{"version":1,"id":"us/me","name":"Maine, United States","url":"https://tracker.cannabisfreedom.fyi/country/us/me/","count":6,"totals":{"reports":6,"arrested":10,"plants_destroyed":10260,"hectares":0,"kg_seized":100.24,"deaths":0},"by_type":{"eradication":0,"seizure":0,"raid":2,"arrest":0,"prosecution":1,"sentence":3,"execution":0,"death":0},"latest":"2026-09-30","reports":[{"id":"saint-albans-yiu-grow-house-sentence","code":"CET-4C10Z8","url":"https://tracker.cannabisfreedom.fyi/report/saint-albans-yiu-grow-house-sentence/","short_url":"https://tracker.cannabisfreedom.fyi/r/4C10Z8/","date":"2026-09-30","added_at":"2026-11-01T14:48:55.000Z","added_at_source":"git","updated_at":"2026-11-07T01:58:58.000Z","country":"us/me","country_name":"Maine, United States","place":"U.S. District Court, Bangor, Maine; grow house in Saint Albans","coordinates":[44.8012,-68.7778],"precision":"locality","type":"sentence","also":["prosecution","raid"],"title":"Maine grow-house case ends in one day served and three years of supervision","summary":"Ken Yiu, 49, received a one-day, time-served prison sentence and three years of supervised release in Bangor on 30 September 2026. He had admitted mortgage fraud and maintaining a Saint Albans house to grow and distribute marijuana.","status":"verified","figures":{"charged":1,"prison":"1 day (time served)"},"details":{"agency_types":["prosecutor"],"products":[{"product":"flower"}],"activity":["cultivation","sale"],"setting":["home","prison"],"case_stage":"sentenced","sentence_types":["prison"],"date_precision":"exact"},"data_sources":{"details.activity":[1,2,3],"details.agency_types":[1,2,3],"details.case_stage":[1,2,3],"details.date_precision":[1,2,3],"details.products":[1,2,3],"details.sentence_types":[1,2,3],"details.setting":[1,2,3]},"tags":["maine","bangor","saint-albans","grow-house","mortgage-fraud","federal-court"],"cover":null,"media":[],"cfi_id":null,"created_by_model":"openai/gpt-6.1-sol#xhigh","open_questions":["WABI says the sentencing was on Tuesday, while the Justice Department and Morning Sentinel place it on Wednesday 30 September; this report uses 30 September.","The sources do not give a cannabis weight, plant count or cultivation area for the house.","No appeal decision or photograph of the grow operation or sentencing was found in the opened coverage."],"sources":[{"title":"New York Man Sentenced for Mortgage Fraud and Maintaining an Illegal Marijuana Grow House Following Homeland Security Task Force Investigation","url":"https://www.justice.gov/usao-me/pr/new-york-man-sentenced-mortgage-fraud-and-maintaining-illegal-marijuana-grow-house","publisher":"U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Maine","date":"2026-09-30","archived":null},{"title":"New York man sentenced in St. Albans marijuana grow house mortgage fraud","url":"https://www.centralmaine.com/2026/09/30/new-york-man-sentenced-in-st-albans-marijuana-grow-house-mortgage-fraud/","publisher":"Morning Sentinel","date":"2026-09-30","archived":"https://web.archive.org/web/20261003172859/https://www.centralmaine.com/2026/09/30/new-york-man-sentenced-in-st-albans-marijuana-grow-house-mortgage-fraud/"},{"title":"NY man sentenced of mortgage fraud tied to illegal marijuana grow operation in Maine","url":"https://www.wabi.tv/2026/09/30/ny-man-sentenced-mortgage-fraud-tied-illegal-marijuana-grow-operation-maine/","publisher":"WABI","date":"2026-09-30","archived":"https://web.archive.org/web/20261003004754/https://www.wabi.tv/2026/09/30/ny-man-sentenced-mortgage-fraud-tied-illegal-marijuana-grow-operation-maine/"}]},{"id":"xisen-guo-sentenced-passadumkeag-grow","code":"CET-8SW1T9","url":"https://tracker.cannabisfreedom.fyi/report/xisen-guo-sentenced-passadumkeag-grow/","short_url":"https://tracker.cannabisfreedom.fyi/r/8SW1T9/","date":"2026-07-21","added_at":"2026-11-09T00:14:14.161848Z","added_at_source":"recorded","updated_at":null,"country":"us/me","country_name":"Maine, United States","place":"Passadumkeag, Penobscot County, Maine","coordinates":[45.027,-68.615],"precision":"locality","type":"sentence","also":["seizure"],"title":"Brooklyn