Hadley police arrest Connecticut man on drug, firearms charges

HADLEY — A Connecticut man allegedly in possession of illegal drugs and a loaded handgun, along with additional rounds of ammunition, was arrested on a series of charges following a traffic stop on Route 9 early Friday morning, according to Hadley Police.

Van Schryver, 40, was taken into custody at 1:31 a.m. on charges of possession of a firearm without a license to carry, possession of ammunition without an FID card, possession of a firearm during a felony, trafficking carfentanil, possession with intent to distribute a class B drug, possession with intent to distribute a class A drug and being a fugitive from justice, police said.

Hadley Police Sgt. Michael Romano said Schryver, originally from Old Lyme, Connecticut, was a passenger in a 2004 black Cadillac DeVille that was initially pulled over for a civil motor vehicle infraction after officers determined the female driver, who was leaving a Route 9 gas station, didn’t have a valid driver’s license. The stop took place near the Coolidge Bridge, Romano said.

After Schryver provided police a false name and date of birth, officers discovered he had an active warrant out of Connecticut for a probation violation.

While a relatively routine stop, Romano said the officers did a great job investigating the matter and keeping the scene safe.

During a search of the vehicle after Schryver was placed under arrest, officers discovered a loaded Sig Sauer P938 handgun in the glove compartment, as well as 99 rounds of 9mm ammunition, 22 grams of uncut carfentanil, 12 grams of cocaine, 4 grams of crack cocaine and packaging for narcotics.

Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.]]>