A Massachusetts lawmaker is raising questions after a 25 Investigates report revealed that the man at the center of a federal drug and gang case had been arrested and released just two weeks before an hours-long standoff with law enforcement in Lawrence.
“Why was this individual released? Why was he in the community? And why did he have the opportunity to provide such a threatening and dangerous situation that resulted in an hours-long standoff when law enforcement [responded]?” asked State Sen. Bruce Tarr (R-First Essex and Middlesex) in reaction to 25 Investigates’ reporting.
On Monday, Homeland Security and FBI agents surrounded a home on Roberta Lane in Lawrence. The target of the federal warrant was Luis Jose Nivar Cabral, who is suspected of trafficking fentanyl in northern Massachusetts and Maine. Authorities also say he is a suspected member of the notorious Trinitarios gang and is accused of participating in violent home invasions.
Cell phone video captured the tense scene as federal agents worked for hours to take Cabral into custody. But a federal complaint shows Cabral had already been in state custody just two weeks earlier. On August 31, Massachusetts State Police arrested him during a traffic stop in Lawrence on an active court warrant out of Lowell District Court.
Court records obtained and reviewed by 25 Investigates show Cabral had previously been held at the Middlesex House of Correction in Billerica, where he was accused of assaulting another inmate in May. That case was dismissed on August 13 under the Lavallee Rule, which requires cases to be dismissed if defendants are not assigned a public defender within 45 days. The Middlesex District Attorney’s Office re-filed the charges, leading to the August 31 arrest.
Records show Cabral was released just days later, on September 2, following a hearing before a bail clerk.
“It’s just very concerning that this individual had several interactions with law enforcement and with the courts, and yet despite those interactions was allowed to be in a position to put a neighborhood in a dangerous situation,” Tarr said.
Defense attorneys often argue that bail is designed to ensure defendants return to court—not to hold someone in custody. Tarr acknowledged that but argued the state also needs to expand the use of dangerousness hearings.
“That’s exactly right. That’s why we need dangerousness hearings... that look at the dangerousness that an individual poses—his or her threat to society,” he said.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Massachusetts Trial Court both declined to comment on the case.
Sen. Tarr has filed legislation—similar to a proposal from former Governor Charlie Baker that would expand the list of crimes eligible for dangerousness hearings during the bail process.
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