Police in Bow arrested a man and a woman early Friday morning and said they seized several guns, a knife, and possibly drugs after searching their home.

Bow police say they executed a search warrant at 3 Branch Londonderry Turnpike West after arresting Paul Lacourse, 51, and Michelle Milbury, 30, about 3:30 a.m. Friday.

Lacourse and Milbury are each facing two counts of criminal threatening with a deadly weapon and were arraigned in Merrimack County Superior Court on Friday. Both entered pleas of not guilty.

Lacourse and Milbury are accused of using a gun and a knife, respectively, to threaten two other individuals who were visiting the home. Lacourse and Milbury both live in the home with Lacourse’s elderly mother.

Assistant Merrimack County Attorney Ashlie Hooper also filed two alternative counts of misdemeanor criminal threatening against Lacourse because it is not yet clear whether the gun he allegedly brandished was real.

“I filed some alternative theory complaints in this case as misdemeanors because it is unclear whether the gun used in this case was in fact a real firearm or if it just appeared to be a real firearm,” she told the court. “That is unclear at this time.”

Defense attorney Ted Barnes, representing Lacourse, questioned the two victims’ credibility, arguing that they offered conflicting descriptions to police of the size and color of the knife Milbury allegedly threatened them with. He said the two visitors were there to retrieve items from a storage trailer they kept on the property.

Barnes also seized on the issue of whether or not the gun was real.

“There’s no gun,” he said. “The state says, ‘Well, gee. We don’t know if it’s a real gun or not.’ Lots of luck with that.”

Milbury, who was released on personal recognizance, did not have an attorney at her arraignment. She requested a public defender but one was not available Friday, the clerk told her as the arraignment began. The court entered a not guilty plea on her behalf.

The court ordered Milbury and Lacourse to not contact each other or the two alleged victims pending their hearings. If Lacourse is released on bail, Milbury would have to find a new place to live, the judge said. Both defendants are not allowed to leave the state, possess weapons or ammunition, or consume drugs or alcohol.

Police released a photo on Facebook of the items they seized, which appeared to include eight guns, some loose ammunition, a knife, and prescription drugs, though Bow Public Information Officer Tyler Coady said the alleged drugs need to be tested.

“We are still processing the evidence and handling all that comes with it,” Coady wrote in an email. “The drugs that were taken need to be sent to the state lab for testing.”

Lacourse has a case pending in Rockingham County Superior Court on drug charges stemming from a traffic stop arrest where he was allegedly found in possession of crystal meth. Hooper said he has missed four court appearances in that case.

In August 2016, Lacourse was convicted in Merrimack County Superior Court of felony sale of controlled drugs, Hooper said. He was sentenced to 12 months in jail with 11 months suspended for five years.

Bow police arrested four people at the same residence in November 2017. LaCourse was charged with possession of a controlled drug and being a felon in possession of a deadly weapon, according to a Monitor report that day.

 

(Nick Stoico can be reached at 369-3321, nstoico@cmonitor.com or on Twitter @NickStoico.)]]>