Source: United States Department of Justice News
BANGOR, Maine: An Orrington man pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Bangor to conspiracy to traffic methamphetamine and fentanyl in Penobscot County as well as conspiring to make false statements to federal firearms licensee.
According to court records, between January 2018 and December 2021, Joshua Jerrell, 27, conspired to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute methamphetamine, a substance containing methamphetamine and fentanyl. Jerrell regularly arranged to obtain quantities from a source through phone calls, texts and social media using coded language. He would then distribute these drugs to his customers in Penobscot County. In June 2021, Jerrell made false statements to a federal firearms licensee in Holden in an attempt to obtain firearms for his drug supplier.
Jerrell faces a maximum term of 20 years imprisonment on the drug charge and up to five years on the firearms conspiracy charge. He will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigative report by the U.S. Probation Office. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, Maine Drug Enforcement Agency, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case. Assistance was provided by the Orono, Bangor, Brewer, Caribou, Presque Isle and Houlton police departments. U.S. Attorney Darcie N. McElwee also recognized the cooperation and coordination provided by the Maine State Attorney General’s Office.
Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces: This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
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