BANGOR, Maine — Agents with the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency had a local man under surveillance for several weeks for reportedly dealing drugs and caught him earlier this month with a quarter-pound of crack cocaine and hundreds of diverted oxycodone pills.
The street value of the seized drugs is around $60,000, Darrell Crandall, MDEA division commander for northern Maine, said Sunday.
Roger Campbell-Black, 34, of Center Street was arrested May 4 “as he delivered 100 oxycodone tablets and 2 grams of crack cocaine” to someone waiting in the parking lot of a Holden business, Crandall said, who added that Campbell-Black also had $3,000 in cash on him.
Agents then searched his house and seized “over a quarter-pound of crack cocaine, 495 oxycodone tablets and $8,000 in cash,” the MDEA commander said.
After his arrest, MDEA agents learned that Campbell-Black was going to get another delivery of prescription pills from a New York-based supplier the next morning, May 5.
“They staked out the Greyhound bus station in Hampden [and] when Ayanna Johnson, 39, of Brooklyn, N.Y., got off the bus, MDEA agents took her into custody and confiscated 628 more oxycodone tablets,” Crandall said.
The 1,123 pills of oxycodone seized have a street value of around $48,000, and the cocaine is valued at $12,000.
Campbell-Black was charged with felony aggravated trafficking in cocaine and oxycodone, both Class A crimes, and Johnson was charged with felony trafficking in oxycodone, a Class B. Both were taken to the Penobscot County Jail and have since been released, a jail official said.
Campbell-Black faces a penalty of up to 30 years in prison and a $50,000 fine, if convicted, and Johnson could see 10 years behind bars and a fine of $20,000.
The MDEA was assisted by Bangor Police Department, Maine State Police and federal DEA agents and the Maine Office of the Attorney General is handling the prosecution.
“More arrests are likely,” Crandall said. “This case is far from over.”
It would be wonderful if these arrests were the end of the drug dealing but sadly it isn’t. There seems to be a steady line of people getting into the trade instead of out of it. I can’t imagine in 20 yrs what the city of Bangor and other cities will be like. The Al Brady killing was the biggest case Bangor had ever seen and was, for many, many years. Now somebody stabbed or shot is in the news so frequently it isn’t really news unless you know the people involved. The same with articles about drug busts. Sad that things are like this today.
Drug dealers are a product of drug laws….
Glad to know that the Greyhound Station is now dropping crack dealers off in Hampden instead of downtown Bangor.
Sounds like a win-win. Catch the druggies before they hit Bangor, and for the law-abiding Greyhound riders going to Bangor, the cab drivers make out good.
Bat has a route there to pick them up.
The Dysart’s Truck Stop that is now the Greyhound terminal is in Hermon not Hampden. Maybe Hampden needs to build a fence.
they have since be released. I’ll bet that woman disappears, if not both of them. I hope they get them to court and locked up for a while though.
Well at least I hope the DEA knows now that not everybody who gets them for real pain don’t abuse them !!! Now they treat everybody like they abuse them even if you get them for real pain. I undderstand the drug problem but they shouldn’t treat everybody like there a criminal because they take pain pills . I guess not everybody that gets a root canal or a tooth filled or drilled needs novacaine either — if they do they must be abusing novacaine too !!! I think the people that don’t work and have nice trucks , cars and motorcycles, boats and ski doos and golf carts and snowmobiles should be the ones they need to be watching !! People that had nothing just 2 or 3 years ago all of a sudden live like the Jones stand out like a sore thumb !! Wheres the DEA watching them !! We all know that live around them what they do so not sure why the law doesn’t know and watch them for a while !!!
sounds to me like you have a personal problem with something the dea did? . . . well heres the thing, they don’t arrest people for doing good things and taking their meds correctly…
Flower, If you know of suspicious activity, then you should report it. Unfortunately, we don’t have a DEA agent on every corner. There is nothing that they would love more than to have some tips from the community to support their mission.
People do abuse ‘Novocaine’, which is in reality Cocaine Hydrochloride.
Great job as always MDEA…..continued removal of scumbag trash off the streets, You guys were doing a great job down here in Ellsworth, removing the scumbags too, don’t forget us down here, keep us in your periphery…..tourist season is arriving, and so will the garbage…..
If it weren’t for the __fake & useless__ “War on Drugs”, I bet most of these people would be smoking their pot (or eating it, or vaping or whatever your thing is) for their pain and anxiety problems.
Legalize marijuana, most of these people would just grow their own and treat their problems. There would not be so many people whacked out on pills. There would, of course, be some who just _really_ like their pills, however if pot wasn’t crazy expensive or a pain in the butt (and illegal) to grow, many people can and would treat their pain and anxiety with an herb that grows in the ground.
