HAVERHILL — On Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025, Haverhill Police Detective Joshua Boisvert and his partner, Detective David Steed, were working a shift funded through the state’s Municipal Public Safety Staffing Grant, a program that helps eligible municipalities cover police staffing shortfalls in order to enhance public safety. Both detectives were in plain clothes and in an unmarked cruiser.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narrative of Detective Joshua Boisvert for the incident and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
Detective Boisvert said that at approximately 7:47 p.m., he and Detective Steed were driving across the Comeau Bridge behind a silver Nissan Maxima with Massachusetts plates.
“When driving under the train bridge, I observed the vehicle’s driver’s side front and rear tires completely cross the double yellow line,” Det. Boisvert said. “I activated my cruiser’s emergency lights and sirens and conducted a motor vehicle stop at the corner of South Elm Street and Abbott Street.”
Detective Boisvert said that once the vehicle stopped, he observed the driver’s head bend down out of sight as if he was trying to conceal something.
“I then observed the passenger move from the passenger seat to the driver’s seat,” Det. Boisvert said. “The original operator was now seated in the passenger seat. Detective Steed and I approached the vehicle and immediately ordered both occupants out of the vehicle, placed them into handcuffs, and sat down on the curb.”
The female occupant, who was initially seated in the passenger seat, was identified as the vehicle’s registered owner, 19-year-old [first name redacted] Hernandez of Lawrence.
“Hernandez tried to claim that she was driving the vehicle; however, her shoes were on the passenger side of the vehicle, and she was already wearing a jacket, while she was sitting on another black puff jacket,” Det. Boisvert said. “I discovered later that the jacket belonged to the male operator.”
The male, who was originally the driver, was identified as Elliot Batista.
According to police, Elliot C. Batista, 18, is a resident of Haverhill, MA.
“Detective Steed approached the vehicle and observed several marijuana packaging materials that were labeled ‘Money Motion Magic,’” Det. Boisvert said.
Detective Boisvert said that a query of the FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) database in the mobile data terminal of his cruiser, revealed that Batista only had a Massachusetts ID (i.e., he did not have a valid driver’s license).
“At this time, both parties were advised of their Miranda rights from a card that I carry on my person,” Det. Boisvert said. “I asked Batista if there were any drugs inside the vehicle, and he said, ‘Just marijuana.’ It should be noted that Batista (18) and Hernandez (19) are both under the age of 21, which is the legal age to possess marijuana in Massachusetts. We subsequently searched a multicolored lunch box and observed a large amount of marijuana packaging similar to that which we observed in plain view.”
The detectives also searched a black backpack, which allegedly contained additional marijuana packaging materials.
Detective Boisvert said Batista’s jacket, which was located on the driver’s seat contained a social security card and Haverhill High School ID in the left pocket.
“Inside the right pocket was a Louis Vuitton wallet and a large amount of cash ($1,964.00, which was counted in booking),” Det. Boisvert said, adding that a scale and numerous vape pens were also located in the search.
“All suspected drugs and paraphernalia were seized and later logged into evidence,” Det. Boisvert said. “At this time, Batista was advised that he was being placed under arrest.”
Batista, who was already handcuffed, was searched incident to arrest and transported to the Haverhill Police Department by Officer Benjamin Torrence for booking.
Hernandez was released and sent from the area, Detective Boisvert said.
Back at the station, the suspected marijuana was weighed and determined to be approximately 9.704 ounces (or 275.10 grams).
Elliot C. Batista, 18, of Haverhill, was charged with the following:
- Possess to Distribute Class D Drug
- Unlicensed Operation of Motor Vehicle
- Marked Lanes Violation
On Nov. 19, 2025, Batista was arraigned in Haverhill District Court. Following his arraignment, he was released on $1,000 cash bail.
Batista then attended a pretrial hearing on Dec. 12, 2025, followed by a discovery compliance and election hearing on Feb. 5, 2026. On March 3, 2026, he attended a motion hearing in Haverhill District Court.
Batista’s next court date was another motion hearing scheduled for April 7, 2026.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story took place in November, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to obtain the court documents. FOIAs are time-consuming.
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