Boy Leads Cops to 11 Grams of Cocaine in Hotel Room: Report

MANCHESTER, NH — A Queen City man was arrested after police allegedly found drugs in his hotel room after being sent to check on the welfare of a child, according to a press statement. Ernest Jones, 41, of Manchester, was arrested on Feb. 8, 2017, possession of a controlled drug, reckless conduct, and a warrant.

Editor’s Note: This post was derived from information supplied by Manchester Police Department. It does not indicate a conviction. This link explains the name removal request process for NH Patch police reports.

Police were sent to the Best Western on South Willow Street on Wednesday afternoon for a report of a child possibly left unsupervised in one of the hotel rooms, according to a report. The officers spoke with an employee at the hotel who alleged that she saw the man and woman leave the room without the boy.

“She was concerned because the young child was not with them,” according to Lt. Brian O’Keefe of the Manchester Police Department. “She brought the officers to the third floor room so the officers could check condition of the child.”

The officers knocked at the door and a 7-year-old boy greeted them and stated that his mother and her friend had just left the room. The boy “appeared to be in good health, was talkative and showed no signs of distress,” but while checking the room for an adult, an officer allegedly found “a small amount of white powder on the night stand next to the master bed (that) was arranged in small lines and had a straw next to it. He also located a small container with a larger amount of white powder inside," according to O'Keefe.

The powder allegedly tested positive for cocaine and weighed more than 11 grams.

The boy provided police with his mother’s name and cellphone number so the adults could be called. When they did return, officers allegedly determined the cocaine belonged to Jones. He had an active warrant out of Concord District Court on a driving after suspension charge, so he was arrested. A reckless conduct charge was adding for reportedly leaving the drugs near an unsupervised child.

The boy’s mother – who lives in Massachusetts – took custody of her child and both state and local juvenile officials were notified about the case.

Jones was released on $8,000 cash bail and is due in court on March 17.

Jones, according to reports on Concord NH Patch, was arrested in April 2014, for driving after revocation or suspension, suspended registration, and a bench warrant, after an officer on Loudon Road ran a plate on a Mercedes and found that Jones, had an active warrant out of Franklin District Court for nonpayment of fines on a DWI charge. A year later, in April 2015, he was arrested on North State Street for driving after revocation or suspension after allegedly speeding – 44 in a 30 zone. He lost his license in May 2014, according to police.