SACO, Maine — The Maine Drug Enforcement Agency arrested two York County men Saturday night as the result of an investigation into an alleged sales operation out of a Saco motel room.
Charged with aggravated trafficking in heroin are Zachary Adams, 19, of Saco and Cole Goulet, also 19, of Biddeford, MDEA Commander Scott Pelletier said Sunday in a news release.
The Class A crime carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a fine of up to $50,000.
The two men were arrested while returning to Maine after purchasing heroin in Massachusetts to resell in the Biddeford-Saco area, Pelletier said.
MDEA agents from the York District Task Force have been investigating suspected drug trafficking from a room at that Sunrise Motel in Saco for several weeks. The agents determined several people routinely traveled from Maine to Haverhill, Massachusetts, to purchase bulk heroin, he said.
The heroin would be taken back to the Sunrise Motel, where it was repackaged and sold in individual doses throughout Biddeford and Saco, according to Pelletier.
On Saturday evening, agents saw Adams and Goulet leave the motel and drive out of state. At around 10 p.m., agents observed Adams and Goulet return to Maine.
With assistance from the Maine State Police, Adams and Goulet were stopped on Interstate 95 in York, Pelletier said.
A state police drug recognition dog indicated the presence of illegal drugs in the vehicle, as well as on Adams and Goulet. A search of the vehicle resulted in the seizure of 30 grams — or 300 doses — of heroin and $1,100 in suspected drug proceeds.
The estimated street value of the heroin is $5,000, Pelletier said.
Adams and Goulet were arrested and taken to York County Jail, where each is being held on $10,000 cash bail.
Immediately after the arrests, state drug agents and Saco police executed a search warrant in the room at the Sunrise Motel where Adams had been staying.
While no other illegal drugs were found, investigators did seize information about others involved in the heroin distribution scheme, Pelletier said.
The investigation is ongoing and more arrests are anticipated, he said.