man sentenced for 40-pound Passadumkeag grow","summary":"A federal judge sentenced 68-year-old Brooklyn man Xisen Guo to time served and a year of supervised release for running an illegal marijuana grow in Passadumkeag, Maine. A 2024 search of the home found about 40 pounds of processed marijuana and cash after Guo took over the multi-year operation.","status":"verified","figures":{"kg_seized":18.14,"prison":"time served and one year of supervised release","cash":{"amount":4700,"currency":"USD"}},"details":{"agency_types":["court"],"products":[{"product":"flower","kg":18.14}],"activity":["cultivation"],"setting":["home"],"case_stage":"sentenced","sentence_types":["prison","probation"],"date_precision":"publication","region":"Maine"},"data_sources":{"details.activity":[1],"details.agency_types":[1],"details.case_stage":[1],"details.products":[1],"details.sentence_types":[1],"details.setting":[1],"figures.cash":[1],"figures.kg_seized":[1],"figures.prison":[1]},"tags":["maine","penobscot-county","unlicensed-grow"],"cover":null,"media":[{"kind":"photo","url":"https://wgme.com/news/local/new-york-man-sentenced-for-operating-marijuana-grow-in-passadumkeag-weed-pot-us-drug-enforcement-administration-china-xisen-guo-maine","media_url":"https://wgme.com/resources/media2/16x9/full/800/center/80/a61025c3-a8a3-4c12-9d0a-228bc1b995ee-medium16x9_Penobscotmarijuna2.JPG","publisher":"WGME","caption":"Seized processed marijuana from the Passadumkeag grow operation. Photo: Penobscot County Sheriff's Office"}],"cfi_id":null,"created_by_model":"swancloud/muse-spark-1.3-contributor#xhigh","open_questions":["No separate sentencing date is given; 21 July 2026 is the article's publication date and is used as the incident date.","No plant count or grow area was published, so only the processed-marijuana weight and cash are recorded.","Only one opened account of the sentencing was found; no court judgment or second outlet report was available.","The exact cash total above $4,700 was not stated."],"sources":[{"title":"New York man sentenced for operating marijuana grow in Passadumkeag","url":"https://wgme.com/news/local/new-york-man-sentenced-for-operating-marijuana-grow-in-passadumkeag-weed-pot-us-drug-enforcement-administration-china-xisen-guo-maine","publisher":"WGME","date":"2026-07-21","archived":null}]},{"id":"lincoln-county-eight-charged-one-dismissed","code":"CET-AKS3A8","url":"https://tracker.cannabisfreedom.fyi/report/lincoln-county-eight-charged-one-dismissed/","short_url":"https://tracker.cannabisfreedom.fyi/r/AKS3A8/","date":"2024-09-05","added_at":"2026-11-03T03:27:32.000Z","added_at_source":"git","updated_at":"2026-11-06T23:29:35.000Z","country":"us/me","country_name":"Maine, United States","place":"Lincoln County, Maine","coordinates":[44.02,-69.56],"precision":"district","type":"prosecution","also":["arrest","seizure"],"title":"Eight charged in Lincoln County marijuana grows; one dismissed","summary":"Maine prosecutors dismissed a marijuana-cultivation charge against Hongxia Kuang on 5 September 2024 for insufficient evidence. Seven other Chinese nationals remained charged after Whitefield and Chelsea raids seized more than 2,100 plants and about 70 pounds of processed marijuana.","status":"verified","figures":{"arrested":3,"charged":8,"kg_seized":31.75,"plants_destroyed":2100},"details":{"agency_types":["police"],"products":[{"product":"flower","kg":31.75},{"product":"plants","plants":2100}],"activity":["trafficking","cultivation"],"setting":["home"],"case_stage":"charged"},"data_sources":{"details.activity":[1],"details.agency_types":[1],"details.case_stage":[1],"details.products":[1],"details.setting":[1],"figures.charged":[1]},"tags":["maine","lincoln-county","grow-house","dismissal"],"cover":null,"media":[],"cfi_id":null,"created_by_model":"swancloud/muse-spark-1.3-contributor#xhigh","open_questions":["The 2,100-plant total is the sum of over 500, more than 700 and 900 plants reported at three sites; no official combined total was published.","The 31.75 kg total converts 40 pounds plus nearly 30 pounds of processed marijuana and is therefore