by VDC Staff
Barre City police executed a search warrant at a Branch Street residence Friday evening, seizing significant quantities of cocaine, methamphetamine, and LSD and arresting five people in connection with suspected drug sales from the apartment.
Officers from the Barre City Police Department, joined by Barre Town Police and the Vermont Department of Corrections, moved on the unit block of Branch Street at around 8:00 p.m. on May 23. When the search was complete, they had recovered approximately 34.9 grams of cocaine and crack cocaine, 2.4 grams of methamphetamine, 448.3 grams of suspected LSD, and a small amount of cash. The case is being handled by Cpl. Gaylord.
Five people face charges stemming from the raid. Jeffrey Morse, 39, of Barre, is the most seriously charged of the group, facing cocaine trafficking, possession of cocaine, possession of LSD, and possession of methamphetamine. He was held at the Northeast Correctional Center on $100,000 bail and was scheduled to appear in Washington Superior Court on Tuesday, May 26.
The two residents of the apartment — Christopher Jones, 50, and Jennifer Straight, 49, both of 19 Branch Street — were each cited on charges of cocaine possession and dispensing drugs from a dwelling. Both were released and directed to appear in Washington Superior Court on May 26 as well.
A fourth person, Victoria Stauff, 27, of Hardwick, was cited on possession charges for both cocaine and LSD. Her court date is set for July 2 in Washington Superior Court. Melody Fairbanks, 28, of Randolph, was the only other person taken into custody, though for a different reason: she was booked at the Chittenden County Correctional Center on an existing arrest warrant, held on $900 bail, and faces a separate citation for allegedly giving false information to police.