Four UMaine students face felony drug charges

ORONO – Four University of Maine students face felony drug trafficking charges after an investigation by UM police and the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency.

“A pound of marijuana’s a big transaction on our campus,” UM Police Chief Noel March said Monday. “It’s the largest I’ve seen on campus in one transaction.”

UM police, with MDEA, said they have been investigating this particular group of students since the beginning of the semester.

Brennan Farley, 19, and William McHugh, 18, both were living in Cumberland Hall and were arrested Saturday. Ryan Morrison, 18, and Justin Zinck, also 18, lived at Androscoggin Hall and were arrested later for their alleged involvement.

All four first-year students were taken to Penobscot County Jail in Bangor and have been charged with Class C felony drug trafficking. Each faces up to five years in jail plus probation and fines, March said.

A search of Farley’s room after his arrest led to the seizure of another half-pound of marijuana, bringing the total street value to about $5,000, March said.

“I think what we have is a presence of marijuana use and some drug experimentation that will take place on our college campus, just as it does at all 4,000 colleges and universities in the United States,” March said. “While I do not believe that marijuana use and other drug abuse is on an increase, each year we have seen great cooperation between students and university officials toward prevention of drug abuse.”

Last academic year, UM police and MDEA arrested 21 people for drug trafficking.

“Student cooperation led to our becoming aware of these individuals,” March said of the most recent arrests. “If you want to deal drugs, don’t do it at the University of Maine because we’ll send you to jail.”

All four are scheduled to appear at 3rd District Court in Bangor on April 13.

Robert Dana, dean of student affairs, said Monday that “substances like this are very corrosive to the whole learning environment. We have absolutely zero tolerance for it.”

In such cases, students are subject to the university’s conduct system, and penalties can range from a warning to dismissal. In this case, they likely will be suspended from UM, Dana said.