3 arrested after city sting
Suspects face various narcotics-related charges
WOONSOCKET — Three people were arrested Tuesday on narcoticsrelated charges after a long-term investigation by undercover officers from the Woonsocket Police Department.
Mark Frechette, 58, was charged with maintaining a common nuisance at his home, 78 Gilbert St., where all three of the suspects resided, according to police. Also arrested were Danielle Marie Bello, 42, who was charged with possession of cocaine, and Melissa M. Porter, 40, who was seized on a warrant for failure to appear in court for a hearing related to a prior drug convic- tion.
Police said they had the Gilbert Street residence under surveillance for six months and developed information indicating the property was either being used for narcotics or prostitution. They said Bello advertised in the Providence Escort section of the controversial web site Backpage, which has been tied to sex trafficking and prostitution by law enforcement in the past.
“During our surveillance, I have seen in-state and out-of-state vehicles pull in the lot at 78 Gilbert St.,” one detective said. “Some go in the residence for minutes and some go in for about an hour.”
But no one in the residence was charged with prostitution or any other sex-related offense.
On Tuesday, police said Bello got into a car with a male visitor and they decided to follow as the vehicle drove
away. In the parking lot of Stop & Shop in Park Square, police observed what they believed to be a drug transaction involving Bello and the occupants of a second vehicle that was parked outside the supermarket when she arrived.
Police continued following the original car after Bello got back in. The vehicle returned to the Gilbert Street house, at which point police announced themselves as it pulled into the driveway. Officers secured the occupants and initiated a search.
Police said they seized about 1.5 grams of cocaine in all, some of it under the driver’s seat and some that Bello had in her possession. The driver was not identified and there’s no indication from police reports that he was arrested.
Detectives later entered the apartment looking for Porter and Frechette, who allegedly struggled with a uniformed officer as police attempted to take him into custody. He was also charged with assault and resisting arrest.
Police said they found Porter hiding under a bed.