BUCKSPORT, Maine — A Blue Hill man is facing a heroin trafficking charge after he was stopped in Bucksport and found to be in possession of nearly 100 grams of heroin, according to police.
Justin Horton, 29, was arrested on a Class B felony charge of trafficking in heroin, Maine Drug Enforcement Agency officials indicated Saturday in a prepared statement.
Horton drew attention after officers with the Hancock County Sheriff’s Department received information about alleged drug activity in the area, the statement indicated. An ensuing investigation included an undercover purchase of heroin from Horton and extensive surveillance, according to MDEA.
On Friday, police learned that Horton planned to travel out of state to obtain a significant amount of heroin that he would bring back to sell in Hancock County, MDEA indicated.
“At approximately 4 a.m. this morning in Bucksport, Hancock County Sheriff’s Deputies, MDEA agents and Bucksport Police stopped the vehicle Horton was driving as he was returning to Blue Hill,” MDEA officials wrote in the release. “Hidden within Horton’s vehicle, investigators located nearly 100 grams of heroin and $1,800 in cash.”
The drug was packaged into units called “fingers” that would have been divided into approximately 1,000 individual dosage units called “bags,” police added. The current going price for a bag of heroin in Hancock County is approximately $30, they said.
MDEA officials indicated that the charge Horton is facing likely will be upgraded to a Class A crime because of the quantity of drugs involved, pending approval by state prosecutors. A conviction for a Class B felony in Maine is punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine, while a Class A crime is punishable by up to 30 years in prison and up to a $50,000 fine.
Hancock County Sheriff Scott Kane and MDEA Director Roy McKinney said in a joint statement about Horton’s arrest that the level of the opiate problem in Maine is straining law enforcement resources.
“It is now more important than ever that all law enforcement agencies pool their resources in an effort to eradicate this drug from our communities,” they said. “This investigation highlights the success of inter-agency cooperation.”
The investigation is ongoing and more arrests are possible, police added.
Police said that anyone with information about the investigation or the illegal sale of drugs anywhere in Maine is urged to contact their closest MDEA office or by calling the MDEA tip line at 800-452-6457.
