Man faces 10 years after guilty plea for drug and gun charges

BANGOR, Maine (WAGM) - A man has pleaded guilty to trafficking drugs in Aroostook and Penobscot Counties. According to the United States District Attorney’s Office, a Penobscot County man pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Bangor to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl, possession with the intent to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl, and being an unlawful user of controlled substances in possession of a firearm.

According to court records, between January 2018 and December 2021, 33 year old Matthew Catalano along with others, trafficked methamphetamine and fentanyl in Penobscot County, Aroostook County and elsewhere. On February 17, 2021, Catalano was arrested by the Orono Police Department following a traffic stop during which he was found in possession of large amounts of methamphetamine and fentanyl, a loaded 9mm handgun and drug paraphernalia.

Catalano faces a minimum of ten years imprisonment and up to life imprisonment on the two drug charges and up to ten years imprisonment on the firearm charge. He will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigative report by the U.S. Probation Office. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case. Assistance was provided by the Orono, Bangor, Brewer, Caribou, Presque Isle, and Houlton police departments. U.S. Attorney Darcie N. McElwee also recognized the cooperation and coordination provided by the Maine State Attorney General’s Office and the Aroostook County District Attorney’s Office.

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