A 54-year-old Etna man, Don Grace, was sentenced Tuesday to 15 years in federal prison for running a heroin distribution ring across Central Maine. The sentence, handed down by U.S. District Judge John A. Woodcock, Jr., includes eight years of supervised release following his prison term. Grace pled guilty on May 4, 2016, to one count of conspiring to distribute more than 100 grams of heroin.
Court records reveal that between August 2015 and January 2016, Grace and a network of associates imported heroin weekly from an out-of-state supplier, flooding communities with thousands of bags of the deadly opioid. The operation stretched deep into rural towns, fueling addiction and endangering public safety across the region. Federal prosecutors say Grace wasn’t just a dealer—he was a key node in a larger trafficking pipeline.
The operation collapsed on January 25, 2016, when federal agents moved in. They arrested Grace and seized 3,300 glassine bags of heroin from the vehicle he was riding in. A simultaneous raid on his Etna residence turned up another 1,500 bags stashed inside. The total haul—4,800 bags—represented a massive cache of street-level narcotics destined to circulate through Maine’s struggling communities.
Grace isn’t new to federal court. He’s been prosecuted five times since 2004 on felony drug charges and for repeated violations of supervised release. Judge Woodcock, presiding over Grace’s fifth sentencing in 13 years on the bench, called it a grim first. “In my time as a federal judge, this is the only defendant I’ve had to sentence five times,” Woodcock stated, underscoring the revolving door of addiction and recidivism.
The investigation was led by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, with critical support from the Maine State Police. Authorities emphasized that the case was prosecuted under the Department of Justice’s national Strategy to Combat the Opioid Epidemic, a targeted push to dismantle supply chains feeding the nation’s deadliest drug crisis in decades.
U.S. Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II confirmed the sentencing in Bangor and reiterated federal commitment to targeting high-level distributors. “This sentence sends a message: those who profit from poisoning our communities will face serious consequences,” Delahanty said. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joel B. Casey handled the prosecution. Grace will serve his 15-year sentence in a federal penitentiary, with no early release guaranteed.
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Key Facts
- State: Maine
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Drug Trafficking
- Source: Official Source ↗
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