Bangor Resident Sentenced to Six Years in Prison for Bath Salt Distribution Conspiracy

Contact: Joel B. Casey
Assistant United States Attorney
Tel: (207) 945-0373

Bangor, Maine: United States Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II announced that Gina
Nelson, 31, of Bradley, Maine was sentenced yesterday in U.S. District Court by Judge John A.
Woodcock, Jr. to 72 months in prison and 3 years of supervised release for conspiracy to possess
with the intent to distribute and to distribute MDPV, a chemical compound commonly referred to
as “bath salts” or “monkey dust.”

According to court records, between April and December 2011, the defendant illegally
distributed MDPV in Penobscot County and elsewhere. The defendant distributed MDPV to
others who were using and selling the drug in the Bangor area. In November 2011, following the
search of a co-conspirator’s residence in Bangor and the seizure of a large amount of MDPV, the
defendant assisted another person in removing from the residence MDPV that the police had not
found during their search. This additional quantity of MDPV was eventually distributed to
another person, who was later caught by law enforcement. Nelson is one of eighteen defendants
who pleaded guilty to conspiring with Ryan Ellis and others to distribute the drug. Ellis
previously pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing.

The case was investigated by the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency with assistance from
the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.