ROCKLAND, Maine — A 33-year-old Rockland man could face up to life in prison after federal prosecutors say he was involved in drug trafficking with ties to the Mexican Mafia.
Derek VanDoren was arrested Tuesday in Rockland by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. He made his initial appearance Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Portland on charges of conspiracy to engage in racketeering, conspiracy to traffic in drugs, and possession with intent to distribute drugs.
The racketeering charge is the most serious one and carries a maximum prison sentence of life and a fine of $250,000.
VanDoren was one of 51 people indicted in October by a federal grand jury in the District of Central California. The indictments were sealed until the defendants were located and apprehended.
Despite its name, the Mexican Mafia, according to the indictment, is an American criminal organization that “operates from within the California state prison system, the federal prison system, and the streets and suburbs of large cities throughout southern California,” according to the indictment.
The Mexican Mafia has grown so strong that it now controls Hispanic gangs in California, according to the indictment.
The document states that the 51 defendants were members and associates of one of those gangs known as Canta Ranas, or singing frogs, that engaged in drug trafficking, money laundering, identity theft and crimes of violence including murder.
The prosecutors say a member of the Mexican Mafia, who is in a state prison, has overseen the operations of Canta Ranas since the 1980s. Canta Ranas has about 140 members.
VanDoren’s role in the operation was to sell methamphetamine in Southern California, according to the indictment. The 150-page indictment points out that in May 2013, he asked to get some meth from other members in order to sell it. Shortly after getting some meth from another member, he was stopped by police but was not arrested. The vehicle was towed with 26 grams of methamphetamine hidden inside.
The indictment does not indicate whether police ever found the drugs in the van, but it states that the gang ordered VanDoren to pay for the drugs that were lost. Eventually, the indictment alleges, VanDoren left for Maine and told his supplier that he would earn money from fishing to repay him.
But then VanDoren was arrested in Maine in November 2014 and sentenced in May 2015 to two years in jail with all but six months suspended for selling methamphetamine in the Rockland area. He was dealing the drugs with another person from the Brunswick Rooms. Police at the time said that VanDoren was getting the meth sent to him from California.
VanDoren will be held in jail until a June 21 detention hearing is held on the federal charge.