Crack Cocaine Distribution Plague Hits Portland
A Portland man has pleaded guilty to charges related to the distribution of crack cocaine, marking another blow to the city’s already struggling war on drugs.
Samuel Collins, 46, of Portland, Maine, pleaded guilty yesterday in U.S. District Court to conspiring to distribute cocaine base, often referred to as crack cocaine.
Court records reveal that between December 2013 and January 2015, Collins conspired with others to sell crack cocaine in Portland, Maine. Members of the conspiracy would arrange for the acquisition of drugs out of state. Once the drugs were transported to Maine, they were provided to retail distributors, including Collins, who would sell the drugs in the Portland area.
According to law enforcement officials, Collins and his co-conspirators conducted a coordinated effort to distribute the highly addictive substance throughout the city. During the course of the investigation, officers conducted controlled purchases of crack cocaine from Collins and determined that Collins allowed other members of the conspiracy to sell drugs from his apartment.
The case was investigated by the Southern Maine Gang Task Force, a multi-agency task force comprised of investigators from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Portland Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Drug Enforcement Administration. The Biddeford and Lewiston Police Departments, the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency, and the Maine State Police also assisted with the investigation.
Collins faces up to 20 years in prison and a $1,000,000 fine. He will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigation report by the U.S. Probation Office.
The case is a prime example of the ongoing effort of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF), a partnership between federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and money laundering organizations, and those primarily responsible for the nation’s illegal drug supply.
Contact Julia M. Lipez, Assistant United States Attorney, at (207) 780-3257 for more information.
Related Federal Cases
- Jordan Flythe, Fentanyl and Crack Distribution, Connecticut 2020 · Washington
- Garry Collins, Crack Cocaine Distribution, Maine 2014 · Massachusetts
- Jonathan Torres, Fentanyl Distribution, Connecticut 2020 · Washington
- Brian Evans, Fentanyl Distribution, Possession of Guns, Connecticut 2021 · North Carolina
- Christopher M. Liscio, Oxycodone and Cocaine Trafficking, Connecticut 2020 · Alaska
Key Facts
- State: Maine
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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