Drug Charges to be Dropped Due to Braintree Police Evidence Issues

BRAINTREE, MA — Charges in another case are expected to be dismissed due to the mishandling of evidence by the Braintree Police Department.

Eber J. Soto-Gomez of Randolph is scheduled to appear in Quincy District Court Monday for an arraignment hearing. He faces drug trafficking and assault and battery charges for a case out of Randolph but he's expected to have charges against him from a 2010 Braintree case dropped while he's in court.

Soto-Gomez has been in default on on a Braintree drug trafficking case for several years, according to the Norfolk County District Attorney's office. That case will be dropped when he is arraigned.

Soto-Gomez was arrested following a 2010 raid at a home in Braintree. The Patriot Ledger reports that police allegedly seized 12 ounces of cocaine, about an ounce of heroin, and $22,000 in cash. He was one of six people arrested in the raid.

The Norfolk District Attorney's office is reviewing hundreds of cases to see if they involved tainted evidence. The most recent case is the 11th to be dismissed due to the mishandling of evidence by the Braintree Police Department.