The U.S. Attorney’s Office has filed federal drug charges against a Penacook man in connection with a motor vehicle stop last month in Tilton.
Bryan Franklin, 39, is charged with unlawful possession of fentanyl and methamphetamine with intent to distribute. He is being held without bail pending trial in U.S. District Court in Concord.
Police say they found 750 grams of fentanyl, nearly 17 grams of methamphetamine, assorted prescription pills, $14,958 in cash, hypodermic needles, digital sales, a semi-automatic handgun, an ax and a knife in a Toyota Tundra owned by Franklin. Tilton police seized the pickup truck and an Acura on the afternoon of Sept. 24 following a motor vehicle stop on Laconia Road.
According to court documents, Franklin had an additional $9,000 in cash in his pants pocket at the time.
Tilton police Officer Jeremiah Trott first stopped the Acura on Laconia Road after observing a fake New Hampshire inspection sticker taped to its windshield. Franklin told Trott he had just purchased the vehicle, but that the bill of sale was in his pickup truck, according to an affidavit.
Trott knew the registered owner of the Acura based on prior narcotics investigations, and, in his own mind, questioned whether the man had pawned the vehicle for drugs or if Franklin had taken it for unpaid debt, the affidavit says.
During Trott’s initial interaction with Franklin, the Toyota Tundra drove by and pulled over in front of the Acura. The pickup truck’s driver, Cre Clay, 21, of Nashua, told Trott she was Franklin’s girlfriend. Franklin, though, identified her as his girlfriend’s friend and said she had dropped him off to get the Acura.
Trott said the Acura was in poor condition and unfit to be on the road. He issued Franklin a motor vehicle violation and said the vehicle would be towed.
During a preliminary inventory of the vehicle, Trott reported finding multiple needles, cut plastic baggies, drug paraphernalia, as well as a shoulder holster and ammunition for a handgun. Franklin denied ownership of the items, saying they belonged to the car’s prior owner, according to the affidavit.
Franklin gave police consent to search the pickup truck, but Trott ultimately decided to seize the vehicle and apply for a search warrant. Laconia’s district court Judge James Carroll authorized search warrants for both vehicles Sept. 26.
The drugs were sent to the state crime lab for analysis, which found them to be methamphetamine and fentanyl. Tilton police had initially reported a major heroin bust in the days after the incident. Fentanyl and heroin look the same to the naked eye, however fentanyl is an opioid 50 times more powerful than heroin.
No additional court dates have been scheduled in Franklin’s case.
(Alyssa Dandrea can be reached at 369-3319, adandrea@cmonitor.com or on Twitter @_ADandrea.)