Chief Benton said. “However, those who seek to profit from the suffering and misery of others — drug dealers — remain and shall remain a target of aggressive enforcement action aimed at shutting down their operations and holding them accountable for the considerable harm they cause in our communities. I would like to praise the diligent work of Officer Young, whose great police work resulted in this arrest.”

These are allegations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty.

 

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Whitman Police Arrest Four on Gun Charges

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Whitman Police Department
Scott D. Benton, Chief of Police
20 Essex St
Whitman, MA 02382

For Immediate Release

Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018

Contact: Benjamin Paulin
Phone: 781-742-3922
Email: [email protected]

Whitman Police Arrest Four on Gun Charges

WHITMAN — Chief Scott D. Benton reports that the Whitman Police Department arrested three men and a woman on Monday night and charged them with illegally possessing a gun during a traffic stop.

STEEVENS CHARLES, AGE 25, OF BROCKTON, BERNADIN FRANCOIS, AGE 23, OF DORCHESTER, SEBASTIEN GASSANT, AGE 23, OF MATTAPAN and NAILAH SANON, AGE 19, OF DORCHESTER were each arrested and charged with:

  • Carrying a Loaded Firearm Without a License
  • Possession of Ammunition Without a FID Card
  • Carrying a Firearm Without a License
  • Felony Possession of a Firearm With a Defaced Serial Number
  • Attempt to Commit a Crime

The four were arraigned today in Brockton District Court and were ordered to be held without bail pending a dangerousness hearing on Friday.

At approximately 10:15 p.m. on Monday, Whitman Police received a 911 call reporting that a group of four people were seen in the area of Central Street carrying guns, wearing masks and wearing dark clothing.

Officers responded to Central Street where they located a vehicle parked on the side of the road with four people inside, later identified as CHARLES, FRANCOIS, GASSANT and SANON.

In speaking with FRANCOIS, who was in the driver’s seat, he told police that he was an Uber driver. FRANCOIS could not tell the officers where he was going or what he was doing parked on Central Street.

While speaking with the individuals in the car FRANCOIS shifted in his seat, allegedly revealing the barrel of a rifle tucked between the seat and the center console.

FRANCOIS, CHARLES, GASSANT and SANON were immediately ordered to show their hands and the officers called for backup. Officers from Hanson, East Bridgewater and the Plymouth County Bureau of Criminal Investigation, who were all in the area of Central Street, responded and helped to place the four suspects in custody without further incident.

In searching the vehicle, officers allegedly found and seized a Highpoint 9mm short barrel rifle loaded with 10 rounds of ammunition. They also confiscated a black BB gun pistol, a rubber mask and a black ski mask as evidence. The rifle was found to have had its serial number scraped off.

Through the subsequent investigation, a witness told police that he saw the four suspects walk to the back stairway of a home carrying the guns and wearing masks prior to police arriving.

“I want to thank our law enforcement partners from the other communities who responded to provide assistance in backing up our officers,” Chief Benton said. “This was excellent police work that resulted in the apprehension of individuals that posed a great threat to public safety and the citizens of Whitman.”

These are allegations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty.

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Whitman Police Now Active on Online Crime Mapping Website

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Whitman Police Department
Scott D. Benton, Chief of Police
20 Essex St
Whitman, MA 02382

For Immediate Release

Tuesday, Aug. 7, 2018

Contact: Benjamin Paulin
Phone: 781-742-3922
Email: [email protected]

Whitman Police Now Active on Online Crime Mapping Website

WHITMAN — Chief Scott D. Benton is pleased to announce that Whitman residents can now access a website that maps crime in town and helps keep people up-to-date on what is occurring in their neighborhood. 

CrimeMapping.com features an interactive map of Whitman that allows users to select approximate locations where crimes in town occurred.

Several types of crimes are displayed as icons on the map including burglaries, larcenies, assaults, fraud and motor vehicle thefts. Each crime listed has its own symbol. For example, a larceny event is displayed as a dollar sign and vandalism is shown as a spray paint can.

Clicking on an icon reveals the date, time, incident number and block that the crime occurred on, along with a brief description. Exact addresses are not listed.

While the Whitman Police Department responds to thousands of calls each year, the Crime Mapping website will only display calls that involve a crime. The only type of crime that will not be displayed on the map are sex crimes, as revealing their locations could be harmful to the victims.

Crimes are searchable through a date range and the database is updated daily by pulling information directly from the Whitman Police Department’s records management system. This ensures that the information that is available is accurate and up-to-date.

In addition, users can set up alerts so that they are notified of a new crime event being listed on the site either by text or email. The website also organizes the collected data by the types of crime and days of the week they occurred, and can go back as far as 180 days.

“We believe this map is a great way for residents to stay informed of what is going on in their neighborhood. If there is an uptick in crime in their area, residents can take extra precautions to protect themselves and their belongings,” Chief Benton said. “I would like to thank Josh MacNeil, the town’s IT Director, for his efforts in helping to bring this resource to our community.”

The website features a link to the town’s anonymous online email tip service which Chief Benton encourages residents to use. However, people should always call 911 if they have an emergency.

More information can be found on the town’s website, along with a direct link to the Whitman Crime Mapping site.

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Whitman Police Participating in Seat Belt Safety Awareness Campaign

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Whitman Police Department
Scott D. Benton, Chief of Police
20 Essex St
Whitman, MA 02382

For Immediate Release

Tuesday, June 19, 2018

Contact: Benjamin Paulin
Phone: 781-742-3922
Email: [email protected]

Whitman Police Participating in Seat Belt Safety Awareness Campaign

WHITMAN — Chief Scott D. Benton would like to announce that the Whitman Police Department is participating in a public safety campaign to remind residents to buckle up when they are behind the wheel or passengers in a vehicle.

On Tuesday, a GMC pickup truck with front-end damage was placed in a parking lot at 1153 Bedford Street, Route 18.

A crash test dummy hangs out of the broken windshield of the truck and large white square stickers were affixed to the hood and doors that read, “Don’t break mom’s heart. Buckle up.”

A placard beside the vehicle reads “Seat Belts Save Lives. Buckle Up.”

The public safety campaign is part of an ongoing effort by AAA and the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security to encourage people to use their seat belts.

“Every year people needlessly die or are seriously injured in motor vehicle crashes all because they didn’t buckle their seat belts,” Chief Benton said. “It takes two seconds to buckle up and it has been proven to save lives.”

According to the state’s annual seat belt observation study, Massachusetts has one of the lowest seat belt use rates in the country at 74 percent, well below the national average of 90 percent.

Fifty-nine percent of the 242 people killed in motor vehicle crashes on Massachusetts roads in 2016 were unrestrained, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

Seat belts saved an estimated 115 lives in Massachusetts in 2016, according to the NHTSA, and an additional 45 deaths could have been prevented if seat belt usage was at 100 percent.

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