March was a bad time to be a fugitive in Maine.

State police along with several other agencies tracked down and arrested 112 people on a total of 183 charges, including 44 felonies.

Maine State Police, working with the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency and the U.S. Marshal’s Service, arrested the suspects in southern Maine, all on outstanding arrest warrants.

State police assigned four troopers to the effort to locate the fugitives and additional troopers to make the arrests. A number of the suspects had outstanding warrants for drug possession, firearms possession and probation and bail violations. According to a news release from Maine Public Safety Spokesman Stephen McCausland, troopers also recovered a stolen automobile and found a marijuana growing operation during the month-long effort.

State Police Lt. Louis Nyitray, commanding officer of Troop A in Alfred, said ignoring outstanding charges or sentences only worsens the legal problems for those charged. Many of the fugitives were arrested for failing to pay fines or failing to appear in court. They told troopers that they either did not have the money to pay fines or had no way to get to court on their scheduled dates, resulting in warrants of arrest being issued.

“Communication with the court is critical when issues arise,” Nyitray said, “and most times, alternative arrangements can be made.”

Noel March, U.S. Marshal for Maine said, “This type of arrest operation is about holding law violators accountable for their actions.”

Among those arrested:

* Francis Johnson, 26, of Biddeford was arrested at a motel in Saco on warrants charging eluding police officers and domestic terrorizing. Police said Johnson was in possession of three replica firearms and 20 rounds of 9-mm ammunition. Because he is a convicted felon with a violent history in Connecticut, the investigation has been turned over to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms. Johnson will be prosecuted in federal court. It is a federal crime to be in possession of ammunition if you are a convicted felon. Johnson was also with his wife at the time of his arrest, police said, which was a violation of his bail conditions from a previous arrest. Bail was set at more than $10,000.

* Christie Adams, 24, of Old Orchard Beach was arrested at her home on a warrant for aggravated drug trafficking and violating probation. Bail was set at $10,000. Police said Adams was found hiding crack cocaine and prescription pills in her boot. Police seized $800 from her. Adams’ boyfriend, Zakira Yousef, 21, of Old Orchard, was arrested on a charge of hindering apprehension. Police said he would not let officers into the home to arrest Adams. His bail was set at $500.

* Victor Sampson, 35, of Hollis was arrested at his home on a fugitive from justice warrant. He was wanted in Rockingham County, N.H., for heroin possession. No bail was allowed. Sampson was also wanted by the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Department for driving as a habitual offender, driving while intoxicated and failure to give police a correct name. Bail on those warrants were set at $1,195.

* Joseph Denbow 45, of South Paris was arrested at his home on numerous warrants including driving as a habitual offender, domestic assault, terrorizing and violating probation. No bail was allowed. Denbow has since been sentenced to serve four years in the Maine State Prison. Police said he was found hiding in the basement of a residence.

* Robert Johnson, 37, of Fryeburg was arrested at the Fryeburg home of his girlfriend’s parents, police said. Johnson had been sought for several months after he stopped reporting to his probation officer. He was wanted on a charge of violating probation on charges of burglary and theft by receiving stolen firearms. No bail was allowed.

* Matthew Nadeau, 27, of Old Orchard Beach was arrested in Saco on warrants from Maine State Police and the Portland Police Department that charged aggravated forgery, driving with a suspended license, criminal simulation, theft, and providing a false name to police. Bail was set at $1,790. Nadeau had been wanted by state police for several months after being stopped on the Maine Turnpike and giving a false name and information to a trooper. He was in possession of heroin at the time of his arrest, police said. Nadeau later bailed himself out of jail and was wanted again on new drug charges. Police said Nadeau was with Heather Smith, 26, of Exeter, who was charged with possession of heroin.

* Derek and Jason Berube, 23-year-old twins from Hollis, were arrested at their home on burglary warrants from the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Department. Bail was set at $560 for each brother.

* Michael Decelle, 27, of Porter, was arrested on warrants from the Biddeford Police Department on charges of theft and theft by deception. Bail was set at $11,500. Investigators said Decelle initially provided a false name to police and fled from officers. He was arrested on charges of violating bail, refusal to submit to arrest and providing a false name.

* While looking for a wanted individual at a motel in Saco, officers arrested  Jamison Snyder, 39, of Biddeford and Kasandra Petebella, 29, of Saco. Police said the pair were in possession of crack cocaine. Snyder was charged with aggravated drug trafficking; Petebella faced an additional charge of violation of bail from a previous arrest.

* While looking for a wanted individual at a home in Biddeford, police charged James Craig, 64, of Biddeford with felony drug trafficking in a school zone. Police said items at the house and a large amount of marijuana indicated Craig was dealing the drug close to an elementary school.

* While looking for person in Arundel, troopers instead found a marijuana growing operation. Michael Binette, 37, of Arundel received a summons on a charge of cultivating marijuana. Police said they seized 102 marijuana plants and growing equipment in the house. The suspect police were looking for no longer lived at the home, according to the news release.

* Police located a stolen motor vehicle parked in a driveway in Brunswick while looking for another suspect. That vehicle, which police say was being used to transport drugs, was seized and turned back over to its owner. Lacey Armstrong, 24, of Biddeford was not home but was arrested later in the month on a warrant from the Saco Police Department charging her with robbery. ?