Former City of Boston Employee Pleads Guilty to Distributing Cocaine and Fentanyl

BOSTON – A former employee for the City of Boston pleaded guilty yesterday to distributing cocaine and fentanyl.

Gary “Jamal” Webster, 36, pleaded guilty to four counts of distributing and possessing with intent to distribute cocaine, one count of distributing and possessing with intent to distribute more than 40 grams of fentanyl, and one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine and fentanyl. U.S. District Court Judge Allison D. Burroughs scheduled sentencing for Jan. 30, 2020. Webster was charged in August 2018.

According to court documents, a cooperating witness made four controlled purchases of cocaine and one purchase of fentanyl in September and October 2016 from Webster, who was the Director of Constituent Services for a Boston City Councilor at the time. In total, Webster sold over 300 grams (two-thirds of one pound) of cocaine, and 49 grams of fentanyl to the cooperating witness during a two-month period.

The charge of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine and more than 40 grams of fentanyl provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of five years and up to 40 years in prison, at least four years of supervised release and a fine of up to $5 million. The charge of distributing more than 40 grams of fentanyl and possessing more than 40 grams of fentanyl with intent to distribute provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of five years and up to 40 years in prison, at least four years of supervised release and a fine of up to $5 million. The charge of distributing cocaine and possessing cocaine with the intent to distribute provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, at least three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $1 million. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

This case was part of Operation Landshark, a federal investigation that targeted impact players and repeat offenders in Brockton and Boston, each who have prior convictions for acts of violence, firearm offenses and/or drug trafficking.

United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling; Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; Colonel Kerry A. Gilpin, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police; Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy J. Cruz; Suffolk County District Attorney Rachel Rollins; Boston Police Commissioner William Gross; and Brockton Police Chief John Crowley made the announcement today. The investigation was conducted by the FBI’s North Shore Gang Task Force and Southeastern Massachusetts Gang Task Force. Valuable assistance was provided by the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Boston Field Division; Plymouth and Essex County Sheriff’s Offices; Massachusetts Department of Corrections; U.S. Parole Commission; U.S. Postal Inspection Services; and the U.S. Secret Service. Assistant United States Attorney Philip A. Mallard of Lelling’s Organized Crime and Gang Unit is prosecuting the case. 

Operation Landshark is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.