The Maine Drug Enforcement Agency has received a federal grant for $525,569 to target illegal opioid sales, according to a statement from U.S. Attorney Halsey B. Frank.

Frank announced the grant Wednesday.

He said the funds will come from the Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services through the department’s Anti-Heroin Task Force Program.

The grant money must be used to support the location of or investigation into illicit activities related to the distribution of heroin or the unlawful distribution of prescription opioids, according to Frank.

The MDEA received the grant because Maine has high per capita levels of primary treatment admissions related to heroin and other opioids.

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