SHREWSBURY — On Monday, March 24, 2025, at around 7:28 p.m., Shrewsbury Police Officers Matthew Mattero and Brandon Bourette were patrolling South Quinsigamond Avenue when they observed a black Chevy Silverado traveling along the same road.
A check of the license plate revealed it was registered to a different vehicle, and the registered owner did not possess a valid driver’s license, the Shrewsbury Police Department announced in a statement.
The officers conducted a traffic stop in the Burger King parking lot at the intersection of North Quinsigamond Avenue and Boston Turnpike.
Photo Credit: Shrewsbury Police Department
During the roadside investigation, officers determined that the driver did not have a valid license and the passenger had an active arrest warrant. While taking the passenger into custody, they located a bag containing 82 grams of fentanyl hidden in his sweatshirt pocket. A subsequent search of the vehicle uncovered a bag with 3 grams of cocaine, 32 buprenorphine pills, a small quantity of fentanyl, and a single .32 caliber bullet.
Jerry Diaz, 32, of Orlando, Florida, the passenger, was taken into custody on an outstanding warrant issued by Fitchburg District Court. He was additionally charged with Trafficking a Class A Substance (Fentanyl).
Josmel Mercedes, 34, of Fitchburg, Massachusetts, the driver, was arrested and charged with the following offenses: Possession of a Class A Substance (Fentanyl), Possession of a Class B Substance (Cocaine), Possession of a Class B Substance (Buprenorphine), Possession of Ammunition Without an FID Card, Unlicensed Operation of a Motor Vehicle, Attaching Plates to a Motor Vehicle, and Operating an Unregistered Motor Vehicle.
