LAWRENCE, MASS. (WHDH) - A 49-year-old man is set to face a judge on Monday on drug charges stemming from the death of a man in Lawrence police custody, officials said.
Javier Garcia, 49, of 57 Brook St., Apt. 2, had been in custody himself at the Lawrence Police Department headquarters after being arrested this weekend for disorderly conduct. Garcia will now face an additional charge of Distribution of a Class A Substance in Lawrence District Court, Essex County District Attorney Paul F. Tucker and Lawrence Police Head of Department Michael McCarthy announced Sunday.
Garcia was charged as authorities continue to investigate the death of Christian Marte-Martinez, 25, of 45 Fern St., Lawrence. He died early Saturday while in custody for disorderly conduct and malicious destruction of property.
Marte-Martinez was placed into a cell at police headquarters at 1:15 a.m. Saturday. Garcia was being held in the same cell.
About 5 a.m. Saturday, police discovered Marte-Martinez unresponsive. They began CPR and other life-saving measures before he was transported to Lawrence General Hospital, where he was pronounced deceased.
The incident remains under investigation by the Essex County District Attorney’s Office State Police Detective Unit and detectives from the Lawrence Police Department.
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