Pair arraigned for drug conspiracy

BOSTON—A Boston man and a Cambridge woman were arraigned today for conspiring to violate drug laws, in addition to shoplifting, default and probation violation indictments.

Nekia Grayson, 27, and Mark Wells were arrested early this morning after police witnessed them attempt to distribute cocaine near a school on the corner of Tremont and Stuart streets. Grayson has bags of cocaine in her mouth, which police prevented her from swallowing, and she possessed three red pills and one gray pill, according to the prosecution.


When police arrested Wells, he said he and Grayson were “trying to settle to make a little money and get out of here,” according to the prosecution.

Wells has previously been convicted of manslaughter and drug charges, and he has an outstanding warrant in Dorchester, said the prosecution. His other previous offenses include violating probation and defaulting on court fees and a hearing, said the prosecution.

Grayson was arraigned for shoplifting at Walgreens, located at 1603 Washington St. in Boston, on March 4, and that trial was scheduled for tomorrow. The defense asked the court for her release to attend the shoplifting trial and attend Dimock Community Health Center in Roxbury for detoxification this Friday.

Boston Municipal Court Judge Robert McKenna rescheduled Grayson’s shoplifting trial to be held on the same date as her pretrial conference for the drug charges on April 23. Grayson is being held for $450 bail.

Grayson has previously defaulted in September and December of 2008, but this is her first drug offense, the defense said. Grayson attended Cambridge schools until the tenth grade, and she has two children, ages two and 10, who currently live with Grayson’s mother, Virginia, the defense said.

Virginia Grayson said her daughter has had a drug problem since she was 18, and she is unsure what to think about the rehabilitation center.

“She’s sick and she needs help,” Grayson said about her daughter. “She has to want to help herself.”

Wells is being held without bail and will be transported to Dorchester Court on April 4 for his outstanding warrant. He will then be held on $150 cash bail on the drug charges until his hearing, scheduled for April 23, said McKenna.

Note: This article was written on March 31, 2009