Two Arraigned on Drug Possession Charges in North Adams
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Two people were arraigned in Northern Berkshire District Court on Monday in connection to alleged trespassing and trafficking cocaine and crack cocaine from a March 22 incident.
Kayla Stojda, 31, address unknown, and Joseph Mathews, 25, of Adams were both charged with trafficking in cocaine, 200 grams or more, and trespassing after notice.
The commonwealth requested Stojda be held on $100,000 bail. The court imposed $2,500 bail. Additionally Stojda had bail recorded on underlying cases.
The court imposed $200,000 bail without prejudice for Matthews, who had bail revoked on underlying trafficking charges.
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts police officers were performing routine checks of the college campus on at about 9:19 p.m. on March 22 when they say they observed unusual activity at 228 East Main St. (a private property next to a building belonging to MCLA).
Police identified themselves to an individual (later identified as Mathews) in the building's vestibule and informed him that he was trespassing on private property. Mathews refused to leave the building, according to police. MCLA officers then requested assistance from the North Adams Police Department.
Campus and city police officers entered the building at approximately 9:31 p.m. and took Mathews into custody. He seemed agitated and was not cooperating with police directions, according to police, and attempted multiple times to lead officers away from the building claiming his girlfriend was outside and that they were supposed to meet up.
Additional police officers on the scene returned to the vestibule where Mathews was originally spotted, located Stojda and brought her into custody without incident. Stojda was carrying a backpack on her shoulder but claimed it was not hers. When officers lifted up the bag they said they felt many small rock-like objects in the bag's bottom. Officers opened the bag and saw a large quantity of cocaine and crack cocaine.
Along with those items, Mathews and Stojda had approximately 1,029 grams of cocaine/crack cocaine in their possession, according to the police report. This has a street value of approximately $61,740 to $102,900.
