WEBSTER — On Wednesday, March 5, 2025, at approximately 1:00 p.m., Officer Bruce Hamm of the Webster Police Department executed a search at Mr. Exotix, “a retail snack shop,” at 106R Main Street.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Statement of Facts of Officer Hamm and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
“The search warrant was the result of a several-months long investigation into the unlawful distribution of marijuana and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) products out of the business,” Officer Hamm said. “Mr. Exotix is not licensed to distribute such products in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.”
Officer Hamm said that over the course of the investigation, several purchases of marijuana and suspected THC products, including vape cartridges and other cannabis items, were made from the business. He added that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) assisted the Webster Police Department during the investigation and execution of the search warrant.
“As officers entered the Mr. Exotix business on March 5, all officers loudly announced, ‘Police! Search warrant!’ multiple times prior to and during entry, while simultaneously knocking on the storefront windows,” Officer Hamm said.
As police entered the building, two men were found inside.
“These two parties were subsequently identified as Mr. Gabriel Blandino and Mr. Jeffrey Salley,” Officer Ham said. “Both parties attempted to prevent officers’ contact with them by standing behind and holding shut a glass door. Officers eventually breached the door, and handcuffed and searched both parties in accordance with the authorities granted in the search warrant.”
According to police, Gabriel A. Blandino, 30, is a resident of 250 Bedford Park, Bronx, NY. (The information for Salley was not obtained in the FOIA request News Link Live received for the incident).
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Police searched the business and located the following:
- Numerous packages of suspected marijuana, packaged for individual sale
- Numerous packages of suspected psilocybin gummies and other products packaged for individual sale
- Numerous packages of suspected (labeled) THC vape cartridges and gummies, packaged for individual sale
- One .32 caliber firearm (unsecured)
- Approximately six rounds of firearm ammunition (unsecured)
- One “stun gun”
- Numerous digital scales
- Documents, legers, and other electronics related to illicit drug sales
“The firearm was discovered in a bedroom-type area, collocated with documents and artifacts belonging to Mr. Blandino,” Officer Hamm said. “Neither Mr. Blandino nor Mr. Salley have a License to Carry a firearm in Massachusetts. During the search warrant, four officers sustained injuries due to the aggression of Mr. Blandino and Mr. Salley and the presence of two dogs inside the business. Three of these officers were transported by Webster EMS for medical care.”
Blandino was arrested and charged with the following:
- Possess Firearm Without FID Card
- Possess Ammunition Without FID Card
- Possess to Distribute Class D Drug
- Possess to Distribute Class C Drug (Tetrahydrocannabinol)
- Possess Class E Drug (Cyclobenzaprine)
- Sell/Possess Electric Stun Gun
- Improper Storage of a Firearm
- Ammunition Unattended
- Conspiracy to Violate Drug Law
Blandino’s bail was set at $7,500.
He was arraigned in Dudley District Court on March 6, 2025.
Blandino attended a pretrial hearing on April 4, 2025.
His next court date is scheduled for June 6, 2025.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story was from March, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to get the court documents for the incident. FOIAs are time consuming.
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