N.Y. man gets 10 years for trafficking cocaine in Portland

PORTLAND, Maine - A Brooklyn, N.Y., man was sentenced today in federal court for conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine base and heroin, according to a press release from the Maine U.S. Attorney's Office.

Chief U.S. District Judge Jon D. Levy sentenced Melquan Jordan, aka "Squirrel," 31, to 10 years in prison and four years of supervised release. Following a four-day trial, a jury returned a guilty verdict against Jordan and a co-defendant, Edward Canty III, on October 24, 2019.

According to trial evidence, between September and December 2016, Jordan and others conspired to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute cocaine base and heroin transported from outside Maine for distribution in Portland. Jordan's distribution involved more than 100 grams of heroin.

Following the jury's guilty verdict, Canty, 31, also of Brooklyn, was sentenced to 66 months imprisonment and three years of supervised release. The other conspirators pleaded guilty, and all but one have been sentenced. Lamale Lawson, 29, of Brooklyn, was sentenced to 84 months imprisonment and four years of supervised release; Christopher Rickett, 33, of Portland, was sentenced to three years of probation; and Sierrha Frisbie, 29, of Portland, also was sentenced to three years of probation. Akeem Cruz, 31, of Brooklyn, awaits sentencing.

The Portland and South Portland Police Departments; the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency; Homeland Security Investigations; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and the FBI investigated the case.