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Court docs shed further light on former Healey aide charged with cocaine trafficking
LaMar Cook served as deputy director of Healey’s Western Massachusetts office but was fired in light of his arrest.
Several kilograms of suspected cocaine that were allegedly intercepted en route to one of Gov. Maura Healey’s former aides bore the word “GOLD” — a clue potentially connecting the packages to a drug cartel, authorities said.
A newly available Massachusetts State Police report sheds further light on LaMar Cook’s arrest Tuesday on charges of cocaine trafficking, firearms offenses, and driving without a license. Cook, 45, of Springfield, served as deputy director of Healey’s Western Massachusetts office but was fired this week in light of his arrest.
He has pleaded not guilty and remains in custody pending a dangerousness hearing Friday. His lawyer did not respond to a request for comment.
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According to court documents, federal officials seized two suspicious packages in Kentucky on Oct. 8 and found approximately 12 kilograms of cocaine bound for Hotel UMass in Amherst, where Cook previously worked. The next day, police made a “controlled delivery” to the hotel, though a staff member who appeared to be a manager discussed sending the packages back to the loading dock, “as they could not locate the individual they were supposed to be delivered to,” the police report explains.
Several of the kilos of suspected cocaine were reportedly emblazoned with the word “GOLD,” and court documents note that drug cartels “will commonly imprint or mark their kilograms of narcotics in order to link it to their particular brand.” However, local investigators hadn’t seen the “GOLD” logo before.
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No one came to pick the parcels up from Hotel UMass, though authorities later discovered Cook was caught on surveillance footage retrieving packages at the hotel on other occasions, police alleged.
On Oct. 24, federal officials in Kentucky flagged another suspicious package that allegedly contained about 7,800 grams of suspected cocaine. Again, several of the kilos were reportedly imprinted with the word “GOLD.”
Police said the parcel was addressed to the governor’s office at the Springfield State Office Building on Dwight Street. A State Police trooper went undercover as a delivery driver, and some of the suspected cocaine was repackaged for a controlled delivery the following day.
When Cook came to retrieve the package and said he’d bring it up to the office, the undercover trooper signaled for backup and authorities detained him.
Cook allegedly told police packages and mail are routinely delivered to the governor’s Springfield outpost and kept there until “folks come to get them, or they are sent to Boston,” per court documents. But according to the police report, a security guard told investigators he’d never seen Cook pick up packages as part of his regular duties.
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Police ultimately released Cook at the scene pending further investigation. When sifting through his trash days later, however, investigators purportedly found an “unusual” amount of discarded food, according to the court filing. Believing Cook might have cleaned out his refrigerator in preparation for leaving the area, they sought an arrest warrant.
“The estimated street value of the suspected cocaine seized is hundreds of thousands of dollars,” the police report states. “Investigators believe that COOK could potentially be a flight risk due to the amount of money that was lost due to the law enforcements seizure of the suspected cocaine.”
A Healey spokesperson said Wednesday Cook’s alleged conduct is “unacceptable and represents a major breach of the public trust.”
“This criminal investigation is ongoing, and our administration will work with law enforcement to assist them in their work,” the spokesperson added.
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