Decriminalization works, check it out.
I agree. The War on Drugs is a total fraud, a contrivance, a fabrication used to destroy society and freedom, like a terrorist plot. It has not worked for 40 years. Acting in the same manner over and over again to solve a problem and expecting a different outcome is insanity defined.
That is the best comment on this feed.
You are either profoundly naive, or believe that everyone else is. The vast majority…nearly all…of pot smokers smoke (or otherwise ingest) marijuana to get high. They do not have “pain and anxiety”…they just want to get stoned. What you really want is the legalization of non-medical marijuana to use as a recreational drug and you are using the medicinal platform as your soapbox. Medical marijuana is already legal, but contains very little THC…so it won’t get you high.
As for your emphasis on the wholesomeness of “an herb that grows in the ground”…so do hemlock and nightshade…
See, I think you’re the one who is naive. Profoundly.
The “drug war” is nothing but a never-ending moneypit of FAILURE.
Millions of *non-violent citizens*, clogging up the prison system and wasting billions (with a b) in tax payer dollars to house them for years on end.
Murderous Mexican drug cartels fueled by drug demand, with no end in sight.
BS and terribly skewed sentencing, resulting in productive, non-violent members of our society being locked away (at taxpayers expense) for years, sometimes for life (and in other places in the world, sentenced to DEATH) for a plant.
Do you seriously think you’re qualified, AT ALL, to tell me what I “really want” out of decriminalization?
Hmmmm, you should do some research on the countries that legalized marijauna, and the higher restrictions they are now having to impose.. I was all for legalizing it before, now… not so much.
disagree
notthatgirl; marijuana is legal now as long as you have a certificate, I got news for you no one is buying it from the dispensaries because it is too expensive. So you can legalize all you want there will still be druggies buying it from non-legitimate sources who are under cutting the other business, and of course you’ll still have druggies robbing others for it and killing for it as is done now. Why pay for it when you can get it for free by stealing and beating up people. They are too lazy to grow it themselves. The legalize it theory is seriously flawed. It will never work. Nor will anyone pay taxes on it. Self reporting? What a joke.
Marijuana use is still a federal offense.
While tobacco, a demonstrably more harmful plant, is perfectly legal. Tobacco causes cancer, while cannabis has been shown to decrease the size of tumors related to several types of cancer. Of course, you are probably unaware of U.S. patent #6630507, which denotes some of the significant medical benefits of cannibinoids.
The “it’s illegal” argument is based in circular logic. While true, the laws criminalizing cannabis are immoral and are only in place due to congressional special interests, the ridiculously deep pockets of corporate lobbyists and pharmaceutical companies.
Think about it. Hemp is still classified as ‘marijuana’ despite the fact that it exhibits absolutely no druglike qualities. Hemp has been illegal to produce since 1937. You can thank big cotton for that.
Lesson of the story? Use moral judgement, common sense and objectivity when approaching any substance. Legal status should not factor significantly into one’s assertion of either the benefits or detriments of a natural plant.
Sure, what’s a little jail time?
I would spend a year in jail for a lifetime of happiness and a largely unimpeded freedom to consume whatever I wish. Thankfully, it’s only a several hundred dollar fine to possess, and law enforcement have better things to do than raid a home in which the resident smokes two joints a day. People complain about losing freedom, but it’s all in how you approach it.
It has crossed my mind that indeed for some marijuana will lose its preference, and cause them to look for a “better high”. I am not sure if there is any study to support this other than the “stepping stone” argument from years ago. There are many factors as to why drugs take a toll on society. If giving drugs to everyone who wants them was the answer how easy the solution would be. One simply has to look at the Opium that was once dumped on the Chinese people, and readily used by many to see the possible downfalls upon individuals, a country, and its culture.
The DEA needs to trace these drugs back to there source. I think there may be some scumbag, greedy doctors on the other end.
The government is responsible for oxycodone being on the street. It is FDA approved yet everyone who takes it become addicted…everyone! There is no safe way to take oxycodone, even if it is a doctor prescribing it to you. I’ll repeat: THERE IS NO SAFE WAY TO TAKE OXYCODONE. It should be outlawed.
The first time I agree with you.
That is patently false. A person can use it once a month with absolutely no negative side effects or addiction. Don’t get me wrong, I believe the majority of pharmaceuticals are not a good thing, but it has been medically proven that addiction has absolutely nothing to do with any specific drug. Addiction is nothing more than a mental reaction, and any given individual’s propensity for such is entirely based in genetics.
There’s a reason they call it “dope.”
