LEOMINSTER — At about 12:37 p.m., on Saturday, Oct. 14, Officer James McKenna of the Leominster Police Department was dispatched to the Whitney Carriage Apartments at 124 Water Street, after a resident called in to report an intoxicated man in the back parking lot.
(The account and quotations in this article were taken from the printed Personnel Narrative of Officer James McKenna.)
Dispatch advised Officer McKenna that the man was “entering and exiting his vehicle and shadow boxing.” The man’s vehicle was a blue sedan parked near the water on the Whitney Street side of the apartment complex.
“I arrived and discovered a blue Toyota sedan bearing MA [number redacted] parked in the described location,” Officer McKenna said. “I was briefly approached by a female who stated she called. She stated the male’s behavior was erratic and was scaring her children. I approached the driver’s side of the vehicle and discovered Zachary Angelini in the driver’s seat actively punching the steering wheel and yelling very loudly. The windows were rolled up and his screams could be audibly heard through the closed doors and windows.”
Angelini, 32, of 35 Fairmount Pl, Leominster, is a construction worker for A.F. Amorello & Sons Inc.
Officer McKenna knocked on the window of the vehicle and, in a conversational tone, asked Angelini if he would step out of the car and speak with him.
Angelini exited the vehicle. He was shirtless and sweat was dripping off his face, despite the mild weather. (It was 60 degrees and overcast that day).
“The cadence of his speech was fast and exaggerated,” Officer McKenna noted. “His eyes were jerky.”
When Officer McKenna asked what was going on, Angelini said he had just woken up and was “extremely energetic.”
“I find it to be paradoxical as he exhibited no signs of drowsiness consistent with waking,” Officer McKenna said. “Zachary also explained that he was blowing off some steam from a recent argument with his girlfriend. Based off my observations I did believe it to be obvious that Zachary was under the influence or had recently ingested some form of stimulant. I specifically asked Zachary if he had smoked crack which he denied. Zachary denied using any drugs or alcohol.”
Angelini told officer McKenna that he didn’t live in the apartment complex, but simply found it to be a nice place to park and enjoy the scenery.
“While I was engaging Zachary with conversation, Officer [Dennis] Hatstat arrived and visually inspected the passenger side of Zachary’s vehicle,” Officer McKenna said. “Officer Hatstat saw burnt foil and an item that appeared to be a rock of crack cocaine.”
Officer McKenna then went over to the passenger side of the vehicle where he saw charred foil, and in between the “glycine seal” and the packaging of a pack of cigarettes, he saw an off-colored rock of crack cocaine.
“At this time, I formed the opinion that probable cause existed that there were fruits, evidence and instrumentalities of crimes defined in MGL C. 94C.,” Officer McKenna said. (Massachusetts General Law Chapter 94C is the Controlled Substances Act. Cocaine/crack is a Class B substance in Massachusetts.) https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleXV/Chapter94C
“I discovered the doors were locked. I ordered Zachary, who apparently locked his doors after he exited his vehicle, to hand me his vehicle keys. Zachary objected and stated that the police do not have consent to search his vehicle and refused to hand over his keys,” Officer McKenna said. “I explained to Zachary that consent to search his vehicle is not required and I am searching his vehicle on the probable cause I formed. Zachary stood up on the balls of his feet and clenched his fist. I told him that if he does that again he will be placed in handcuffs. Officer Hatstat advised Zachary he was under arrest for possession of a Class B substance. Zachary threw his keys on the ground. Zachary was placed in handcuffs.”
Officer McKenna took Angelini’s keys from the ground, opened his car and inspected the crack rock in the pack of cigarettes.
“It is an off white-brown color that breaks when depressed by the pressure of a finger,” Officer McKenna explained. “Given the manner in which it was stored coupled with its texture and placement, I believe this to be a Class B substance.”
Angelini was transported to the Leominster Police Department for booking by Officer Matthew DiPerri, while Officer McKenna remained on scene to continue searching the vehicle.
Under the driver’s seat, Officer McKenna found another crack rock similar in appearance to the one found in the cigarette pack. In addition, Officer Hatstat found a letter in the vehicle that was addressed to “4’z.”
“The letter discussed the delivery of bricks of fentanyl and black tar heroin addressed to ‘4’z.’” Officer McKenna said. “I believe the ‘Z’ is associated with the Z in Zachary.”
In the trunk of the vehicle, Officer McKenna found two plastic containers that “smelled of raw marijuana” inside a black backpack.
In the containers, the officer found two packages of THC gummies and over two ounces of marijuana. The backpack also contained an ‘AWS’ scale covered in bit of marijuana. (Marijuana is a Class D drug).
“I believe the quantity of the marijuana coupled with a scale in the same container is consistent with the distribution of marijuana,” Officer McKenna said.
Angelini was charged with Possession of a Class B Drug (Subsequent Offense), Possess with Intent to Distribute a Class D Drug, Disorderly Conduct (Subsequent Offense), and Disturbing the Peace.
Angelini’s bail was set at $140.
He was arraigned in Leominster District Court on October 16.
On November 20, Angelini attended a pretrial hearing. The hearing was continued to Nov. 27.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story was from October, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to get the court documents for the incident. FOIAs are time consuming.