approximate.","The more than 900 pounds cited for Mingda Li is ambiguous beside the 900-plant seizure at the same address, so it was not counted as seized cannabis weight.","Exact dates for the Whitefield and Chelsea raids were not given beyond the Jan. 10 charges and search; 5 September 2024 is used as the incident date for the dismissal.","No outcome beyond the scheduled Oct. 1 docket call was reported for the seven remaining defendants.","Only one opened source was found; no agency statement or second outlet account could be opened to corroborate it.","The page carries file photos captioned with defendant names, which do not show the fields, seizures, raids or court and are not listed as media."],"sources":[{"title":"Prosecutor drops charges against 1 Chinese National in marijuana case","url":"https://www.boothbayregister.com/article/prosecutor-drops-charges-against-1-chinese-national-marijuana-case/190951","publisher":"Boothbay Register","date":"2024-09-09","archived":null}]},{"id":"skowhegan-waterville-road-4760-plants-three-arrested","code":"CET-ZAJNNS","url":"https://tracker.cannabisfreedom.fyi/report/skowhegan-waterville-road-4760-plants-three-arrested/","short_url":"https://tracker.cannabisfreedom.fyi/r/ZAJNNS/","date":"2024-03-01","added_at":"2026-11-09T18:30:04.881338Z","added_at_source":"recorded","updated_at":"2026-11-10T06:28:33.000Z","country":"us/me","country_name":"Maine, United States","place":"Waterville Road, Skowhegan, Somerset County, Maine","coordinates":[44.7692,-69.7173],"precision":"locality","type":"raid","also":["seizure","arrest"],"title":"4,760 cannabis plants seized from Skowhegan grow; three from Brooklyn arrested","summary":"Somerset County sheriff's deputies searching a home on Waterville Road in Skowhegan found 4,760 cannabis plants in March 2024 and arrested three Brooklyn residents, who were charged with drug trafficking and marijuana cultivation. The home held cash, a pickup truck and signs of black mould and electrical faults, and one defendant's trial later collapsed after he returned to China.","status":"verified","figures":{"arrested":3,"charged":3,"plants_destroyed":4760,"cash":{"amount":7000,"currency":"USD"}},"details":{"agencies":["Somerset County Sheriff's Office","Waterville Police Department","us-hsi","us-dea","Maine Office of Cannabis Policy"],"agency_types":["police","anti-narcotics","regulator"],"products":[{"product":"plants","plants":4760}],"activity":["cultivation","sale"],"setting":["home"],"charges":["trafficking in scheduled drugs","cultivation of marijuana"],"case_stage":"charged","force":["none-reported"]},"data_sources":{"details.activity":[1],"details.agencies":[1],"details.agency_types":[1],"details.case_stage":[1],"details.charges":[1],"details.force":[1],"details.products":[1],"details.setting":[1],"figures.arrested":[1],"figures.cash":[1],"figures.charged":[1],"figures.plants_destroyed":[1]},"tags":["maine","skowhegan","somerset-county","grow-house","unlicensed-grow"],"cover":null,"media":[{"kind":"photo","url":"https://wgme.com/news/local/over-4000-marijuana-plants-seized-from-illegal-grow-site-in-skowhegan-three-arrested-waterville-road-brooklyn-new-york-yao-bin-cheng-ying-xia-liao-xi-qiang-zhao","media_url":"https://wgme.com/resources/media2/16x9/full/1174/center/80/224b4012-70be-4ba8-b66f-e0a3f82671cb-large16x9_skowheganpot.jpg","publisher":"WGME","caption":"Cannabis plants seized inside the Waterville Road home, in the Somerset County Sheriff's Office handout published with the WGME report. Photo: Somerset County Sheriff's Office"}],"cfi_id":null,"created_by_model":"swancloud/muse-spark-1.3-contributor#xhigh","open_questions":["The three defendants' ages differ between accounts: WGME, Maine Public and the 2024 Morning Sentinel report give 61, 59 and 56, while the 2026 Morning Sentinel report gives 63, 57 and 59; the ages from the sheriff's 2024 release are used.","The cash seized is described as suspected drug proceeds and given only as more than $7,000; the 2026 court report puts a forfeiture claim at $6,316 in cash.","No weight of dried cannabis product was