Hancock Man Sentenced for Intent to Sell $50K of Fentanyl

A Hancock man is going to prison for possessing a large amount of fentanyl, with the intent to sell it downeast.

34-year-old William Smeal was arrested in February of 2019, after a traffic stop in Ellsworth. His girlfriend, 22-year-old Savannah Adams, was also in the vehicle and arrested at the scene. A search of their vehicle resulted in the seizure of over 100 grams of a substance containing fentanyl and $1,200 in cash. Smeal admitted that he had purchased the drugs in Massachusetts that same day. A subsequent search of his home and another search of his car produced more than 100 additional grams of the drug. The street value of the drugs is estimated at $50,000. Officials believe the couple was planning to sell the drugs in Hancock and Washington counties. Drug agents had been investigating the couple for suspected drug activity, and received information that they had left the state the day before the traffic stop.

In January, both suspects pleaded guilty to drug possession with intent to sell. This week, Smeal was sentenced to 54 months in prison and four years of supervised release.

This case was investigated by the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with help from the Maine State Police and Holden Police Departments. The prosecution of this case is a result of the ongoing efforts by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force program, a partnership between federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies.

Anyone who has information about drug crimes can submit tips to the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency through its tip line at 800-452-6457 or by texting MDEA, followed by the information, to 847411. There's also an MDEA app called Tip411, Maine DEA.