Three Somerset County residents were charged with a variety of drug offenses Friday after the search of a Palmyra home resulted in what Sheriff Dale Lancaster called one of the largest heroin seizures in the county in recent years.

Lancaster said the amount of heroin seized from the residence had an approximate street value of up to $84,000.

Melissa Collamore, 49, and Eric Hamilton, 45, both of Palmyra, were charged with aggravated trafficking in a schedule W drug (Class A, heroin), trafficking in a scheduled W drug (Class B, heroin) and possession of a scheduled W drug (Class D, heroin) after her residence at 81 Ell Hill Road was searched by Somerset County deputies.

Kevin Cookson, 56, of Newport, was charged with the same offenses.

Collamore was also arrested on a felony negotiating a worthless instrument warrant, Class C, out of Waldo County, according to a news release from Lancaster.

The investigation is continuing and more arrests and charges are expected, Lancaster said. Once all of the seized evidence is processed and identified, there may be additional charges.

The sheriff’s department executed the search warrant at 8:20 a.m. Friday after an investigation led the department to believe Collamore and Hamilton were selling heroin from their home, Lancaster said int he release. The search was led by Detective Lt. Carl Gottardi and a team of eight deputies, Maine State Trooper, George Neagle and his drug-sniffing dog and an agent from the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency.

Lancaster said the search turned up approximately 10 ounces (288 grams) of heroin, a small amount of marijuana, hashish, assorted controlled pills, drug-related paraphernalia, drug-related documentation and $1,090. The seized heroin has an approximate street value of $84,000, according to Lancaster, and is the approximate equivalent of 2,800 bags, or individual doses, which are sold commonly for $25-$40 per bag on the street, the release said.

The three are being held at the Somerset County Jail in East Madison.

Copy the Story Link