Frank Barrucco: Delray man invited cop into drug den, police say

Frank Barrucco lost his cash and called the cops.

 

But police say it appears Barrucco forgot something, like clearing the drugs from the dresser top, before he invited a Delray Beach police officer into Room 9 of the Delray Inn to help him find the missing dough.

 

Barrucco, who was charged last year with DUI manslaughter for killing a motorcyclist while high and ordered by a judge to stay away from drugs and alcohol, now stands charged with drug possession.

 

According to a Delray Beach police report, Barrucco, 27, of Delray Beach, called police Wednesday, because he thought someone stole his money.

 

But when a detective arrived, Barrucco said he never actually saw someone take the money. The detective asked Barrucco if he needed help finding the cash.

 

"Yes," he said, the report says. "Please come help me look. I think it's about $70 that is missing."

 

Walking into Room 9, the report says, the detective immediately noticed "a small, white grainy rock sitting on the dresser."

 

He asked Barrucco what it was.

 

"Bath salts," Barrucco said.

 

Next to the bath salt was a baggie holding a white powder. The detective picked up the baggie, and Barrucco piped up.

 

"That's cocaine in there, but I did that last week – not today," Barrucco said.

 

The detective tested both drugs with positive results and then asked if Barrucco had any weapons on him.

 

"I don't have any weapons," he said, "but I have this pipe that I used to smoke my crack with on me."

 

The detective took Barrucco outside and asked if he had any other drugs or equipment in the room.

 

Barrucco began to cry and said he didn't have anything else in the room. The detective then told Barrucco he was under arrest.

 

When the detective grabbed Barrucco's wrist to handcuff him, the report says Barrucco "lunged forward, grabbed a pill bottle from his left pocket and attempted to swallow to contents of the bottle."

 

The detective wrestled Barrucco to the ground and booked him in the Palm Beach County Jail in lieu of $10,000 bond.

 

In October 2011, Barrucco was charged with DIU manslaughter for killing a motorcyclist while high on marijuana and pain pills.

 

The March 18 crash happened at the intersection of West Palmetto Park Road and Beracasa Way, west of Boca Raton, where 56-year-old Boynton Beach resident Steven Fischer approached the light on his Harley-Davidson motorcycle.

 

But Barrucco pulled out in front of him in his 2005 Hyundai Sonata and hit the side of Fischer's motorcycle.

 

The impact threw Fischer from his seat and to the road – he died an hour later at Delray Medical Center.

 

Blood tests later showed Barrucco had more than four times the prescribed amount of oxycodone and alprazolam in his system at the time of the crash, according to a Sheriff's Office arrest report.

 

His blood also had THC, the main chemical in marijuana.

 

After the crash, witnesses said Barrucco tried to drive away from the crash, but one person chased him, the report says.

 

Barrucco returned to the scene "nonchalantly" and looked "stoned," the report said.

 

Investigators later found a glass pipe with marijuana residue and empty bottles of oxycodone and alprazolam – prescribed to Barrucco – in his car. The prescriptions had been legally filled a day earlier at a pharmacy.

 

On Oct. 22, a judge ordered Barrucco to stay away from the victim's family and avoid illegal drugs and alcohol.