Overdose response in Charlton leads to search warrant, seizure of AK-47, sawed-off shotgun, and fentanyl

CHARLTON — On Monday, October 6, 2025, members of the Charlton fire and police departments were dispatched to a residence on Smith Road following a report of an unresponsive man found facedown in the living room.

(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narrative of Officer Eric McNeeley and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)

Officer McNeeley said the reporting party, Dustin Chamberland, “was able to identify the unresponsive male as John Gilchrist,” adding that he resides at the Smith Road residence where first responders were dispatched.

“Officers are familiar with Gilchrist from numerous previous calls at this address,” Officer McNeeley said.

According to police, John A. Gilchrist, 34, is a resident of Smith Road in Charlton, MA.

“Upon the arrival of Sergeant Tim Smith, Officer Timothy Bullock, Officer Erich Wenc, and Lieutenant Anthony Gribbons, Gilchrist was found on his living room floor still unresponsive,” Officer McNeeley said. “CPR was initiated and Narcan was administered to Gilchrist, officers were able to get a pulse and labored breathing. The Charlton Fire Department arrived at this time and assumed responsibility for medical care; however, Gilchrist was unable to breathe on his own or maintain any sustainable signs of life during this time without intervention from the police or fire department paramedics.”

Officer McNeeley reported that while on scene, Lieutenant Gribbons and Officer Bullock noticed an unsecured shotgun in plain view, leaning against the wall of the kitchen.

“Sergeant Smith took the shotgun and found it was loaded with one round of buckshot and four slug shotgun shells of ammunition,” Officer McNeeley said. “Sergeant Smith cleared the shotgun to make it safe. While clearing the shotgun, Lieutenant Gribbons and Sergeant Smith both noticed that the barrel had been sawed off (unclean saw marks), making the shotgun shorter.”

Officer McNeeley said Lieutenant Gribbons, who is familiar with the make and model of the shotgun, observed that the markings were consistent with Winchester firearms and that the barrel did not appear to be in factory-manufactured condition, leading him to believe it had been cut to approximately 16 inches.

“Lieutenant Gribbons then directed Officer Wenc and I to conduct a protective sweep of the house for any other potential overdose victims, as Gilchrist is known by officers to allow multiple different guests, many of whom are drug users, to frequent his residence,” Officer McNeeley said. “While searching for other possible victims, I saw in plain view on the bathroom counter a glass jar half full of a white powdery substance that, through my training and experience along with the experience of other officers on scene, was believed contain a substance that was consistent with narcotics. I further observed an ice cream scoop with white powder residue, as well as a spoon and Brillo pad (Chore Boy) in the bathroom, which I am familiar with from my training and experience as being commonly used by drug users to ingest various narcotics.”

Officer McNeeley reported that he also observed several empty, clear plastic bags throughout the bathroom and in the top-floor bedroom, which he said were consistent with baggies commonly used by drug dealers to package, transport, and sell narcotics.

“Officer Wenc and I then completed the protective sweep at the direction of Lieutenant Gribbons, reporting that we did not find any additional people present, or victims in need of assistance,” Officer McNeeley said. “Gilchrist, who was still unresponsive, could not speak with officers before he was brought by ambulance to the hospital for advanced-level medical care. (Officer Wenc accompanied Mr. Gilchrist to the hospital and remained with him based on his deteriorating condition).”

Officer McNeeley reported that the reporting party, Chamberland, remained on scene, spoke with Officer Bullock, and was later searched due to police observing a firearm and Chamberland’s close proximity to it.

“As a result of this search, a small glass bottle containing a light blue powdery substance was located on his person, and a substance similar in color and consistency was observed around the opening of his left nostril,” Officer McNeeley said. “Chamberland informed officers present, on camera, that he came to visit Gilchrist when Gilchrist offered him some of the blue powder substance to snort. Chamberland, feeling peer pressured by Gilchrist to use the narcotic, put a little bit of the powder on his hand stating at various times that he snorted the powder, then stated that he smeared it on his nostril to appear like he had snorted the powder.”

Officer McNeeley reported that Chamberland told police that Gilchrist went to the second floor of the residence and returned to the first floor a short time later before lying down on the couch.

“After a brief time, Chamberland noticed that Gilchrist was unresponsive and turning blue,” Officer McNeeley said. “Chamberland reported that he then called for emergency services and began CPR on Gilchrist until emergency services arrived. Officer McNeeley reported that Chamberland told Officer Bullock he was removing the vial from the home and did not want to report it to police because he did not want Gilchrist to get in trouble for possessing it.”

