AUBURN, Maine (APD) – On Friday April 28, 2023, a large wooden crate was delivered to a local restaurant in Auburn from the State of Arizona. Employees of the restaurant believed the crate to contain a shipment of mugs they had recently ordered. When employees opened the crate, they located a plastic tote, which contained what the employees believed was a significant quantity of illegal drugs. The tote bore a shipping label with the address of the restaurant and a contact name of “Jeremy Mercier,” who is not an employee of the restaurant.
At approximately 12:36PM, Auburn Police were called to the restaurant. Upon arrival, officers examined the shipment and confirmed the employees’ suspicions. Auburn PD officer and detectives secured the crate and transported it to the police department, where a chemical field examination was conducted. The substance was identified as Fentanyl, a scheduled “W” drug.
Approximately one hour later, officers and detectives intercepted Jeremy Mercier at the restaurant when he arrived asking about the shipment. Mercier – 41y/o of Auburn – was placed under arrest. Upon further investigation, it was determined that Mercier is currently out on pre-conviction bail for an unrelated criminal charge.
Mercier has a previous Federal conviction for the distribution of cocaine, for which he was convicted on August 13, 2007. Mercier served several years in Federal prison for that conviction.
Auburn Police seized approximately $2,780.00 from Mercier as evidence of drug proceeds and 14 kilos of suspected Fentanyl with a re-sale street value of more than $3 million dollars. Mercier is being held at the Androscoggin County Jail with no bail, charged with the following new criminal conduct as a result of this incident:
* Aggravated Illegal Importation of Scheduled Drugs – Class A – Felony
* Aggravated Trafficking of Scheduled Drugs – Class A – Felony
* Violation of Conditional Release – Class E – Misdemeanor
“This is an active, ongoing investigation and we do anticipate that our state and federal partners will be joining this investigation,” said Deputy Chief Tim Cougle.
