Bristol County man sentenced for role in conspiracy that distributed drugs in Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire

BOSTON – A Bristol County man was sentenced this week in federal court in Boston for conspiring to distribute cocaine in Massachusetts and Maine as part of a large-scale drug trafficking conspiracy.

According to the Massachusetts Department of Justice, 40-year-old Christopher Riley was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani to 42 months and five years of supervised release. On March 22, 2023, Riley pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and distribute cocaine.

Riley was charged in November 2021 along with 12 others in connection with a large drug conspiracy centering around the Gangster Disciples gang in Lawrence, Haverhill and Methuen. The investigation, which began in August 2020, intercepted communications between Gangster Disciples’ leaders, members and drug suppliers pertaining to their alleged distribution of fentanyl, cocaine, methamphetamine and Suboxone in Massachusetts, Maine and southern New Hampshire as well as into the Essex County Jail. The investigation intercepted phone calls between Riley and other gang members, who conspired distribute cocaine in Massachusetts and Maine.

Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Christopher DiMenna, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; and John E. Mawn, Interim Colonel of the Massachusetts State Police made the announcement. Assistance was provided by the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency. Assistant U.S. Attorney Philip C. Cheng of Levy’s Organized Crime & Gang Unit prosecuted the case.