Police Alerted to Suspicious Person, Leads to 51 Pounds of Pot

WORCESTER, MA — After two residents complained of a suspicious man in the area, police not only made an arrest for disturbing the peace, but for possessing more than 50 pounds of marijuana.

Police on Wednesday, April 27, responded to the area of 487 Granite St. to check on a vacant house. Two residents approached the officers to complain that a suspicious man had been in their yard. Another said that he had yelled out to the man to leave the property, but he became vulgar and threatened him.

Officers searched a wooded area near Route 20, and could hear someone in the woods, finding a man crouching behind two suitcases. One of those suitcases was open, and he was "manipulating the contents."

An officer yelled at the man to show his hands, and when he wouldn't, he displayed a taser, after which the man showed his hands. Yelling loudly at the officer, his reported belligerence and actions caused traffic on Route 20 to reduce to a slow crawl.

Mark Gentile, 55, 493 Granite St., Worcester, was arrested and charged with Disturbing the Peace and Trespassing.

The officers asked Gentile if he owned the suitcases and he stated that he did not, and he had been searched before put into WPD's patrol wagon, and found several pieces of marijuana that fell out of his pockets.

Officers searched the new-looking suitcases, which smelled like marijuana. They found multiple individual wrapped bags of marijuana inside, as well as inside a duffel bag.

The total amount of recovered marijuana was approximately 51 pounds. Gentile was additionally charged with Trafficking in Class D Substance between 50-99 pounds.

Gentile will be arraigned at the Worcester County District Courthouse on Thursday, April 28.

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