A Massachusetts man was arrested in Hermon with 600 oxycodone tablets police say he was bringing into the state for redistribution.

Maine Drug Enforcement Commissioner Peter Arno says 26-year-old Alex Rios of Lawrence, Massachusetts was arrested in Hermon Thursday and charged with distribution of a significant amount of the prescription opiate, Oxycodone. The arrest was part of a six-month long investigation into the illicit distribution of the drug throughout Penobscot County.

At the time of his arrest just off I-95, Rios was in possession of six hundred Oxycodone 30mg tablets, which officials say he had brought from Massachusetts for re-sale in Penobscot County. Currently, the street price of a single 30mg tablet is approximately $43, making the street value of the seized drugs nearly $26,000.

Rios is charged with Class A Aggravated Trafficking  and Class C Importation of Oxycodone. The trafficking offense was aggravated due to the amount of drugs seized. Rios was taken to Penobscot County Jail where he remains on a $50,000 cash bail. He's expected to make his first court appearance today.

The Penobscot County Sheriff's Department and U.S. Drug Administration provided assistance to the MDEA during this investigation. Commissioner Arno says, once again this investigation highlights the rising influx of out of state traffickers who are bringing drugs into Maine in order to further exploit the widespread opiate addiction here.

"They often exit this state," Arno said in a press release, " with significant financial gain, leaving behind a path of historic destruction, addiction, and heartache."

He adds that the MDEA is committed to working with all partners in order to target, infiltrate, and arrest individuals who come to Maine with the intention of selling illegal drugs.

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