Police probe into robbery ends in drug bust, arrest
Kingston and Plymouth police investigating an OxyContin robbery made a major drug bust this week, arresting a man on charges of dealing heroin and possessing six sticks of dynamite.
Last Thursday, a man told the pharmacist at Tura's Pharmacy in Kingston that he had a gun and demanded OxyContin and Percocet, both potentially addictive prescription drugs. The man escaped in a vehicle, but was caught on a nearby business's video surveillance camera as he fled the scene, police said.
From the footage, Plymouth police identified the suspect as Robert Weeks, 19, of Plymouth. Weeks has a previous criminal record, authorities said. He was arrested Monday on charges of armed robbery and larceny of a controlled substance.
According to Kingston Police Chief Joseph Rebello, Weeks confessed to the robbery on Monday and told police the name of his accomplice. That evening, police arrested William Coon, 29, at his Brook Road home, where they confiscated heroin, marijuana, vials of steroids, some 80 hypodermic needles, an unlicensed 9-millimeter handgun that was cocked and loaded, and six sticks of dynamite.
The State Police bomb squad was called in to detonate the dynamite. Police said Coon has been uncooperative and will not say why he had the dynamite.
Police said Coon also possessed a small scale and many plastic baggies used to package drugs, leading police to charge him with distribution as well as possession. They could not place a street value on the drugs.
Coon faces charges of armed robbery, drug possession and distribution, and six counts of possession of an explosive device. Matthew Lagreca, 22, of Plymouth, who was at Coon's house when police arrived, was arrested and charged with possessing a hypodermic needle.
Although Weeks allegedly carried a pellet gun during the robbery, he still faces charges of armed robbery because he told the pharmacist he was carrying a gun.
The suspects were arraigned Tuesday in Plymouth District Court. They pleaded not guilty.
