WARREN — Six people have been charged with drug crimes after allegedly attempting to smuggle Suboxone into the Maine State Prison, according to a statement from the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency.
Drug agents, along with state police and the Maine State Prison Investigative Unit, conducted a joint investigation into the trafficking of Suboxone strips over the last two months, according to the statement. About 28 strips packaged and destined for the prison were seized.
The following individuals were charged: Manny Sylvia, 29, of Massachusetts; Emily Michaud, 18, of Portland; Rosa Carlton, 37, of Waterville; Michael Bailey, 31; Jorge Santiago, 33; and Tyler Crawford, 20.
Bailey, Santiago and Crawford are Maine State Prison inmates.
Sylvia, who recently was released from the prison after serving an oxycodone and cocaine trafficking sentence, was arrested Tuesday by Massachusetts authorities on a Maine DEA warrant for aggravated trafficking in suboxone. Extradition proceedings are pending.
Michaud and Colon were involved in receiving the Suboxone strips from Sylvia, repackaging them to be brought into the prison, while the charged inmates coordinated with individuals outside the prison by arranging payments for the contraband and to have it smuggled inside.
Michaud, Colon, Bailey, Santiago and Crawford were all summoned Thursday for trafficking in Suboxone, a Class B felony.
Suboxone is the most sought after drug in the Maine State Prison, and it is sold within prison walls for more than $400 per strip, compared to between $7 and $10 outside the prison.
The investigation is ongoing and more arrests are likely.
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