In a stringent crackdown on illegal narcotics and arms trade in New Bedford, the local police, alongside federal agents from the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), have succeeded in apprehending 26-year-old Benjamin Hunt, a Fall River man linked to unlawful sales activities conducted through a cloud-based app, identified by New Bedford Police Department's Det. Kevin Barbosa as the fulcrum of this investigation. In a coordinated effort, the suspect was arrested on Aug. 28th for charges encompassing the distribution of controlled substances and the transfer of machine guns; a shadow network unearthed from the digital haze to the solid bars of justice.
Through meticulous search warrants executed across New Bedford and Fall River, law enforcement agents uncovered a trove of contraband, including thousands of counterfeit pills laced with fentanyl and methamphetamine, 55 grams of suspected cocaine, along with an array of firearms such as three assault rifles, 39 "ghost gun" Glock-style pistols which lack traceable serial numbers, making them a ghostly presence in the landscape of violent crime, three rifle silencers, an array of machine gun conversion devices, and additional high-capacity magazines. The seizures did not end there but also yielded two 3D printers, insinuating a sophisticated operation capable of manufacturing these ghostly armaments in-house, a testament to the evolving dangers that law enforcement must navigate.
In connection with the case, Marcell Goncalves, another Fall River resident and alleged accomplice of Hunt, was arrested on July 7th, after being caught with a "ghost gun" that matched the inventory of firearms seized from Hunt's collection, revealing a spider-web of illicit trade that had sprawled into the city's underbelly. In a statement obtained by a Facebook post, Chief Paul Oliveira lauded, “I’m proud of Detective Kevin Barbosa’s diligence which led to the execution of these warrants which yielded such a substantial amount of contraband.” He further acknowledged the pivotal role of inter-agency collaboration in this multi-tiered crackdown.
Capt. Justin Kagan, the commanding officer of the narcotics and criminal investigation division of the New Bedford Police Department expressed his take on the meticulous investigation claiming “Det. Barbosa displayed skill and perseverance in taking down Mr. Hunt's enterprise of distributing guns, gun accessories, and fentanyl masquerading as Percocet pills into our community,” highlighting the pernicious blight these illegal activities have on local neighborhoods where the masquerade of drugs and untraceable firearms can unravel the fabric of safety and community at the seams.
