Report of two people sleeping in vehicle in CT leads to discovery of narcotics, two arrests

Two people sleeping in a vehicle in Norwich last week were arrested when police reportedly found several types of drugs in the car and discovered that one of the suspects was wanted for robbery.

The Norwich Police Department said Officer Matthew Goddu responded to the report of two people sleeping in a vehicle last Wednesday in a side parking lot at 287 Main St. at 10:30 a.m. and identified the occupants as 24-year-old Thomas Gunning, Jr. and 28-year-old Katelyn Michaud, the latter of whom was found to have a warrant out for her arrest for first-degree robbery stemming from an investigation by Connecticut State Police Troop C in Tolland.

Michaud was held on $100,000 bond following her arrest, Norwich police said. While she was being taken into custody, police said Goddu noticed multiple green wax folds on the passenger seat and in the passenger door pocket, according to police.

Goddu then used his K-9 partner, Carlton, for a drug detection sniff of the vehicle. The K-9 alerted the officer to a handbag that reportedly contained 99 wax folds of alleged fentanyl, a plastic bag with about 2.04 grams more of alleged fentanyl, a plastic bag with about 4.26 grams of methamphetamine, a piece of tin foil containing two blue rock-like substances alleged to be crack cocaine, five more wax folds containing alleged fentanyl, a digital scale, a cell phone and $1,108, police said.

Gunning was arrested and faces two counts of sale of narcotics and four counts of possession of a controlled substance, according to Judicial Branch records. He is free on a $10,000 non-surety bond and is expected to appear in Norwich Superior Court next Thursday.