BANGOR, Maine — A Bangor man and a Greenbush woman who was compared to a notorious 1930s bandit by a federal prosecutor were sentenced Wednesday to federal prison in U.S. District Court for their roles in a bath salts distribution ring that stretched from Bangor to Washington and Aroostook counties three years ago.
Jessica Bryden, 22, was sentenced to eight years and one month in prison followed by three years of supervised release for her role in the conspiracy, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.
Daniel Hines, 38, of Bangor was sentenced to five years and 10 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release.
Bryden was the girlfriend of Ryan Ellis, 34, of Greenbush, who has admitted to being the ringleader in the bath salts conspiracy.
In describing their roles in the drug ring after the sentencing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Joel Casey called the couple “the Bonnie and Clyde of bath salts.” The prosecutor said that U.S. District Judge John Woodcock called their impact on the people and communities affected by their drug sale “permanent, profound and deleterious.”
Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were killed by FBI agents in 1934 after a two-year crime spree that spanned half a dozen states. A 1967 film about their exploits was a critical and box office success.
Ellis, who went by the nicknames Dude, Calvin and Piles, has pleaded guilty to drug and gun charges but a sentencing date has not yet been set.
Bryden and Hines each pleaded guilty in April to one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute and to distribute MDPV, a chemical compound commonly referred to as “bath salts” or “monkey dust,” between April and December 2011. One count of maintaining a drug involved place filed against Bryden was dismissed Wednesday.
Ellis, Bryden, Hines and other members of the conspiracy illegally distributed large quantities of MDPV in Penobscot, Aroostook and Knox counties, according to court documents. By pleading guilty, Bryden and Hines admitted that they obtained MDPV from other members of the conspiracy and traded, sold or otherwise distributed it to others.
Ellis faces up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $1 million, as did Bryden and Hines. In addition, Ellis faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years, which must be served consecutively to the drug sentence, and a fine of up to $250,000 on the gun charge.
In all, 18 defendants have pleaded guilty in the case.