Gainesville police raid drug house, arrest 2

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The Gainesville Alachua County Drug Task Force seized large quantities of cannabis and cocaine Wednesday while executing a search warrant in an ongoing narcotics investigation.

Investigators also recovered a large amount of cash and two firearms from the home in the 1000 block of Northeast Eighth Avenue in Gainesville.

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Two men inside the home at the time were arrested. Marcus Chatman, 26, is charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and Gerald Richardson, 30, is charged with possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute.

Both were booked into the Alachua County jail.

Evidence gathered during the execution of the search warrant is still being processed and analyzed, police said.

The Gainesville Police Department Special Operations Unit also responded to the home to collect some items of property that appeared to have been stolen, police said.

Police said their investigation will continue because it appears that the suspects were trading stolen items in exchange for illegal narcotics.

"This residence was being used as a point of sale for illegal narcotics," Gainesville police spokesman Officer Ben Tobias said. "With the execution of this search warrant, we have put a large dent in the drug activity in this part of the community."