Two area men sentenced in heroin trafficking case > Judge tells expectant father the arrest a lifesaver

BANGOR – In sentencing two men for trafficking in heroin, a federal judge here Tuesday told one he’d probably be dead by now if he hadn’t been arrested.

U.S. District Judge George Z. Singal sentenced Tavius Premru, 29, of Bangor to 15 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Premru earlier pleaded guilty to four counts of distributing heroin – specifically, 10 bags on Feb. 29, 10 bags on March 31 and 10 bags on April 11.

Premru was arrested April 11 after a chase on Interstate 95. At that point, agents seized an additional 140 bags of heroin that Premru reportedly had thrown out along the chase route. The drug sells for about $20 a bag on the street.

In a separate hearing, Singal sentenced Joshua Cormier, 23, of Kenduskeag to 10 months in prison after he earlier pleaded guilty to possession with the intent to distribute heroin.

In an unusual split sentence, Singal ordered Cormier to spend five months in prison followed by five months of community confinement.

Cormier, who has undergone drug treatment in the interim between his arrest and sentencing, will spend the last five months at a halfway house. Cormier already has spent about 31/2 months in jail, so technically he will be jailed for two more months before going to the halfway house, according to a legal expert.

An expectant father, Cormier is lucky to be alive because of his extensive involvement in drugs, according to the judge.

“Absent from arrest, I suspect you would be dead,” Singal told Cormier.

According to a court affidavit, Cormier has been known as a substantial heroin dealer in the Bangor area. On Jan. 4, agents searched his room at the Days Inn on the Odlin Road and found 93 bags of heroin. Cormier had a “10-bag-a-day” habit at the time, according to court papers.

Cormier’s parents and his young wife sat in the courtroom during the sentencing. His mother spoke with emotion on her son’s behalf about how the time he has spent in a drug rehabilitation facility recently has helped him.

Cormier apologized to his family and to the court for his illegal activity before the judge levied the sentence.

In an earlier hearing, Premru also apologized and said he would like to help others avoid the trap of illegal drug activity. His court-appointed attorney, J. Bradford Coffey, had argued for a “downward departure” for his client because, he said, Premru was diagnosed with a bipolar disorder and possessed a diminished mental capacity at the time of his arrest.

A downward departure, if granted, would result in a lighter-than-usual prison sentence. Judge Singal denied the request despite extensive testimony given by a psychologist about Premru’s mental illness.

Premru was arrested May 17 as he and a female driver headed north on Interstate 95 in a rented car. The subject of a continuing investigation of heroin dealing in Bangor, Premru reportedly was returning to Bangor with large amounts of the drug he had obtained in Massachusetts, his native state.

Agents with the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency were posted near the Augusta tollbooth after being informed Premru would pass through the area.

Premru and the female driver approached the tollbooth about 7 p.m. that day and refused to stop for police. A three-mile chase ensued north of Augusta.

During the chase, Premru allegedly threw out packets of heroin and bundles of money. State police finally threw down spike mats to stop the vehicle. The woman has not been charged in the matter.