Salem Police Make Drug Arrest After Cellphone Traffic Stop

A Massachusetts man was arrested last night on drug charges after an officer reportedly saw him violating New Hampshire’s new hands-free electronic device law, according to a report.

Alex Ramos, 25, of Chelsea, MA, was arrested on July 1, 2015, and charged with possession of a controlled drug and transporting drugs in a motor vehicle. He was also given a warning on the hands-free violation.

Editor’s note: This post was derived from information supplied by the Salem 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 report from Lt. Joel P. Dolan of the Salem Police Department, at around 10:50 p.m., an officer on South Broadway reportedly saw a man driving a black Honda CR-V while speaking on his cellphone.

The officer pulled the vehicle over to “educate the operator in reference to the new hands free law that had taken effect at midnight on July 1,” according to Dolan.

“As he approached the vehicle he detected a strong and obvious odor of marijuana billowing from the passenger compartment,” Dolan stated. “As (the officer) inquired about the odor, the operator subsequently handed over a glass pipe that had recently been packed with marijuana along with a large bag also containing a quantity of marijuana.”

Ramos was then arrested. He’s due in Salem District Court on Aug. 10.

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