AUGUSTA — A former Benton man was ordered to serve an initial 90 days in jail and spend two years on probation while the remainder of his two-year prison term is suspended.
The sentence on Wednesday at the Capital Judicial Center came after Rashaad J. McKinney, 26, now of Augusta pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of heroin and a separate assault charge involving an incident in which he punched an Augusta pizza shop employee.
McKinney, who was represented by attorney Matthew Bowe, also agreed to forfeit $778, part of the $1,478 cash seized from him when he was arrested during a 7 p.m. traffic stop April 16 in Waterville.
McKinney initially was charged with two counts of aggravated drug trafficking from that date, and those charges were dismissed in exchange for his guilty plea.
Assistant District Attorney Tyler LeClair said Maine State Police troopers and Waterville police were following a vehicle in Waterville when it failed to stop at a stop sign.
The driver, later identified as McKinney, took off on foot, discarding items as he ran from the scene; and police recovered two bags, one containing 7 grams of heroin.
The assault occurred in Augusta. LeClair said McKinney was inside Domino’s Pizza waiting for his order, and when he was told the staff was having difficulty finding it, he came around the counter and punched an employee in the face.
In addition to the jail time, McKinney was fined $400 on the drug conviction and $300 on the assault charge. He also was ordered to serve 10 days in jail on the assault charge, concurrent to the drug sentence.
LeClair said McKinney, who is originally from Rochester, New York, has prior convictions in that state for burglary and operating under the influence but no criminal history in Maine.
Bowe said McKinney has lived in Maine for 16 months, is working as a cook and hopes to attend barber school.
McKinney has been free on bail conditions and is scheduled to report on Tuesday to the Kennebec County jail to begin the unsuspended portion of his sentence. He already has spent about 30 days in jail on those charges.
Betty Adams — 621-5631
Twitter: @betadams
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