Police officers cleared of charges after being linked to tip-off to illegal cannabis operation

A web of lies and conspiracies is unfolding in Franklin County, Maine, involving at least four police officers and several city officials.

While two former Franklin County deputies await charges for allegedly running an illegal cannabis operation in Farmington, Maine, as part of law enforcement surveillance, two other officials have been acquitted of federal charges after the court found that they did not knew why they had license plates and use of government databases.

The Sun Journal reports that former Wilton Police Officer Kevin Lemay of Farmington and former Oxford County Sheriff’s Deputy James McLamb of Auburn were each charged by the federal government with tampering with documents on November 9, 2021. The defendants say they used government databases to confirm that a cannabis operation was under surveillance and then destroyed electronic evidence.

Federal prosecutors believe that Lucas Sirois – the ringleader – allegedly led a $13 million illegal cannabis operation and that police officers worked for him internally and monitored possible investigations. On July 21, 2020, Maine State Police officers and other law enforcement agencies searched locations in Farmington and other locations in Franklin County. On November 9, 2021, after over a year of investigation, a federal grand jury indicted eleven individuals, as well as three companies affiliated with Sirois.

But he reportedly had several police officers working for him inside.

The two former police officers were accused of running license plates at the request of Franklin County deputies Bradley Scovil and Derrick Doucette. They allegedly examined license plates to confirm that these officers were being monitored by law enforcement. The two former police officers allegedly received cars and money in exchange for keeping the response team informed.

Sirois also allegedly had internal city officials working for him: Former Rangeley Selectman David Burgess also admitted that he accepted tens of thousands of dollars in cold hard cash from Sirois to lobby for city decisions that benefited him and his cannabis operation . Burgess pleaded guilty in June to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, conspiracy to commit official fraud (bribery), and conspiracy to defraud the United States and obstruct and interfere with the Internal Revenue Service (tax fraud). His outcome was somewhat less forgiving: Burgess also waived his right to appeal as long as his sentence was less than nine years.

Doucette and Scovil pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiring to defraud and deprive the residents of Franklin County of their “right to the honest and faithful service of the defendants by bribery” and are currently awaiting sentencing.

However, they won’t stay in the slammer for more than five years. Thanks to an agreement, Doucette and Scovil waived their right to appeal the sentences as long as their prison sentences did not exceed four years and nine months.

Former officer Kevin Lemay of Farmington and former deputy James McLamb of Auburn, who also once served as city manager in Dixfield, each asked that the charges against them be dismissed, saying they did not know why they used state resources would have.

The dismissals were granted by federal Judge Lance Walker because the government and the indictment failed to prove that Lemay and McLamb were aware of a future grand jury investigation of the cannabis operation or that their actions would affect those proceedings. This aspect is necessary for a conviction on charges of manipulation.

“Mr. Lemay is pleased that the court has granted his motion and dismissed the charges against him. He has always maintained that these allegations are without merit,” said his attorney, Stacey Neumann of the Portland law firm Murray, Plumb & Murray, Maine, in an email to the Sun Journal.

“From the beginning, we have believed that Mr. McLamb should not have been charged,” McLamb’s attorney, Michael Turndorf of Turndorf Law in Portland, wrote in an email. “This trial has had a profound impact on Mr. McLamb’s life. I hope and trust that he can move on and lead a happy and productive life.”

Scovil and Doucette were allegedly involved in the conspiracy from June 2019 to July 21, keeping the Farmington illegal cannabis operation in check.

Other co-defendants in the conspiracy case include Lucas Sirois, his estranged wife Alisa Sirois, his father Robert Sirois, former Rangeley Selectman David Burgess, Brandon Dagnese, Kenneth Allen and Ryan Nezol.

Former Franklin County Assistant District Attorney Kayla Alves also pleaded guilty to tampering with documents for her role in the conspiracy. Her license to practice law was suspended for nine months but has since been reinstated. Alves was sentenced to two years probation and a $2,000 fine for pleading guilty.

Allen and the members of the Sirois family have pleaded not guilty and their cases are pending.