AUBURN — A Wales woman charged with dealing heroin out of her then-Sabattus home could have that charge dismissed, if she complies with conditions of her release over the next year.
Tabitha Tardiff, 32, was arrested and charged in 2015 with aggravated trafficking in scheduled drugs, a Class A crime, punishable by up to 30 years in prison. The charge was dismissed in exchange for a guilty plea to a lesser offense.
On Monday, Tardiff pleaded guilty in Androscoggin County Superior Court to unlawful furnishing of scheduled drugs, a Class C felony that carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.
But Tardiff will be allowed to withdraw that plea a year from now if she hasn’t violated the terms of her bail that include no use or possession of alcohol or illegal drugs for which she can be searched and tested at random.
If she were to steer clear of the law until March 24, 2017, she would be allowed to withdraw her plea and the charge would be dismissed.
Prosecutors indicated that Tardiff played a minor role in the overall trafficking operation.
Her attorney, Donald Hornblower, said his client has no criminal record.
According to a drug agent’s sworn statement, Tardiff and her boyfriend were selling heroin from their home at 54 West Ridge Road in Sabattus in September and October 2015. It was the same home where drug agents had conducted a search with a warrant in 2014 and found a “large amount of illegal drugs and a large amount of currency.”
The couple would sell heroin that a dealer brought back from Massachusetts, the drug agent said in court documents.
On Oct. 7, drug agents confronted Tardiff at the front door of her home and had her accompany them outside. As they talked to other suspects, Tardiff bolted into the home and locked the door, according to court documents.
A drug agent kicked in the door and found Tardiff flushing a toilet. She was handcuffed and led outside.
The next day, agents conducted a search of the home with a warrant and found nearly 43 grams of heroin (with a street value of $8,500) and three digital scales. Field tests showed the substance was heroin.
In addition to other conditions of her deferred sentence, Tardiff must undergo substance abuse evaluation and complete counseling.
If she violates the terms of the deferred sentence, she would serve two years in jail, with all of that time suspended except for one month, plus a $400 fine.
cwilliams@sunjournal.com
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