LEWISTON — State and federal agents conducted an investigation Tuesday of a local group that provides substance abuse and mental health counseling services.

A state investigator and federal agents assemble outside of the Facing Change office in Lewiston on Tuesday morning. (Andree Kehn/Sun Journal)

Jeff Wrigley, an investigator with the health care crimes unit at the Maine Attorney General’s Office, said Tuesday his office was conducting an ongoing investigation at the Middle Street offices of Facing Change.

Also on scene were officers from the FBI and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General, Wrigley said.

A woman answering the phone Tuesday morning told the Sun Journal that there was no one in the office who could answer any questions about the investigation and that it was still happening.

According to the organization’s website, the group offers substance abuse counseling along with therapy for other mental health issues to individuals, families and groups. Facing Change is licensed through the Maine Department of Health and Human Services for alcohol, drug and mental health treatment, according to the website.

Agents appeared to be loading files Tuesday afternoon into the back of a black SUV parked on Middle Street near the door to the Facing Change offices.

A spokesman at the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Portland declined to comment on the investigation.

 

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