Boston’s Today, two people who were part of a national drug crime network were given their sentences in federal court in Boston. Two loaded Smith & Wesson handguns, an AK-47, a Glock with no serial number, and more than 4,200 rounds of ammunition were taken during the investigation.
The total weight of the drugs found was over 160 pounds. A business that grew marijuana illegally and had hundreds of plants was also caught.
In 2016, Edison Klotz, 48, of Stoughton, Massachusetts, pleaded guilty to two counts of superseding information that charged him with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, as well as distribution and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. He was sentenced to 46 months in prison and two years of supervised release.
Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton of the U.S. District Court in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, gave Brian Keleman, 55, a sentence of 60 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release.
He did this after pleading guilty to two counts of a superseding indictment that charged him with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute controlled substances and conspiracy to launder money.
Ten more suspects were charged with violations of controlled substances, weapons, and money laundering in the new indictment.
As of October 2020, police knew that a large-scale methamphetamine supplier in the Boston area was involved in drug crime. As the probe went on, a cooperating witness bought drugs from Klotz and other members of the drug trafficking group.
The cooperating witness said that Klotz gave them 108 grams of pure methamphetamine in November 2020.
Late in 2020, co-defendant Reshat Alkayisi was found to be a large-scale methamphetamine dealer who sent many pounds of drugs to distributors in New England. Twelve controlled purchases of methamphetamine were made from the drug trafficking group between October 2020 and April 2021.
Two of the purchases were delivered directly by Alkayisi, and the other was set up with Alkayisi and delivered by Keleman. The study also found that Keleman helped Alkayisi grow marijuana without a permit. In addition, Keleman helped Alkayisi get methamphetamine and clean his money after selling drugs.
Klotz and Keleman are the fifth and sixth people who have been found guilty and given sentences. Everyone else has pleaded guilty and is either waiting for their punishment or has already received one.
The announcements were made by Joshua S. Levy, who is acting as U.S. attorney, Jodi Cohen, who is special agent in charge of the Boston division of the FBI, and Stephen Belleau, who is acting as special agent in charge of the New England field division of the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Thanks to their help, the Concord, Hudson, Peabody, Reading, Watertown, and Waltham police forces, as well as the Massachusetts Department of Correction, gave a lot. The state police of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, and Maine also helped. Assistant United States Attorneys Alathea Porter and Katherine Ferguson from the Criminal Division are in charge of the case.
This case is part of the work of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF). In order to find, disrupt, and break up the most dangerous criminal groups that threaten the United States, OCDETF uses a multi-agency, prosecutor-led, and intelligence-driven method.