The Amherst Crime Lab will remain closed until police can test every piece of evidence Sonja Farak may have tampered.
Sonja Farak
The Amherst state crime lab will remain closed indefinitely after chemist Sonja Farak, 35, of Northampton, was arrested for allegedly tampering with evidence, officials said.
Farak was arrested Saturday night without incident at her home by state police. She is charged with two counts of tampering with evidence, one count of possession of a class A substance, heroin, and one count of possession of a class B substance, cocaine, and will be arraigned in Eastern Hampshire District court on Tuesday, said Attorney General Martha Coakley during a news conference in Boston Sunday.
State Police Superintendent Timothy Alben said the Amherst lab is temporarily closed and the three chemists and one supervisor working at the lab will be transferred to a lab in Sudbury.
“We are deeply disturbed by the allegations that a chemist at the Amherst Lab not only breached internal protocols, but also apparently engaged in criminal conduct,” said Northwestern District Attorney David E. Sullivan.
He said his office learned of the issue Friday, and after a local investigation with state police officials the matter was turned over to Coakley’s office.
“Our office has already commenced an internal assessment of how many criminal prosecutions, both past and present, may be jeopardized by this chemist’s alleged wrongdoing. If any cases are discovered in which the integrity of the drug evidence may have been compromised, we will take whatever steps are necessary to ensure that justice is done,” Sullivan said.
The Amherst Drug Laboratory is charged with storing and analyzing alleged controlled substances seized by local and state police. On Friday, members of the Amherst laboratory contacted state police to report a discrepancy in the controlled substance inventory held in evidence.
State police began an immediate investigation of the matter and concluded that Farak tampered with drug evidence at the lab. In one instance, it appeared she removed a substance from a case that had previously tested positive for cocaine and replaced it with a counterfeit substance that no longer tested positive, according to prosecutors.
“We allege that this chemist tampered with evidence, placing the integrity of that evidence in question,” said Coakley.
The matter is being investigated by the state police. It is being prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General Anne Kaczmarek and Criminal Bureau Chief John Verner of the state Attorney General’s Office.
Hampden County District Attorney Mark G. Mastroianni said all of the drug evidence collected by police officers in Springfield and surrounding communities was brought to the Amherst lab.
The case comes only a few months after former state chemist Annie Dookhan was indicted on 27 counts of allegedly mishandling and tainting drug evidence at a lab in Jamaica Plains in a scandal that has thrown thousands of criminal cases into question. Dookhan pleaded not guilty in Suffolk Superior Court on Dec. 20.
Mastroianni said investigators will examine cases handled by the Amherst lab to determine if other drug evidence was tainted.
“The amount of drug cases out of this district is significant and it could take weeks, maybe months, to thoroughly go through every case that may have been tampered with,” he said.
But Coakley said she is confident the effects of the Amherst case will be less widespread than those stemming from the Jamaica Plains incident.
“Unlike our allegations against Annie Dookhan, this did not involve dry labbing or falsification of tests,” she said. “On its face, the allegations against this chemist do not implicate the reliability of testing done or fairness to defendants.”
In a statement Sunday, the Massachusetts District Attorney’s Association agreed that a careful investigation of the cases Farak was involved with will have to be done, but said her actions may not have affected any cases.
“While at this point evidence indicates that the chemist stole already tested illegal drugs, the state’s District Attorneys will nonetheless undertake internal case reviews to determine which, if any, of their prosecutions involved Farak as a chemist, to assess the impact of her actions on any cases,” the association said a written statement.
The district attorneys will also work to share information with other affected agencies to ensure the rights of all defendants are protected, the statement said.
Mastroianni said his staff, along with local law enforcement and the attorney general’s office, will look for an alternate testing site.
“We take this very seriously. It is our responsibility to ensure the integrity of evidence and to make sure that every piece of evidence in that lab is properly tested,” he said.
Mastroianni said Farak was scheduled to be an expert witness in a case on Friday.
“I was informed literally minutes before she was to take the stand that this investigation was happening and we had to stop her from testifying,” he said.
Coakley said the investigation is continuing.
NORTHAMPTON- The Amherst state crime lab will remain closed indefinitely after chemist Sonja Farak, 35, of Northampton, was arrested for allegedly tampering with evidence, officials said.
Farak was arrested Saturday night without incident at her home by state police. She is charged with two counts of Tampering with Evidence, one count of Possession of a Class A Substance, heroin, and one count of Possession of a Class B Substance, cocaine, and will be arraigned in Eastern Hampshire District court on Tuesday, said Attorney General Martha Coakley during a news conference in Boston Sunday.
State Police Superintendent Timothy Alben said the Amherst lab is temporarily closed and the three chemists and one supervisor working at the lab will be transferred to a lab in Sudbury.
"We are deeply disturbed by the allegations that a chemist at the Amherst Lab not only breached internal protocols, but also apparently engaged in criminal conduct," said Northwestern District Attorney David E. Sullivan.
He said his office learned of the issue Jan. 18, and after a local investigation with state police officials the matter was turned over to Coakley's office.
"Our office has already commenced an internal assessment of how many criminal prosecutions, both past and present, may be jeopardized by this chemist’s alleged wrongdoing. If any cases are discovered in which the integrity of the drug evidence may have been compromised, we will take whatever steps are necessary to ensure that justice is done," Sullivan said.
The Amherst Drug Laboratory is charged with storing and analyzing alleged controlled substances seized by local and state police. On Friday, members of the Amherst laboratory contacted state police to report a discrepancy in the controlled substance inventory held in evidence.
State police began an immediate investigation of the matter and concluded that Farak tampered with drug evidence at the lab. In one instance, it appeared she removed a substance from a case that had previously tested positive for cocaine and replaced it with a counterfeit substance that no longer tested positive, according to prosecutors.
“We allege that this chemist tampered with evidence, placing the integrity of that evidence in question,” said Coakley.
The matter is being investigated by the state police. It is being prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General Anne Kaczmarek and Criminal Bureau Chief John Verner of the state Attorney General’s Office.
Hampden County District Attorney Mark G. Mastroianni said all of the drug evidence collected by police officers in Springfield and surrounding communities was brought to the Amherst lab.
The case comes only a few months after former state chemist Annie Dookhan was indicted on 27 counts of allegedly mishandling and tainting drug evidence at a lab in Jamaica Plains in a scandal that has thrown thousands of criminal cases into question. Dookhan pleaded not guilty in Suffolk Superior Court on Dec. 20.
Mastroianni said investigators will examine cases handled by the Amherst lab to determine if other drug evidence was tainted.
"The amount of drug cases out of this district is significant and it could take weeks, maybe months, to thoroughly go through every case that may have been tampered with," he said.
But Coakley said she is confident the effects of the Amherst case will be less widespread than those stemming from the Jamaica Plains incident.
“Unlike our allegations against Annie Dookhan, this did not involve dry labbing or falsification of tests," she said. "On its face, the allegations against this chemist do not implicate the reliability of testing done or fairness to defendants,”.
Mastroianni said his staff, along with local law enforcement and the attorney general's office, will look for an alternate testing site.
"We take this very seriously. It is our responsibility to ensure the integrity of evidence and to make sure that every piece of evidence in that lab is properly tested," he said.
Mastroianni said Farak was scheduled to be an expert witness in a case on Friday.
"I was informed literally minutes before she was to take the stand that this investigation was happening and we had to stop her from testifying," he said.
Farak is scheduled to be arraigned on the charges Tuesday. Coakley said the investigation is continuing.