Gardiner woman sentenced on federal drug conspiracy charges

A Gardiner woman who pleaded guilty in October to charges of conspiring to distribute heroin and cocaine base, was sentenced Monday in U.S. District Court in Bangor.

Heather Downs, 33, will serve 38 months in prison and three years of supervised release for conspiring to distribute heroin and cocaine base, also commonly known as crack.

A news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Bangor said over the course of a year and nine months, Downs was among a group of people who conspired to buy heroin and crack in Rochester, New York, and to bring it to central Maine to sell.

“(Downs) assisted Rochester dealers in distributing narcotics,” according to the release. “She provided transportation, facilitated drug deals, introduced Rochester conspirators to area distributors, and assisted other conspirators in finding residents from which to sell drugs. She also dropped off drugs and picked up proceeds from drug sales.”

In March 2018, Downs pleaded not guilty at her arraignment, after she was indicted earlier that month by a federal grand jury. Six months later, she changed her plea.