Lewiston Man Sentenced to Six Years in Prison for Conspiring to Cultivate and Distribute Marijuana

PORTLAND, Maine: A Lewiston man was sentenced today in federal court in Portland for conspiring to manufacture 100 or more marijuana plants and to distribute 100 or more kilograms of marijuana, Acting U.S. Attorney Donald E. Clark announced.

U.S. District Judge George Z. Singal sentenced Richard Daniels, aka 'Stich,' 56, to six years in prison and five years of supervised release. Daniels was also fined $2,500. He pleaded guilty on November 21, 2019.

According to court records, between 2015 and February 27, 2018, Daniels was a member of an organization that cultivated marijuana at numerous locations in Androscoggin County and distributed bulk marijuana to people who were not participants in Maine's Medical Marijuana program, including out-of-state customers. Daniels was an active participant in the conspiracy's daily operations and personally supplied bulk quantities of marijuana to the conspiracy's customers, including those from outside of Maine. In addition, Daniels processed marijuana into marijuana concentrate ('dabs') which was also distributed illegally.

On February 27, 2018, law enforcement officers searched Daniels' residence and an adjacent garage. During the search, agents seized approximately 119 kilograms of marijuana, 27 sheets of marijuana concentrate, and equipment used to manufacture marijuana concentrate.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the IRS Criminal Investigation Division investigated the case.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.