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STATE OF MAINE
'

Department of Public Safety

Maine Drug Enforcement Agency
166 State House Station

Augusta, Maine

04333-0166
PAUL R. LEPAGE

ROY E. MCKINNEY

GOVERNOR

JOHN E. MORRIS

DIRECTOR

COMMISSIONER

'
V

Testimony of Supervisory Special Agent Matthew Cashman

IN SUPPORT OF

An Act to

name

is

Human

Thank you

Services.

Matthew Cashman and

currently

assigned

Stop the Abuse of Electronic Bene ts Transfer Cards

Senator Brakey, Representative Gattine,

Health and

LD 607

as

Enforcement Agency

task

Franklin and Oxford County.

Department of Public Safety

in

force

investigative

supervisor

am

that includes

street level efforts that focus

established

total

below the

interest

interstate

and substantial violators,

on the small dealers and those caught

of 40 State of Maine

of contacts with drug offenders and

/

Auburn

with knowledge of on-going drug

for

area.

activity,

From

EBT cards

in

in possession.

another s

MDEA.

name

Since early

Those seizures

scene of drug search warrants,

interviews of defendants and others

MDEA has learned that

drug dealers to take custody of a drug user s

lieu

at the

to address

of the Federal law

MDEA s Western DTF has seized a number of these cards.

primarily within the Lewiston

Androscoggin,

by the Legislature

were seized during 25 separate drug enforcement operations by the

result

MDEA s

Support of LD 607.

enforcement authorities that focus on international,

were a

it

is

common practice

EBT card either as direct payment or in

of immediate payment. In those instances where a dealer takes the card(s) in

_

payment, the

am

here today to testify on behalf of the Maine

the upper and mid-level drug dealers that operate

2012, the

Maine Drug

the

to

supervising the investigative activity of the

My

for the opportunity to appear here today.

The Maine Drug Enforcement Agency was

During the past 11 months, a

Committee on

Joint Standing

have been a Lewiston police officer for 19 years.

(MDEA)

Members of the

Western District Task Force (DTF) with an area of operation

and the

EBT Cardholder will give the

payment, the dealer will hold on

to the

dealer their PIN. If in lieu of immediate

drug user s

EBT card

and once money

LD

607

Page 2

has been loaded on to the card, the dealer will get payment at that time, in addition to an
interest fee.

A few of the incidents where EBT cards were seized include:

In September 2013, 6

EBT

cards were seized from a defendant in a crack cocaine

traf cking investigation. 5 of those cards were in the names of known drug users.

have

provided the committee with a photo of the evidence seized in that case;

A June 2014 heroin trafficking investigation led to the seizure of Fentanyl and the
seizure of an

EBT card from the

defendant that was in the

name of a known drug user;

A July 2014 heroin trafficking investigation led to seizure of pre-packaged crack

cocaine and heroin as well as an

When

user.

residence

EBT card that was

in the

name of a known drug

questioned, the drug defendant alleged that the cardholder stays at his

sometimes

In October 20l4,

The case was tumed over

to

DHHS

investigators;

MDEA received a complaint regarding the selling_of controlled

prescription drugs at a Lewiston residence and that the seller

was

in possession of 20

EBT cards. MDEA s investigation led to the seizure of controlled prescription drugs and
4 EBT cards. The defendant had 4 aliases and the fraud case was turned over to DHHS
investigators;
_

In

November 2014,

a crack cocaine trafficking investigation led to the seizure of

8+ounces of pre-packaged and bulk crack cocaine,

electronic scales and an

0.3

ounces of heroin, a handgun,

EBT Card not issued to the defendant. The street value of the

drugs was more than $24,000.

have provided the committee with a photo of the

evidence seized in that case; and

In

December 2014, information learned during

a crack cocaine trafficking

investigation revealed that the incarcerated dealer s

EBT card was being used

in the state

of Alabama and had been used there by another consistently between September 2012

and October 2014. The fraud case was forwarded

On

DHHS

investigators.

behalf of the Department of Public Safety and the

Agency,
have.

to

thank you for your time and

am honored

to

Maine Drug Enforcement

answer any questions

'

that

you may