Feds Look to Seize Massachusetts Motel Over Drug Trafficking

Despite more drug arrests at nearby properties

TEWKSBURY—In 2005, it was home to a meth lab. It's been the site of numerous drug busts, including one, referenced in a 2009 affidavit, where police reported seizing 190 baggies of heroin.

The Motel Caswell is now the subject of a high-profile federal forfeiture trial. The government is working to take the property, which it claims facilitates drug trafficking.

A review of Police Department arrest logs from 2007 through 2012 shows that despite a relatively high number of drug arrests at the Motel Caswell property in recent years, more suspects have been busted on drug-related charges at nearby addresses.

During the examined six-year time period, police made 19 drug arrests at the Motel Caswell at 450 Main St., five fewer than at the property where Walmart is located at 333 Main St. Twenty-six drug arrests were made at each of the properties located at 85 Main St. and 95 Main St.