Hash Lab Allegedly Operating In Residential Middletown Area

MIDDLETOWN, RI—Steven W. Sousa, 27, of Middletown, has been charged with narcotics distribution in connection with a butane hash oil lab allegedly being run in a residential neighborhood. State police said Wednesday members of the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force and the Rhode Island National Guard 13th Civil Support Team raided 15 Woolsey Road on Nov. 1 at 7:15 a.m. and took him into custody. They also seized marijuana, hash oil, cash, lab equipment, packaging materials and drug paraphernalia.

The raid was based on a court-authorized search warrant. Sousa was charged with:

· Manufacture/Possession with Intent to Deliver- Marijuana; and
· Manufacture/Possession/Delivery of Schedule I- (Marijuana/BHO) 1-5 Kilos

He was to be arraigned in Newport District Court at 2 p.m. Police also seized

• 3 pounds of Marijuana
• 71 grams of Butane Hash Oil (BHO)
• Lab equipment to include 57 Butane canisters, pressure cooker, hot plate and glass tubes.
• $4, 125.00 in United States currency
• Packaging materials
• Scales, baggies and jars

The HIDTA Task Force is managed by the Rhode Island State Police and comprised of members from Pawtucket Police, West Warwick Police, Lincoln Police, Middletown Police, Adult Correctional Institution (ACI), Rhode Island National Guard, United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and the United States Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement-Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).