Great job MDEA.
Does anyone know the best way to give the MDEA a tip?
Contact the local police. they will forward the information.
Campbell-Black was charged with felony aggravated trafficking in cocaine and oxycodone, both Class A crimes, and Johnson was charged with felony trafficking in oxycodone, a Class B. Both were taken to the Penobscot County Jail and have since been released, a jail official said
Are you freaken kidding me? How much was bail set at, a buck? Where did he get the money? Wasnt it all confiscated as DRUG money. Why is the MDEA just now starting to watch the New Yorkers coming in from Greyhound every day when this has been going on for YEARS. Check out the Job Corps and find out how many are from New York..
This is what makes me so irate abotu the BANGOR idea of law. The cops arrest them, even get the vaunted MDEA in on it, and less than 24 hours later they are free on the streets to sell more of this poison to our kids. The people of this state need to stand up and be heard, this is a travesty. I am not sure what our joke of a DA is doing down there but please, god if you hear us, find someone to run against ALMY so we can finally get this worthless District Attorney a trip to retirement.
You have completely neglected the possibility that the man has friends or family, or that perhaps not every single dollar they had was confiscated. It’s fine, though, RANDOMLY capitalized words GET your point across MORE effectively.
Been POSTING like that for years Carlton, sorry you dont like, then again, you dont have to read them either.
And I’ve been trolling people for years. If you don’t like that, change your commenting STYLE.
The drug war is a welfare program for courts, cops and corrections, the business continues to grow, it is insane. End the war with sane policy making.
Lawmakers please show some intelligence and courage. 4o years of failure is enough. Can’t anyone think of any new approach to this problem?
The “War on drugs” began in the early1980s as a cover operation down in central and south america so the U.S. gov. could stabilize the region and help those that wanted to further Americas goals in those areas come to power. And after they got their guns and money they didnt want to play with good ol unka sam…….war on drugs….RRRRIGHT !!
Actually, it was initiated in 1971 by Richard Nixon.
True. BUT….He was trying to cut the flow of opiem out of the golden triangle wich was later proven that the C.I.A. was using the money from the flow of those drugs to finance operations in other parts of the world. Uncle Ronnie really went to town with the war on drugs reteric down in central and south america….and there were a LOT of uncle Ronnies feild trips !!
What would be a ‘sane” drug policy. Allow folks to easily buy and consume crack cocaine and other drugs?
It’s nice to see that they are doing their jobs but one would have to wonder how much of that stuff that is confiscated reaches the evidence locker? First Street is crawling with druggies yet nothing has happened. The governor accused state workers of being corrupt, what about city workers and officials? How many of them were charged with theft of funds last year? It’s sick and yes I do agree that this does not solve the problem of getting rid of the dealers. There will be more problems down the road just wait and see.
Darrell Crandall and his intrepid band of agents are running a close second to legendary FBI gang -buster, Elliott Ness.
Barely a week passes that Crandall’s Crack Busters aren’t vacuuming the merchants of Cocaine, pain killers , Pot, and other debilitating crap, into the hopper.
Surely, you’d say, shippers, thieves, thugs and runners, must have caught on by now. But evidently not. They still yard sale the stuff in motels, street corners , dingy apartments and hovels – sometimes, dumber than dumb they’re within shouting distance of schools. They are also smug enough to board a bus, take a plane, incapable of believing that Crandall’s Reception Committee awaits them. What d’you expect with minds – laundered into believing Maine is Drug Haven. It’s not where “We’re Open For Business” to pop pills, do bath bubbles, snort, sniff, or, prick veins. They forget they’re in Maine, and our drug busters are trying to keep it “The Way Life Should Be.”
Editors should play these stories on Page One. Good to read of this team’s successful exploits in the war on drugs. Our state is swimming in the stuff and the beatings, stabbings, shootings, paint a grisly picture of this epidemic, and its effects on the state and its people.
If we can highlight Red Sox O, Detroit 29 on One, why can’t we put Drug Busters 10, Pushers O?
GOOD! Get this off the streets! ASAP!
It is nice that they are doing their job but how much of that stuff that they confiscated will go into the evidence locker? State workers are being accused of corruption, what about city workers and officials? How many of them got in trouble last year alone due to theft of funds? First Street in Bangor is the most popular street for drug activity but you don’t read about any arrests made from that location much now do u? But then again one hand does wash the other. All depends on who you are and what you know.
Do they call a quarter pounder with Oxy, a Royale with Oxy in France?
LinkedIn has Ayanna Johnson as a Pharmaceuticals Professional in the Greater New York City area. Hmmmm, she may need to change her location.
With all that crack, we could get high for…hours.