Gun Thief and Two Others Arrested Across State

Concord, NH – Early this morning, members of the United States Marshals Service (USMS), District of New Hampshire Joint Fugitive Task Force, in conjunction with the Merrimack County Sheriff’s Office, and the Chiefs of Police from the Alexandria, Andover, and Hill Police Departments arrested a suspected weapons thief on Bunker Hill Road in Hill.  Justin Travis (43) was apprehended on a warrant from the 6th District Court - Concord, for burglary at night and theft of firearms.  These charges stem from the theft of firearms from a Canterberry home last year. 

Travis was also arrested on a Grafton County Superior Court warrant for non-appearance in court. The original charges for Travis were failure to appear for forced entry, burglary, and felon in possession.  Travis was taken into custody without further incident and transported to Merrimack County Department of Corrections.  He will receive a bail hearing on February 18, 2025..

Following the arrest of Justin Travis, the USMS Task Force and Rockingham County Sheriff’s Deputies developed information that two other wanted fugitives were in the Sea Coast area of the state.  Recent law enforcement reports claimed that Michael Rand (39) and Abdul Rodriguez (48) both had access to firearms and made credible claims to use them for the purpose of preventing apprehension.

Rand was wanted for violating federal supervised release conditions stemming from a 2022 conviction for distribution of fentanyl in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Hampshire.  Rand was released in October 2022 and arrested the following December for violating federal supervision requirements.  Rand served two years in prison as a result. The current warrant was issued after multiple release condition violations were noted in an October 2024 report.  Also noted, Rand made statements to federal officials that he would not go back to jail willingly.  Rand was spotted leaving a hotel in western Portsmouth and subsequently taken into custody during a motor vehicle stop on the Spaulding Turnpike.

Immediately following the arrest of Rand, the Task Force and Rockingham County Deputies responded to a house on Mill Street in Rochester to arrest Abdul Rodriguez. Upon approach to the house, Rodriguez was seen attempting to flee out a rear window. Rodriguez retreated to the basement of the dwelling, but he eventually surrendered to officers inside the home.  Rodriguez was also taken to Strafford County Department of Corrections (DOC) to answer for a state parole warrant.  According to his violation report, Rodriguez absconded from supervision ordered by the court in relation to multiple drug conviction in 2015.  Rodriguez has a significant criminal history that includes unlicensed concealed firearms, distribution of narcotics, resisting arrest and falsifying reports.  

The USMS New Hampshire Joint Fugitive Task Force was formed in fall of 2002 and is headquartered in the USMS office in Concord. The task force coordinates federal, state, county, and local resources to develop leads, gather intelligence, track and apprehend targeted fugitives. Rockingham, Strafford and Merrimack County Sheriff’s Offices, as well as the Nashua and Greenfield Police Departments provide invaluable support to USMS fugitive operations in New Hampshire.