DEA Controlled Buys Lead to 6-Year Sentence for Violent Massachusetts Felon

PORTLAND, Maine: A Worcester, Massachusetts man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Portland for distributing and possessing with intent to distribute controlled substances.

U.S. District Judge Nancy Torresen sentenced Devon Ashton, 28, to 72 months in prison followed by four years of supervised release. Ashton pleaded guilty on July 26, 2023.

According to court records, between January and March 2023, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) conducted four controlled purchases of fentanyl from Ashton, for a total of approximately 192 grams. At the end of March 2023, Ashton was stopped for speeding in Lewiston, and $8,000 and approximately 59 grams of cocaine were seized. He was arrested in May 2023.

Ashton has previous convictions for unlawful firearms possession and assault, among other offenses. While awaiting sentencing, he was involved in an altercation at the Strafford (NH) County Department of Corrections and has been indicted in New Hampshire state court for the crime of Assault by Prisoner.

The DEA investigated the case.

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