Summary
The Laconia Police Department concluded an 11-month investigation into illegal firearms and narcotics trafficking at 24 Beaman Street, resulting in two arrests and the condemnation of the residence by city code and the fire department.
LACONIA, N.H. — The Laconia Police Department said it concluded an 11-month investigation into illegal firearms and narcotics trafficking at 24 Beaman Street, resulting in two people being taken into custody and the property being condemned for safety violations.
Chief Steve Canfield, speaking at the Laconia Police Commission meeting on Aug. 20, said the operation culminated in early-morning search and arrest warrants executed Wednesday with assistance from two separate SWAT teams. "We conducted the search and arrest warrants yesterday morning early yesterday morning, with the assistance of 2 separate SWAT teams," Canfield said. He said two people were taken into custody; one suspect was charged "with 10 counts of being a felony in possession of firearms as well as narcotics trafficking," while a second suspect was arrested on resisting arrest charges and multiple bench warrants.
The chief said detectives led the investigation in partnership with the attorney general's drug task force, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Safe Streets Task Force, the Stratford County SWAT team and members of the Guilford Police Department. Canfield said the operation was "very involved" and described it as "a really large operation" that he credited to the detective unit and regional partners.
As a result of the operation, Canfield said, "the residence was condemned by city code and the fire department for safety violations. So they will not be returned into that residence at all." He added that he believed the action improved conditions in the neighborhood.
Discussion only: Commission minutes and agenda materials show no formal motion by the commission related to prosecution or condemnation during the meeting. The arrests and the condemnation were described as results of investigative and code-enforcement actions; Canfield identified law-enforcement and fire-code partners but did not cite a specific ordinance number during his remarks.
The department did not provide additional details at the meeting about court dates, the identities of the arrested individuals beyond charges, or the timeline for any civil code-enforcement process related to the condemned property.
What’s next: The investigation and related criminal filings will proceed through the county and state prosecutorial systems; the police did not list any follow-up actions for the commission during the meeting.
