In Waldoboro, as in the rest of Maine, the opioid crisis is ongoing and affects locals in a myriad of ever-evolving ways that have lately included an increase in human trafficking in town, Police Chief John Lash told the town’s select board at its meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 27.
Locally, “I guarantee you that 90% of families are affected by (addiction) in one way or another,” he said.
Of the 13 death investigations conducted by the Waldoboro Police Department in 2023, about half were likely due to overdoses, Lash added.
“The issue is critical. It is just amazingly bad,” said Select Board Member Michael Thayer.
Lash spoke at the meeting to raise awareness of the extent of which drug trafficking is an issue in Waldoboro and the many wide-reaching effects it has for locals, in the hopes that more awareness will help police and town officials tackle the issue.
The effects of drug trafficking in town include the rise in drug overdoses and long-term effects of addiction, Lash said, as well as more nebulous effects such as increases in organized crime.
Lash said that the Waldoboro Police Department has lately seen increases in gang activity that, he said, they believed to be linked to drug abuse.
“Gangs from out of state are taking advantage of our local addicts,” Lash said, by using drugs to manipulate their victims. This, he suggested, may take the form of perpetrators moving into victims’ homes or forcing them into situations of sex trafficking.
“It is not only bringing drug trafficking but it is bringing sex trafficking, too. Human trafficking is happening here,” Lash said.
Lash and Waldoboro Town Manager Julie Keizer emphasized that the biggest contributing factor to these scenarios was substance use disorder.
“The underlying problem is drug addiction,” Lash said, suggesting that addressing drug addiction locally would be one effective avenue to reducing this kind of crime.
“One of the things that we need to be loud about, I would say, is that we need treatment … adequate facilities, and better options for people in need,” said Keizer.
Lash noted that the local addiction treatment programs that existed in Waldoboro and the surrounding area had made a difference in the level of local drug-related activity. However, the COVID-19 pandemic caused many of those programs to dissolve, leaving Waldoboro lacking treatment resources for those in need.
This problem is not unique to Waldoboro, Keizer noted.
“Mental health and addiction services are gravely needed in the state of Maine,” she said.
However, she added, acknowledging that addiction and related struggles are occurring throughout Waldoboro is a vital first step towards a more wide-reaching solution.
Keizer noted that Karen-Ann Hagar-Smith, Waldoboro’s community navigator, is available to help residents access resources to aid in recovery and reduce poverty.
The town office has an “open-door policy” for individuals in need of support, said Keizer. Similarly, Lash noted that he was willing to discuss the issue further one-on-one if residents have further questions.
For more information, call the Waldoboro town office at 832-5369 or go to waldoboromaine.org.
