Local pair nabbed with Smoronk have long rap sheets

From left, Dusty Cousens, Dean Smoronk and Nicholas Batista (Police mug shots)

Dean Smoronk, 55, of Meaderboro Road, Farmington, whose girlfriend and another woman were fatally stabbed at his Farmington home, was taken into custody by Virginia State Police after drugs were found in his vehicle during a traffic stop on Interstate 95.

The arrest unfolded when troopers stopped a 2016 Ford Transit Van speeding in a work zone on the southbound side of the highway on June 11 around 5 a.m., according to Sgt. Steve Vick, a public information officer.

Charges against Smoronk include manufacturing and selling steroids, possession of needles, capsules and a pipe; four counts of possession of controlled substances and obstructing justice.

Vick said the female driver, Dusty Cousens, 40, of Berwick, Maine, was the original driver, and switched seats with Smoronk as they were coming to a stop on the right shoulder because she did not have a valid license.
During a search of the vehicle police found illegal narcotics and paraphernalia in the van as well as on passenger Nicholas Batista, 20, of Rochester.

Cousens has been arrested by Rochester some eight times, dating back to 1998, including arrests for forgery, operating after suspension, disorderly conduct and open containers, Rochester Police Capt. Jason Thomas said today. Her most recent arrest was in February 2016.

Batista, with a last known address of Charles Street, has had several bench warrants, plus arrests for willful concealments and drug possession as well as three simple assaults in 2015 alone.

The drugs seized on Sunday included ecstasy, crystal methamphetamine, two forms of anabolic steroids, needles, glass meth pipes, packaging materials and digital scales, Vick said.
Smoronk was charged with four felonies as well as several misdemeanors, while Cousens was charged with one felony and several misdemeanors, including drug possession, identity theft and providing false information to law enforcement. Batista was charged with one felony and two misdemeanors for possessing drugs and paraphernalia, as well as obstructing justice.
All three were arraigned on Monday and are being held without bail at Pamunkey Regional Jail in Hanover, Va., pending their next hearing in September, a jail spokesman said on Wednesday.

Smoronk, meanwhile, also faces arraignment next month in Rochester District Court on Class A misdemeanor charges stemming from a May 31 altercation with a Rochester man outside Smoronk's Farmington home.

The complaint alleges Smoronk hit the windshield of a 1998 Chevrolet van belonging to the man with a baseball bat. Smoronk was released on personal recognizance bail with a July 5 arraignment.

It was Smoronk who told police he found the bodies of his girlfriend, Christine Sullivan, 48, who split her time between southwest Florida and Farmington; and Jenna Pellegrini, 32, of Barrington after returning home late Jan. 28 on a flight from Florida, where he and Sullivan also spent time.

Their bodies were discovered around 3 a.m. on Jan. 29 when Farmington Police responded to a 911 call at 979 Meaderboro Road, however court documents allege the crime occurred on Jan. 27, the previous Friday.

Timothy Verrill, 34, of Dover, was arrested in their deaths in February and is being held without bail. A grand jury indictment is expected by next month.

Evidence in the double murder case is expected to include thousands of pages of documents as well as dozens of CDs containing audio recordings and photographs.

Efforts to reach Vick for additional information on the Virginia arrests were unsuccessful.