Three Massachusetts men have been indicted in connection to a February daytime shootout in Saco that led to a shelter-in-place order and school lockdown, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maine Darcie McElwee announced at a press briefing alongside local and federal law enforcement Thursday.
The two-count indictment, returned on Wednesday, May 15, by a federal grand jury, charged Joshua “Mac” Estrada , 19, Yancarlos “Glizzy” Abrante), 20, and Jason “Ouda” Johnson-Rivera, 18, all of New Bedford, Mass., with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine, and perpetrating a drive-by shooting.
At about noon on February 9, Saco Police responded to a report of shots fired between a red Dodge Charge and a gray Honda HRV at the intersection of Elm and Temple Streets in Saco.
The two vehicles then proceeded to the intersection of Elm and North Streets where the Honda CRV crashed into another vehicle in the intersection, and then into a Old Orchard Beach school bus, which was transporting students. Police said no students were injured.
Police said at the time of the incident that four people ran away from the scene — later revised down to three suspects — and at least one suspect had been shot in the arm. A handgun was found in the back seat of the Honda CRV.
As a result of the shooting and subsequent manhunt, a shelter-in-place order was issued for the City of Saco and nearby Thornton Academy was put in lockdown.
“Brazen violent crime of this magnitude is not something the City of Saco is accustomed to, but when it happens, Maine law enforcement responds,” said Chief Jack Clements of the Saco Police Department in the Thursday press briefing.
According to Wednesday’s federal indictment, Estrada, Abrante and Johnson-Rivera fired at least five rounds from a 9mm handgun into another vehicle occupied by their “adversaries” in a drug trade dispute.
The three men are accused of trafficking cocaine in and around Saco and Biddeford since at least January 2024.
Estrada was arrested in New Bedford, Mass., on May 6, 2024, and made his first appearance in federal court in Maine on Thursday, where he pleaded not guilty to both counts.
He was ordered detained pending a detention hearing scheduled for next Tuesday, May 21.
Abrante and Johnson-Rivera are currently being held in Massachusetts on unrelated charges, and will be in Maine next week for their initial court appearances and arraignments, U.S. Attorney McElwee said Thursday.
The three men face up to 20 years in prison and a maximum fine of $1 million on the drug trafficking charge, and 25 years imprisonment and a fine of up to $250,000 on the drive-by shooting charge.
“While an indictment is merely an accusation, and the three men charged are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law, we hope these charges bring a sense of peace to the community of Saco and the surrounding area,” McElwee said Thursday.
“We also hope it demonstrates the collective strength of Maine’s law enforcement community,” she added, thanking the Saco Police Department and local and federal law enforcement partners who assisted in the investigation.
McElwee was joined at the press briefing by Saco Police Chief Jack Clements, Assistant U.S. Attorneys Johnathan Nathans and Noah Falk, and representatives of the FBI’s Southern Maine Gang Task Force, including FBI Supervisory Senior Resident Agent Christopher Peavey, ATF Special Agent in Charge James Ferguson and Resident Agent in Charge Nicholas Dilello, and Acting U.S. Marshal Kevin Neal.
“Immediately following this brazen, drive-by shooting and the ensuing chaos that followed, the FBI’s Southern Maine Gang Task Force hit the streets collecting information, intelligence, and evidence to help our partners identify those responsible and bring them to justice. We believe the three Massachusetts men we have in custody conspired with each other to traffic cocaine and were the instigators of this drive-by shooting,” said Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Boston Division.
“Violent drug traffickers have a corrosive effect on our communities, and we want everyone to know that the FBI is committed to working with our law enforcement partners to help make Maine safer for the folks who live, work, and visit here,” Cohen said.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Johnathan Nathans and Noah Falk, speaking during the press conference, did not know whether “Glizzy,” “Ouda” and “Mac” are U.S. citizens, but after conferring with McElwee they determined that there was insufficient information available to say anything conclusive about the potential immigration status of the indicted individuals.
Watch the full Thursday press briefing by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maine below, via WGME:
