The trial of a Brooklyn, New York, man charged in connection with a 2024 bust of a suspected illegal cannabis growing operation in Skowhegan was called off Monday because he did not show up to court. Yao Bin Cheng, 63, recently returned to the country of China, his attorney Darrick X. Banda said Monday at the Somerset County Superior Court.
Banda said a third party facilitating his office’s communication with Cheng, who is not proficient in English, told him that shortly before a case status conference Thursday. Cheng has no intention of returning to the U.S., Banda said this person told him.
Banda said he had not spoken directly with Cheng since jury selection, which was conducted Sept. After Banda informed the court of the development, jurors were placed on standby.
Jurors were told over the weekend that “scheduling complications” delayed the start of trial and to check for an update Monday. Otherwise, the court and attorneys were ready for trial, which was scheduled to last up to a week.
Two Cantonese-English interpreters flew in from out of state. Investigators were in the courthouse, ready to testify.
“This was very frustrating and disappointing to me,” Superior Court Chief Justice Robert E. “Yet, here we are.”
Mullen issued a warrant for the arrest of Cheng, with no bail allowed, pending a future hearing. Mullen also ordered the default of $10,000 cash bail that Cheng posted previously.
The judge said that, while he had no reason to disbelieve the person who contacted Banda about Cheng’s whereabouts, he also had no way of knowing whether what the person told Banda was true.
District Attorney Maeghan Maloney, who is prosecuting the case instead of assigning it to one of her assistants, said “tremendous resources” had gone into the case to bring it to trial. Maloney serves as top prosecutor for Kennebec and Somerset counties.
“The state is ready to go today, and it is disappointing Mr. Cheng is not here,” said Maloney.
Cheng was charged with Class B unlawful trafficking of scheduled drugs and Class B marijuana cultivation, both felonies, court records show. Prosecutors also sought the forfeiture of $6,316 in cash and a 2022 Toyota Tacoma investigators seized during the March 1, 2024, raid of 795 Waterville Road.
Cheng was one of three people the Somerset County Sheriff’s Office arrested as a result of the bust. Investigators, assisted by federal agents, seized 4,760 cannabis plants found inside the property, Sheriff Dale Lancaster said at the time.
Lancaster said investigators observed black mold, electrical issues and possible environmental violations inside the home. He said the home had sparse living quarters.
Also arrested were Ying Xia Liao, 57, and Xi Qiang Zhao, 59, also from Brooklyn. Zhao struck a deal with prosecutors in December 2024 in which he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor that was later dismissed per a deferred disposition agreement. Liao’s case remains pending, court records show.
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