reported, and no value estimate for the plants was published.","The sheriff's release does not say what each defendant's role was or where the cannabis was to be sold.","No outcome is reported for Ying Xia Liao's case, which the 2026 Morning Sentinel report describes as still pending."],"sources":[{"title":"Over 4,000 marijuana plants seized from illegal grow site in Skowhegan, three arrested","url":"https://wgme.com/news/local/over-4000-marijuana-plants-seized-from-illegal-grow-site-in-skowhegan-three-arrested-waterville-road-brooklyn-new-york-yao-bin-cheng-ying-xia-liao-xi-qiang-zhao","publisher":"WGME","date":"2024-03-01","archived":null},{"title":"Somerset County sheriff arrests three people in connection with cannabis operation in Skowhegan","url":"https://www.mainepublic.org/news/2024-03-02/somerset-county-sheriff-arrests-three-people-in-connection-with-cannabis-operation-in-skowhegan","publisher":"Maine Public","date":"2024-03-02","archived":null},{"title":"Sheriff: Three arrested in bust of illegal cannabis grow in Skowhegan","url":"https://www.centralmaine.com/2024/03/01/sheriff-three-arrested-in-bust-of-illegal-cannabis-grow-in-skowhegan/","publisher":"Central Maine (Morning Sentinel)","date":"2024-03-01","archived":null},{"title":"Skowhegan cannabis grow house trial derailed as man accused reportedly leaves country","url":"https://www.centralmaine.com/2026/09/29/skowhegan-cannabis-grow-house-trial-derailed-as-man-accused-reportedly-leaves-country/","publisher":"Central Maine (Morning Sentinel)","date":"2026-09-29","archived":null},{"title":"Trial halted after Maine marijuana grow suspect leaves U.S.","url":"https://wgme.com/news/local/trial-halted-after-maine-marijuana-grow-suspect-leaves-us-china-yao-bin-cheng","publisher":"WGME","date":"2026-09-30","archived":null}]},{"id":"carmel-maine-illegal-grow-3400-plants","code":"CET-Y8GMWS","url":"https://tracker.cannabisfreedom.fyi/report/carmel-maine-illegal-grow-3400-plants/","short_url":"https://tracker.cannabisfreedom.fyi/r/Y8GMWS/","date":"2023-06-29","added_at":"2026-11-04T00:50:26.078Z","added_at_source":"recorded","updated_at":"2026-11-06T23:29:51.000Z","country":"us/me","country_name":"Maine, United States","place":"1123 Main Road (Route 2), Carmel, Penobscot County, Maine","coordinates":[44.793,-69.057],"precision":"locality","type":"raid","also":["arrest"],"title":"Sheriff seizes 3,400 plants and 111 pounds of marijuana in Carmel raid","summary":"The Penobscot County Sheriff's Office raided an unlicensed grow in a former chicken barn at 1123 Main Road in Carmel on 29 June 2023, seizing more than 3,400 plants and 111 pounds of processed marijuana and arresting four men from New York and Massachusetts.","status":"verified","figures":{"arrested":4,"kg_seized":50.35,"plants_destroyed":3400},"details":{"agency_types":["police"],"products":[{"product":"flower","kg":50.35},{"product":"plants","plants":3400}],"activity":["cultivation"],"setting":["home"],"case_stage":"investigation","date_precision":"exact"},"data_sources":{"details.activity":[2,1],"details.agency_types":[1,2],"details.case_stage":[1,2],"details.date_precision":[1],"details.products":[1],"details.setting":[1],"figures.arrested":[1,2],"figures.kg_seized":[1],"figures.plants_destroyed":[1]},"tags":["unlicensed-grow","penobscot-county"],"cover":null,"media":[{"kind":"photo","url":"https://www.bangordailynews.com/2023/07/03/bangor/carmel-marijuana-raid/","media_url":"https://i0.wp.com/bdn-data.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2023/07/Carmel-Marijuana.jpeg?fit=780%2C585&ssl=1","publisher":"Bangor Daily News","caption":"Seized plants from the illegal grow operation in Carmel, courtesy of the Penobscot County Sheriff's Office.","archived":"https://web.archive.org/web/20250603030910/https://www.bangordailynews.com/2023/07/03/bangor/carmel-marijuana-raid/"}],"cfi_id":null,"created_by_model":"muse-code/muse-spark-1.3#xhigh","open_questions":["The opened sources give no court outcome for the four men arrested in the raid."],"sources":[{"title":"Police seize 3,400 plants and 111 pounds of marijuana in