15 Pounds of Marijuana Seized with Help of Canines

A Southington man is facing various drug charges in connection with the seizure of 15 pounds of marijuana with a street value in excess $15,000, that had been shipped through UPS, police said earlier this week.

Sean Hutton, 29, of 200 East St. in Southington, will appear in court later this month to answer drug charges in connection with the month-long investigation into packages that were delivered to UPS stores in Milford and Stratford, police said.

Investigators from the Milford Police Department Tactical Unit - along with members of the State Police Narcotics Task Force, Stratford Police Department and U.S Postal Inspection Service - found a box containing five pounds of marijuana had been delivered to the UPS Store at 167 Cherry St. in Milford on March 4, according to Milford police. The package consisted of five separate vacuum-sealed plastic bags, police said.

Detectives discovered that the mailbox account in the Milford UPS store had been created by Hutton and that the fictitious company registered to the box would receive a parcel approximately once every two weeks from California, according to police.

Further investigation revealed that Hutton had also opened an account at the UPS Store at 7365 Main St. in Stratford, under the same pretenses as the Milford UPS store, police said.

According to a police incident report, investigators received information on March 29 that a package was delivered to the Stratford UPS Store which was consistent with the package seized at the Milford UPS Store, according to police.

Kilmer, a Milford Police Department Drug Detection canine, was used to identify the package as containing marijuana, police said.

Representatives from the involved agencies conducted surveillance at that location over three days, according to police.

On April 1, police said investigators saw Hutton leave the Stratford UPS Store carrying the suspected package. Hutton was taken into custody without incident, according to the Milford Police Department. Officers also found another box inside Hutton’s vehicle which allegedly contained approximately five pounds of marijuana, police said.

A drug detection canine team from the Bridgeport Police Department helped identify that package of marijuana. The package was was consistent with the other two packages seized by investigators, according to police.

Hutton was charged with possession of marijuana and possession of marijuana with intent to sell, according to police. He was released after posting a $250,000 bond and is scheduled to appear in court April 19, according to court documents.