ANDOVER — A local man, who once worked as a court officer, pleaded guilty to a federal charge of distributing oxycodone pills.
Eric Bevilacqua, 28, of 16 Balmoral St., #419, in Andover was arrested Oct. 7 and charged by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration with "knowingly and intentionally" distributing the highly addictive drug.
Before his arrest and during an incident on Sept. 17, Bevilacqua allowed DEA agents to search his house and admitted to obtaining and selling approximately 1,000 30-milligram oxycodone pills a week. Agents also found $40,000 in a safe in his bedroom.
After the search, DEA Special Agent Todd Prough filed a criminal complaint affidavit against Bevilacqua, which led to his arrest on Oct. 7.
He was released on Feb. 18 and returns to court for sentencing May 15, according to Christina DiIorio-Sterling, spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney's office.
Bevilacqua resigned as a Massachusetts Trial Court officer last November, a position he held since April 2006, said Mary Rafferty, a spokeswoman for the Massachusetts Trial Court.
The investigation into Bevilacqua began Sept. 16, when North Andover police officers, working with DEA agents, stopped a motor vehicle believed to be operated by an individual in possession of several hundred oxycodone pills, according to Prough's affidavit.
Police found and seized about 350 pills from the person, with the operator agreeing to become a cooperating witness. The report noted that the witness said he received the pills from Sean Boyd of 38 Winona Ave. in Haverhill earlier in the day and that Boyd was expecting to be paid approximately $5,700 by him the next day.
On the afternoon of Sept. 17, the witness met with Boyd in Haverhill to give him the money. After the meeting, which was observed by agents, they saw Bevilacqua meeting with Boyd at the same place the witness had met him.
Bevilacqua drove away after the meeting and the agents arrested Boyd, according to the affidavit. Boyd told agents he had obtained pills monthly from Bevilacqua since May 2009 and sold them to various customers on consignment.
Boyd also faces federal charges for knowingly and intentionally possessing and distributing the drug, according to court documents.
In addition, the witness said he obtained between 200 and 400 30-milligram oxycodone pills monthly from Boyd since March 2009.
