The Auburn man arrested this week on trafficking charges may have been making and selling drugs out of his diner for nearly a decade.
Darren Douin, 43, of Auburn was charged with aggravated trafficking in scheduled drugs and unlawful possession of scheduled drugs, Timothy Cougle, the deputy chief of the Auburn Police Department, said Tuesday.
Police first learned of allegations that Douin was selling drugs out of his restaurant, Happy Days Diner on Mill Street, which he opened in 2006, in 2015 from a former employee, according to an affidavit obtained by the Sun Journal.
At the time, the drug trafficking allegations centered around the sale of marijuana, the recreational use of which Maine voters legalized in 2016.
More sources eventually came forward to tell police of Douin’s alleged connections to drug trafficking, including the sale of crack cocaine and opioids such as fentanyl out of his home and Happy Days Diner, the Sun Journal reported.
Douin allegedly made crack cocaine inside Happy Days Diner during the nighttime hours when the business was closed, according to the newspaper.
Then in November 2022 police pulled over a man driving Douin’s Chevrolet Camaro, and during a search, police found $10,000 in suspected drug proceeds.
Last year, an off-duty police officer saw signs of drug activity while eating at Happy Days Diner, the Sun Journal reported.
Police pulled over Douin while he was driving about 1 p.m. Tuesday. During a search of his vehicle, officers found Douin had narcotics and a firearm, Cougle said earlier this week.
Police then searched his Grove Street home and Happy Days Diner, where they seized 70 grams of crack cocaine, 55 grams of cocaine, 2.2 grams of methamphetamine, 112 ecstasy pills, 17 guns, $25,530 in suspected drug proceeds and other evidence of drug trafficking, according to Cougle.
Douin was taken to the Androscoggin County Jail in Auburn, where his bail was set at $30,000.
The investigation is ongoing, and Cougle said more charges are forthcoming.
