Hotel UMass Linked to Cocaine Trafficking Scheme

Hotel UMass, located in the center of campus at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst (UMass), is under investigation due to its connection to LaMar Cook, who was arrested on Oct. 28 for cocaine trafficking.

Cook served as the director of hospitality at Hotel UMass for seven years before becoming an aide to Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey in 2023. He was fired from his post as deputy director of the governor’s Western Massachusetts office following his arrest. On Oct. 28, Cook was charged with trafficking more than 200 grams of cocaine, unlawful possession of a firearm, and unlawful possession of ammunition.

On Oct. 25, Cook was identified as a suspect in a cocaine trafficking operation unrelated to Hotel UMass in an undercover operation organized by the Commonwealth Interstate Narcotics Reduction Enforcement Team (CINRET) West and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). The investigation following this operation connected Cook to suspicious parcels delivered to Hotel UMass, which, upon further investigation, were revealed to be cocaine parcels.

According to a police report obtained by The Boston Globe, the United Parcel Service (UPS) security investigators identified two packages, each weighing approximately eight kilograms, that were delivered to Hotel UMass on Sept. 26. The parcels were addressed to “Morgan Gordon,” which did not match the name of any hotel patron. Hotel management sent the unclaimed parcels to the loading dock, where surveillance footage later captured Cook entering the docks and picking up the parcels. 

On Oct. 3, UPS security investigators were notified of two additional suspicious parcels delivered to Hotel UMass addressed to “Gary Woods,” each weighing approximately eight kilograms. Again, the name did not belong to any patron of the hotel, and Cook was identified on surveillance footage collecting the packages from the loading docks.

Authorities later intercepted two suspicious parcels in Kentucky on Oct. 8 that were also addressed to “Morgan Gordon” at Hotel UMass. Together, the parcels contained approximately 12 kilograms of cocaine.

On Oct. 24, CINRET West and HSI received information from the Louisville, Kentucky Metro Police about another suspicious UPS parcel. The parcel was seized and contained approximately 7.8 kilograms of cocaine. It was addressed to “Grand Tech, 436 Dwight Street #300, Springfield MA, 01103” — the address of the State Office building in Springfield.

On Oct. 25, members of CINRET West repackaged approximately 0.225 kilograms of the Oct. 24 cocaine package for an undercover controlled delivery to the State Office building in Springfield. Cook soon arrived on the scene to retrieve the parcel and, after a brief interaction with the undercover authority, was deemed a person of interest.

The police report stated that Cook was detained but later released on the scene, pending further investigation, before his formal arrest on Oct. 28.

The report notes that the total weight of cocaine seized in October was more than 21,000 grams, with an estimated street value of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

An Oct. 29 press release from the Hampden District Attorney’s office stated that “The investigation into the UMass seizure remains ongoing and may result in additional charges related to the prior shipments in Hampshire County.”

Correction, Nov. 12, 2025: A previous version of this article had an incorrect hyperlink that has since been corrected.