Dominican National Charged With Fentanyl Trafficking in Maine Is an Illegal Alien and Faces Deportation Proceedings

A Dominican national charged with drug trafficking after his arrest last month in Prospect, Maine, is an illegal alien whose deportation case from the United States is pending, according to arrest records obtained by Maine Wire.

Darvin Ruiz, a 21-year-old Dominican Republic resident of Lawrence, Massachusetts, was arrested June 22 in Prospect by Maine State Police.

Ruiz was charged with aggravated trafficking in fentanyl and unlawful trafficking in Schedule W drugs, both felony-level offenses.

Booking records at the Twin Bridges Regional Jail in Wiscasset indicate that Ruiz is a citizen of the Dominican Republic.

He is currently being held at the Twin Bridges Jail on $50,000 cash bail for the local charges, as well as a federal immigration detention order issued by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

According to a copy of the immigration order obtained by Maine Wire, probable cause was established to detain Ruiz because Ruiz faces pending deportation proceedings.

The arrest warrant, dated June 23, the day after Ruiz was arrested, also states that evidence indicates that Ruiz does not have legal immigration status in the United States or that, despite his immigration status, he is deportable under U.S. immigration law.