Simply put, Executive Officer Robert Devine of the Stoughton Police Department said that a Monday night drug bust executed by two of his officers was "good police work."

Officers John Hartford and Kevin Lima arrested two men from Brockton at 10:10 p.m. on January 3 after the officers witnessed a "hand to hand" exchange between the two men in the parking lot of the Gulf Station on Dykeman Way, near the Avon/Stoughton boarder.

Philip Le, 22, of Brockton (Holmes Ave.) was arrested and charged with possession of a class B substance and trafficking cocaine. Denis Rath, also a 22-year-old from Brockton (Orchard Ave.), was arrested and charged with possession of a class B substance and possession of a class B substance with the intent to distribute.

Devine said Officers Hartford and Lima had been tracking this pair and watched a car drive in circles and pull into the Gulf parking lot.  The officers observed a man come out of the convenience store located on the property and approach the passenger side window of the car in question. 

This is when the officers saw the "hand to hand" exchange take place. The two men (Le and Rath) then parted ways, according to Devine, and the vehicle, operated by Le, left the parking lot.

Devine said officers then approached Rath (the man who was seen coming form the convenience store) and searched and questioned him.  Officers found Rath had $200 in cash and 12 percocet pills (the painkiller oxycodone) on him.

The vehicle Le was driving was stopped a "short distance" from the gas station, according to Devine. A subsequent search of the vehicle resulted in finding additional percocet pills and "roughly" 17 grams of cocaine.

Devine said a case like this is an example of why the police department, and officers Hartford and Lima in particular, take a proactive stance on cracking down on drug dealing.

"For us, it's important that we ensure that we're not going to tolerate indiscreet drug dealing in an open air drug market," Devine said.