Carmel","url":"https://www.bangordailynews.com/2023/07/03/bangor/carmel-marijuana-raid/","publisher":"Bangor Daily News","date":"2023-07-03","archived":"https://web.archive.org/web/20250603030910/https://www.bangordailynews.com/2023/07/03/bangor/carmel-marijuana-raid/"},{"title":"Maine Legislators Demand Action on Alleged Illegal Chinese Grow Sites","url":"https://news.crbmonitor.com/2023/09/maine-legislators-demand-action-on-alleged-illegal-chinese-grow-sites/","publisher":"CRB Monitor News","date":"2023-09-01","archived":"https://web.archive.org/web/20260214220859/https://news.crbmonitor.com/2023/09/maine-legislators-demand-action-on-alleged-illegal-chinese-grow-sites/"}]},{"id":"maine-michael-pelletier-life-commuted-2021","code":"CET-SQ4KJX","url":"https://tracker.cannabisfreedom.fyi/report/maine-michael-pelletier-life-commuted-2021/","short_url":"https://tracker.cannabisfreedom.fyi/r/SQ4KJX/","date":"2021-01-20","added_at":"2026-11-04T00:52:14.293Z","added_at_source":"recorded","updated_at":"2026-11-06T23:29:51.000Z","country":"us/me","country_name":"Maine, United States","place":"Terre Haute federal prison complex, Indiana","coordinates":[39.48,-87.375],"precision":"locality","type":"sentence","also":[],"title":"Life term of paraplegic cannabis smuggler Pelletier commuted","summary":"Michael Pelletier, 64, a paraplegic serving life for running a 2003-2006 marijuana smuggling ring from Canada into Maine, was among 70 people granted clemency on 20 January 2021. Sentenced in Bangor in 2008, he had sought compassionate release over failing health and a COVID-19 infection.","status":"verified","figures":{"prison":"life plus concurrent 20 years (commuted January 2021)"},"details":{"agency_types":["prosecutor"],"products":[{"product":"flower"}],"activity":["smuggling"],"setting":["home","prison"],"case_stage":"sentenced","sentence_types":["life"],"date_precision":"exact"},"data_sources":{"details.activity":[1,2],"details.agency_types":[1],"details.case_stage":[1],"details.date_precision":[1,2],"details.products":[1,2],"details.sentence_types":[1,2],"details.setting":[1,2,3],"figures.prison":[1,2]},"tags":["commutation","clemency","smuggling","life-sentence"],"cover":null,"media":[],"cfi_id":null,"created_by_model":"muse-code/muse-spark-1.3#xhigh","open_questions":["The White House statement described a 30-year conspiracy sentence; the court record and local reporting say Pelletier was serving life plus concurrent terms, which this report uses.","No release date or supervision terms were published in the opened sources.","Whether the $4.8 million forfeiture and $84,000 Social Security repayment survived the commutation was not reported."],"sources":[{"title":"Trump grants clemency to Aroostook County man serving life sentence for marijuana smuggling","url":"https://www.bangordailynews.com/2021/01/20/aroostook/trump-grants-clemency-to-aroostook-county-man-serving-life-sentence-for-marijuana-smuggling/","publisher":"Bangor Daily News","date":"2021-01-20","archived":"https://web.archive.org/web/20250603013106/https://www.bangordailynews.com/2021/01/20/aroostook/trump-grants-clemency-to-aroostook-county-man-serving-life-sentence-for-marijuana-smuggling/"},{"title":"Statement from the Press Secretary Regarding Executive Grants of Clemency","url":"https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/briefings-statements/statement-press-secretary-regarding-executive-grants-clemency-012021/","publisher":"The White House","date":"2021-01-20","archived":"https://web.archive.org/web/20261015163220/https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/briefings-statements/statement-press-secretary-regarding-executive-grants-clemency-012021/"},{"title":"Trump pardoned 12 cannabis prisoners on his way out. Here are their stories","url":"https://www.leafly.com/news/politics/trump-pardoned-12-cannabis-prisoners-on-his-way-out-here-are-their-stories","publisher":"Leafly","date":"2021-01-20","archived":"https://web.archive.org/web/20260512061114/https://www.leafly.com/news/politics/trump-pardoned-12-cannabis-prisoners-on-his-way-out-here-are-their-stories"}]}]}