AUBURN, Maine — An Auburn man charged as part of a marijuana cultivating operation pleaded guilty in federal court Friday to manufacturing more than 50 plants and possessing more than 50 kilograms of marijuana with intent to distribute.
Brian Bilodeau, 38, faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a maximum fine of $1 million.
Bilodeau was charged along with nine other defendants with charges including conspiracy to distribute marijuana, manufacturing a controlled substance, possession with intent to distribute marijuana, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, according to court documents.
Prosecutors said a 2018 search warrant executed at Bilodeau's home turned up about 180 pounds of marijuana, more than 50 marijuana plants, four guns, a money-counting machine, a 2016 Lamborghini Huracan, and a 2014 Nissan GT-R.
Agents also seized about 321 marijuana plants and 181 pounds of marijuana at an Auburn warehouse used by Bilodeau and others to cultivate marijuana.
Bilodeau had argued that his operation complied with Maine's Medical Marijuana Program, but the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit said Bilodeau and others knowingly engaged in "a large-scale" and "black-market" operation that was "aimed at supplying marijuana to persons known not to be qualifying patients," prosecutors said in a release.
The decision said drug ledgers seized from Bilodeau's home indicated an operation that far exceeded a supply that would be consistent with the MMMP.
