Leicester man arrested for possessing crack, attaching plates, driving with revoked license after traffic stop in Oxford

OXFORD – On Wednesday, August 26, 2026, at approximately 12:20 a.m., Oxford Police Officer Jeffrey White was on patrol, exiting the Cumberland Farms at 235 Main Street when he observed a gray Hyundai with Connecticut plates parked at one of the gas pumps.

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

Officer White said he recognized the vehicle because Corporal Alexander Shadis pulled it over on June 30, 2026, after the vehicle left a known drug house located at 698 Main Street.

Officer White said he then queried the vehicle’s registration through the Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) database using the mobile data terminal in his cruiser.

“CJIS showed that the registration plates belonged on a maroon Chevrolet,” Officer White said. “I watched as a female…entered the passenger’s seat.”

Officer White stated that the Hyundai had been facing Main Street when its operator turned the vehicle around and exited onto Fairlawn Avenue.

“I pulled out behind the vehicle and confirmed I had the correct registration. The vehicle then turned left onto June Street and then left onto Clover Street,” Officer White said. “The vehicle then indicated it was turning left onto Main Street, and I activated the cruiser’s emergency blue lights and conducted a motor vehicle stop.”

Officer White said that instead of pulling over, the vehicle turned left into the driveway of 217 Main Street.

“I found it suspicious that the vehicle took the route it had and chose not to exit Cumberland Farms onto Main Street,” Officer White said. “Taking Main Street would have been quicker, less distance, and would have had no stop signs.”

Officer White added that he could see Cumberland Farms from the driveway where the vehicle stopped.

“I approached the driver’s door, informed the operator he was being audio and video recorded and requested to see his license and registration,” Officer White said. “The male operator told me he didn’t have his license. I asked him if he had an active driver’s license. He told me he did not but he was going to be able to get it back. He identified himself by his name and DOB [date of birth] as Christopher Shaughnessy.”

According to police, Christopher T. Shaughnessy, 52, is a resident of Leicester, MA.

“I returned to my cruiser and queried his information through CJIS,” Officer White said. “CJIS showed that his license was revoked on January 10, 2026, for being a habitual traffic offender. Dispatch confirmed the status.”

According to Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 90, Section 22F, a driver is considered a habitual traffic offender (HBO) after accumulating three major moving violations or 12 major and/or minor moving violations within five years. The designation carries a four-year suspension or revocation of the driver’s learner’s permit, license or right to operate.

“When I looked back at the vehicle, Mr. Shaughnessy was on his phone speaking with someone,” Officer White said.

Officer White said he then requested that an additional officer respond to the scene to assist.

“I returned to the vehicle, opened the door, had Mr. Shaughnessy exit and I placed him in handcuffs, behind his back, checked for tightness and double locked them,” Officer White said. “I had explained to Mr. Shaughnessy that I had seen the vehicle at a house in town associated with the use of drugs. He told me that if I was looking for drugs, I wouldn’t find any on him. I searched him then placed him in the prisoner compartment of my cruiser.”

At around this time, Officer Mark Harris arrived at the scene.

“Officer Harris was on the passenger’s side of the vehicle when he looked inside, over at the driver’s door handle and saw a plastic baggie,” Officer White said. “He pointed it out to me and I picked it up. On top of the baggie were three $20 bills, which Mr. Shaughnessy stated were his. I picked up the baggie and saw that there were multiple coins in it.”

In the driver’s side door handle area, Officer White said he also observed a receipt that had been folded in half multiple times.

“I immediately identified that packaging as how drug dealers and users transport illegal drugs. I learned this in the multiple police academies I have attended as well as in advanced drug classes I attended over the course of my ten-year career,” Officer White said. “I unfolded the receipt and inside I found small white crystal rocks which I believed to be crack cocaine. I seized the receipt with the suspected crack and placed it in an evidence bag inside my cruiser.”

Officer White said Shaughnessy’s female passenger was allowed to exit the vehicle, which had pulled over in the driveway of her residence, and go into her house.  

“A male party…exited the house and began to assist with removing the license plates from the vehicle,” Officer White said. “[The male party] was a passenger in the vehicle during Corporal Shadis’ motor vehicle stop on June 30, 2026.”

Officer Harris then transferred Shaughnessy into his cruiser and transported him to the Oxford Police Department where he was booked, photographed and read his Miranda rights, Officer White said.

“Mr. Shaughnessy stated he did not want to speak with me about the incident,” Officer White said. “Mr. Shaughnessy stated that the vehicle was his roommate’s…who the registration plates belonged to.”

Officer White then called Shaughnessy’s roommate who said the plates were his but he didn’t have a gray Hyundai.

“Dispatch ran the vehicle information by its VIN [number] through Massachusetts and Connecticut, but could not find anything,” Officer White said. “Without having a definite answer of who’s vehicle it was, Arnie’s Towing was requested to retrieve the vehicle.”

To determine whether the vehicle contained additional drugs, Officer White asked dispatch to contact the Webster Police Department to see if its drug detection K9 officer was available. Dispatch advised that the K9 officer was available and would respond shortly.

“Webster Police K-9 handler Officer Thomas Motyka arrived at our location shortly thereafter,” Officer White said. “He ran the dog through the interior and exterior of the vehicle. The dog hit on a plastic bag located in the back seat. After the dog was done, we looked in and around the bag and saw a small white flake on the seat. It was unknown if it was also cocaine because I was unable to properly collect it and send it out for testing.”

After Officer Motyka left, Officer White seized the Connecticut license plates, photographed the vehicle, and completed a tow inventory using a department form.

“Arnie’s Towing then arrived and transported the vehicle to their property,” Officer White said. “Mr. Shaughnessy was informed that someone could pick up the vehicle if they brought proper documentation showing they were the rightful owners.”

Shaughnessy’s bail was set at personal recognizance.

“Мг. Shaughnessy was subsequently bailed, and his property was returned to him. Prior to leaving, he told me that I was ruining his life and he had never had a drug charge,” Officer White said. Adding, “I told him I could have worked with him, but he refused to speak with me. A look at his Board of Probation report (BOP) showed he had been charged numerous times for drug offenses.”

Officer White weighed the suspected crack cocaine and recorded its weight as 0.49 grams. He photographed it, removed it from the paper receipt and placed it in a plastic evidence bag. He then gave the bag to Sergeant Mead, the evidence room supervisor, who secured it in the evidence room, before it was sent to the UMass Worcester Drug Lab for testing.

Shaughnessy was arraigned in Dudley District Court on Aug. 26, 2026. Following his arraignment, where he pleaded not guilty, Shaughnessy was released on personal recognizance under the condition that he not operate a motor vehicle unless properly licensed.

Shaughnessy’s next court date is a pretrial hearing scheduled for Oct. 6, 2026.

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

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