Peabody man charged with drug trafficking

By Sean Teehan, Town Correspondent

Peabody police arrested a man on drug distribution charges yesterday following an investigation that began at the end of April.

Andrew Curda, 43, of Walnut Street was taken into custody after he allegedly sold cocaine to undercover police three times, a Peabody Police Department statement said. He was also charged with four counts of a school zone violation, one count of trafficking cocaine in the amount of 66 grams --a $7,000 street value -- one count of possessing oxycodone, and one count of possessing hydrocodone, according to the statement

The investigation into Curda's alleged illegal activities was expedited by tips from anonymous Peabody residents via the department's Tip411 website, the statement said.

"This information helped detectives to piece together the operation in a quicker than normal fashion," the statement said. "Investigations of this type normally take an average of six to 12 weeks to gather enough intelligence and evidence to proceed."

Officials from the Beverly, Everett, and Ipswich police departments as well as Massachusetts State Police and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms assisted in the arrest, the statement said.

Curda is scheduled to be arraigned in Peabody District Court today, the statement said.