Region Roundup: Easton, Stoughton Residents Appointed to State Office [And More..]

Easton Resident Named as Division Chief in Attorney General’s Office

An Easton lawyer recently became a top ranking official in Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley's office.

George Zachos was recently named as one of Coakley's new Division Chiefs, according to a statement released Tuesday.

Zachos, who is a graduate of Boston College and Oklahoma College of Law was named as the Medicaid Fraud Division Chief, according to the statement. The Easton lawyer had previously served as a managing attorney of the AG’s Medicaid Fraud Division since 2007. He also has more than 17 years of litigation experience.

Stoughton's William “Mo” Cowan Named State's Interim U.S. Senator

Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick announced Wednesday morning that a Stoughton resident is headed to the Nation's Capital to represent Massachusetts in the U.S. Senate.

With Tuesday's official nomination of U.S. Senator John Kerry to the post of Secretary of State, the field is opening up with folks vying for Kerry's seat in his unexpired term in the U.S. Senate. But before that even happens an interim senator had to be named.

On Wednesday, Governor Patrick announced that his former chief of staff William “Mo” Cowan, 43, of Stoughton, will be the interim senator and will serve until a new senator is elected in the June 25 special election.

He lives in Stoughton with his wife, Stacy, and their two young sons, 8-year-old Miles and 4-year-old Grant.

Proposal Calls for Nearly 350 New Housing Units in Canton

A consultant's report regarding a newly-proposed housing development for 348 units in downtown Canton is expected to be completed by the end of February. The Canton Board of Selectmen will neither decline or oppose the proposal until they review the report. Details in the proposal include 64 town house units, 80 age-restricted units for residents aged 55 and older, and 204 apartments, according to Boston.com.

Norwood Residents Arrested on Drug Charges in Walpole Weeks After Previous Charges Dropped

Two Norwood brothers were arrested on drug charges in Walpole last Thursday - less than two weeks after similar charges brought by Norwood Police against them were dismissed due to the mishandling of drug samples by state Department of Public Health chemist Annie Dookhan.

On Thursday, Jan. 24, Walpole Police arrested 27-year-old Dejan Katic and 24-year-old Peter Katic, along with 27-year-old Derek Boutilier, also of Norwood, after a surveillance unit witnessed a hand-to-hand drug transaction. According to a Norwood Police press release, a Walpole Police detective saw Dejan Katic sell heroin to Boutilier at Katic’s place of business.