Alleged Teen Heroin Dealer Arrested in Concord

A local teen was arrested last month on drug sale charges after allegedly selling heroin and suboxone to a detective.

Mason E. Gatanti, 17, of 21 West St. in Concord, was arrested at 5:09 p.m. on June 10, 2015, on four felony sale of controlled drugs charges and a warrant out of Manchester District Court for nonappearance in court, $1,500 cash bond, on a control drugs: acts prohibited felony charge.

Editor’s note: This post was derived from information supplied by the Concord Police Department. It does not indicate a conviction. Click this link to find out how to get a name removed from a New Hampshire Patch police report.

According to a court affidavit and arrest report, detectives in the drug enforcement unit have, for several months this year, been tracking alleged heroin and fentanyl sales by residents and occupants of a building on Greenwood Avenue, including cooperating individuals.

On May 13, one of those cooperating individuals reportedly arranged for the purchase of a gram of heroin, allegedly from Rebecca Machado, 17, of the reported address, Gatanti‘s girlfriend at the time. The detective provided the individual with $100 to make the purchase and then drove the person to an area around the home.

“X met with Gatanti,” the affidavit alleged. “X handed Gatanti $100 and Gatanti completed the sale by handing X a folder piece of paper contained a substance represented to be heroin. Prior to my returning to my vehicle, X was observed leaving the 11 Greenwood Avenue address with Gatanti. During that time, I was able to positively identify Gatanti through a Concord Police booking photograph.”

The cooperating individual came back to the detective’s vehicle, handed him the substance, and drove the individual away from the area.

Two days later, another gram was allegedly purchased in this manner only this time, the cooperating individual was reportedly told by Machado to go to the parking garage stairwell of the Firehouse Block Garage and wait, according to the affidavit. A few minutes later, Gatanti allegedly entered the garage and met with the cooperating individual for another alleged heroin sale.

“X also advised that Gatanti offered to sell X a suboxone strip for $20,” the report alleged. “I provided X with $20 at which time X returned to Gatanti and completed the second transaction.”

Four days after that, on May 19, another transaction for heroin, this time, $120, at the garage, was allegedly arranged and complete with Gatanti, according to the affidavit.

A warrant was taken out for Gatanti’s arrest on June 3.

About a week, an officer was in the area of West Street to check and see if Gatanti was in the area. The officer knocked on the door of the home and a man answered the door and reportedly stated that Gatanti was not home. The officer told the man that Gatanti was just seen exiting his Jeep that was parked across the street.

The officer spoke with the man “for some time” about why police were there to arrest him. The officer requested a consent search and was denied by the man who stated again that Gatanti was not at the apartment.

Another officer in the rear of the building area allegedly observed Gatanti attempting to exit through a rear window. As he was allegedly spotted, “it appeared Gatanti had a change of heart, and shortly thereafter appeared at the top of the front steps near my location.”

Gatanti declined the services of a bail commissioner and was arrested.

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