Officer McNeeley said that when asked what he believed the blue powder was, Chamberland said he did not know but stated it was possibly crushed opiate pills.

“With this, Chamberland knowingly and willfully impeded officers’ investigation by attempting to remove the narcotics from the residence, and by not informing officers of the narcotics when officers arrived on scene and when I directly asked Chamberland if he noticed any narcotics near Gilchrist,” Officer McNeeley said. “If Chamberland had been honest with officers instead of lying, he could have assisted the emergency medical technicians with treating Gilchrist and keeping others present safe. It should be noted that Chamberland’s version of events changed multiple times while speaking with officers and that his demeanor and information changed several times.”

At this time, Officer Gribbons told Officer McNeeley that he was going to restrict access to the residence by posting an officer at the only unlocked door and requested that McNeeley return to the station to begin a search warrant application because the call had transitioned from a medical call to a criminal investigation.

“Upon my return to the station, I conducted a check through CJIS [the FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) database], that showed John Gilchrist does not have a license to carry a firearm or a FID card,” Officer McNeeley said. “A check of his Board of Probation file shows that in July of 2024, Gilchrist was charged with possession of a firearm without a permit, possession of ammunition without a FID card, and defacing a firearm serial number. Also in July 2024, Gilchrist was charged with possession of a Class B substance and possession with intent to distribute Class A, B, C, and E substances. All cases listed above are still open as of October 8, 2025. In reviewing his BOP file, I further determined that he would be statutorily prohibited from possessing a firearm or obtaining a Massachusetts License to Carry.”

Officer McNeeley noted that Gilchrist also has a prior guilty finding in a drug-related case in New Hampshire. In addition, on Aug. 1, 2024, a storage unit rented by Gilchrist at an Extra Space Storage facility in Oxford was the subject of a search warrant executed by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Inside the storage unit, investigators located multiple firearms, ammunition, and narcotics.

Officer McNeeley added that Gilchrist lives alone at the Smith Road residence, as far as officers know, though other individuals have been at the residence during prior calls. He added that Gilchrist was believed to have a girlfriend, who was often present and previously lived there, but was not at the residence on this occasion.

“Gilchrist previously notified this department, during a call for service, that [his girlfriend] had moved out and changed her address as of September 13, 2025,” Officer McNeeley said. “Gilchrist does not have a license to carry firearms or a FID card and is prohibited from possessing firearms, based on his lack of a license to do so, and would be precluded by statute from possessing firearms based on his criminal record.”

Officer McNeeley’s application for a search warrant was authorized at 8:37 p.m. on Oct. 6, 2025, by Assistant Clerk Magistrate Tiffany Cabrera, the on-call clerk magistrate for after-hours search warrants.

“This warrant authorized the Charlton Police and law enforcement partners (Western Worcester, Southern Worcester Task Force and Massachusetts State Police Investigators) to search XX Smith Road for the following, firearms, ammunition, narcotics, and any items to be used in the illegal possession, use and/or distribution of narcotics,” Officer McNeeley said. “This warrant also authorized members of the Massachusetts State Police Crime Scene Services to participate in the execution of the warrant and be present to photograph the interior of the home, document any evidence, and assist in the processing of any evidence related to the search of the home.”

After the warrant was issued, Massachusetts State Police detectives, members of the Massachusetts State Police Crime Scene unit, Southbridge police detectives, a Leicester detective, and Charlton detectives and officers executed the search warrant at Gilchrist’s Smith Road residence.

“Following the investigation at XX Smith Road, it was learned that the AK-47 style rifle was reported stolen in Largo Florida in April 2004,” Officer McNeeley said. “This was supported through an NCIC [National Crime Information Center] hit and the subsequent confirmation process. The value of the rifle at the time of theft was listed as $428.00. As part of this investigation, I requested the associated reports from Largo police and requested that the ATF investigate any particulars on this firearm and the other firearms that were seized during the execution of the search warrant at XX Smith Road, so as to confirm the ownership and transfer history of these firearms in furtherance of my investigation.”

The firearms and suspected narcotics seized during the execution of the search warrant were submitted to the Massachusetts State Police Crime Laboratory for ballistics and narcotics analysis.

Gilchrist was arraigned in Dudley District Court on Nov. 19, 2025. During Gilchrist’s arraignment, the Commonwealth filed a motion for pretrial detention based on dangerousness, and the court held a dangerousness hearing. Gilchrist was found dangerous and held without bail.  

Gilchrist’s next court appearance was a probable cause hearing on Dec. 4, 2025, which was continued to Jan. 28, 2026.

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Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the arrest in this story took place in October, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to obtain the court documents. FOIAs are time-consuming.

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