“Boycott This Store!!”: Worcester Gas Station In Drug Controversy

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

J. T. Carstensen, GoLocalWorcester Contributor

SRK Mart Gas in Worcester with several drug-related products on display in plain site.

A Worcester resident is calling for a boycott of SRK Mart Gas, accusing the Cambridge St. station of openly selling drug paraphernalia.

Sam Rosario, the owner of a local construction company, called for action after going public with photos he had taken at the gas station’s walk-up window, which displayed unmarked baggies containing glass vials and scouring pads. All of these items are scotch-taped to the front window at eye level, which Rosario describes as “crack pipes, heroine [sic] bags” and “coke spoons.” Beneath a separate photo of the gas station itself, posted on Rosario’s Facebook profile, a caption reads “Boycott this store!!”

Naturally, the products aren’t blatantly labeled as drug paraphernalia. In fact, except for prices, they aren’t labeled at all. But Rosario knows better.

“A 2x2 Ziploc bag?” he asked sarcastically. “Yeah, I’m going to put my daughter’s sandwich in that.”

A Fairly Common Trend

Seemingly random items such as tube socks and shoe laces are not entirely uncommon sights in gas stations in some areas, items which can be used by addicts for smoking crack or inhaling chemical vapors.

Instead, it’s the seeming brazenness with which the station displays its wares that makes it “personal” for Rosario, who calls the station “a thorn in the city’s side.”

When contacted, Taun To, a longtime employee of SRK Mart Gas, claims emphatically that the gas station is not doing anything illegal, adding that no one has complained, “except for one man.”

To, who also goes by “Tony,” also claims to not know what buyers are using the glass vials and canisters are for. “Maybe they are using them for vitamins.” And whatever they’re for, To points out that “all the gas stations around here sell them.”

William Breault, of the city’s Main South Public Safety Alliance, does not refute this fact. However, he too is no stranger to on-going controversy surrounding the South Worcester gas station. In 2010, Breault held a press conference, flanked by current and former state lawmakers, in the parking lot of SRK, in attempt to stem the sale of synthetic marijuana at the station. He pointed out that the sale of items like those seen in Rosario’s photos – at SRK and other gas stations in the area – is “nothing new.”

Not a New Problem for Worcester

In fact, drug-related crime has been an ongoing problem for the city of roughly 180,000. A 2012 poll placed Worcester in the top 100 on a list of the most dangerous cities in the U.S. (at #91), and the most dangerous in the central part of the state. Drugs, specifically, have been a problem for “10 years, 15 years,” according to Breault’s estimates, both in the area surrounding that station, and in the city in general.

Meanwhile, despite seeming legal on the surface, items such as plastic medicine holders, diminutive plastic baggies, glass vials and steel wool could and should be construed to be illegal, according to both Breault and Rosario.

Breault adds that despite the recent expansion of the city’s drug ordinance, SRK and stores like it carry on with business as usual. “They went along with it for a little while at first,” Breault says, regarding compliance with the city’s attempts to stem the sale of synthetic marijuana and alleged drug paraphernalia back in 2010. “But then they started right back up again.”

Calls to Worcester’s PD for comment were not returned as of press time.

Said Rosario, “The city doesn’t do anything, the DEA doesn’t do anything, the state doesn’t do anything. It’s a shame.”

Related Slideshow: The Highest Marijuana Prices in New England by State

The "crowdsourced" website, The Price of Weed, uses consumer input to show how much an ounce of marijuana costs -- by location.

Below are the rankings of New England states, from lowest price reported for "medium grade" marijuana, to highest, along with the number ("n") submitting data.

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