A Canaan woman arrested in September on suspicion of using Waterville hotel rooms to store caches of illegal drugs has pleaded guilty in federal court.

Toni D. Juliano, 30, who was initially held on state charges, entered the pleas in U.S. District Court in Bangor and is being held in federal custody awaiting sentencing.

Juliano pleaded guilty to “possession with the intent to distribute 100 grams or more of cocaine base and an unspecified quantity of cocaine,” that occurred Sept. 6, 2017, as well as to “possession with the intent to distribute 40 or more grams of fentanyl” and unspecified quantities of heroin and cocaine that occurred Sept. 27, 2017.

The two charges each carry five-year minimum mandatory prison terms and a minimum of four years’ supervised release.

Judge John A. Woodcock Jr. also entered a preliminary order for the forfeiture of $38,222 in cash that was seized when Juliano was arrested on Sept. 27, 2017. Woodcock’s order says he concluded it was related to the crimes.

Juliano was represented by attorney Walter McKee. The prosecutors are Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joel Casey and Donald Clark.

The prosecution’s version of events says Juliano rented hotel rooms by the day in Waterville where she kept the drugs that she sold in the local area.

When she failed to re-rent a room on Sept. 6, 2017, hotel personnel went to her room, saw the drugs and other drug paraphernalia and called police.

In the second charge, police obtained a warrant to search another hotel room Juliano was renting in Waterville as well as her vehicle and an associate, Ambrose Wan, 32, of New York City, New York.

Juliano and Wan were arrested on Sept. 27, 2017. Waterville police stopped the pair as Juliano was dropping Wan off at Walmart.

Wan fled on foot, according to a news release sent at the time by the Waterville Police Department. Wan was caught by officers shortly afterward.

Police initially took both subjects to the hospital at their request.

Wan remains behind bars at the Kennebec County jail in lieu of $150,000 bail, which has a condition that he remain in Maine.

Wan is charged with three counts of aggravated trafficking in drugs and one count each of conspiracy to commit trafficking, unlawful possession of drugs and operating without a license.

At an initial appearance hearing for Wan at the Capital Judicial Center, the state prosecutor, Assistant District Attorney Tyler LeClair told a judge that police located 109 grams of fentanyl, 97.2 grams of cocaine, 75.9 grams of heroin and suboxone strips, drug paraphernalia and the cash when they searched the couple’s Waterville hotel room Sept. 27, 2017.

Juliano was reported to be going through detoxification and too ill to make in initial appearance two days later in state court.

Juliano had pleaded guilty July 27, 2017, in Augusta to a charge of unlawful trafficking in scheduled drugs and was scheduled for a sentencing hearing on Nov. 6, 2017, at the Capital Judicial Center in Augusta.

She had been free on post-conviction bail with a condition prohibiting her from possessing drugs when the drug cache was discovered in her hotel room.

Betty Adams — 621-5631

badams@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @betadams

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