Attorney General Gordon J. MacDonald and Lebanon Police Chief Richard Mello announce that a joint investigation by the New Hampshire Attorney General's Drug Task Force and the Lebanon Police Department resulted in the arrest of Manuel Castro, age 35, of Newark, New Jersey on December 19, 2017.

Detectives from the Drug Task Force, acting on a tip, observed a car in which Mr. Castro was a passenger in a parking lot on Heater Road in Lebanon. Uniformed officers from the Lebanon Police Department stopped the vehicle and made contact with Mr. Castro. It was learned during the investigation that Mr. Castro was carrying 50 bags of heroin in his body. The heroin was subsequently recovered.

Mr. Castro was arrested and held on $5,000.00 cash bail at the Grafton County House of Corrections. His arraignment is scheduled for today at 1:30 p.m. at the Grafton County Superior Court.

The charges and allegations are merely accusations and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.