Massachusetts man sentenced to prison after over 75,000 counterfeit pills seized from drug trafficking organization

BOSTON – A Massachusetts man was sentenced in federal court in Boston for his role in a North Shore-based drug trafficking organization that manufactured and distributed tens of thousands of counterfeit prescription pills containing narcotics.

According to the Massachusetts Department of Justice, 25-year-old Kion Shepherd of Salem was sentenced by Chief U.S. District Court Judge Dennis Saylor IV to 70 months in prison and three years of supervised release. On April 9, 2024, Solis pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute controlled substances.

Shepherd was among 23 individuals charged in October 2022 in connection with a wide-ranging conspiracy to traffic counterfeit prescription pills. The defendants were subsequently indicted along with two additional alleged co-conspirators in December 2022. According to court documents, the DTO distributed counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl and counterfeit Adderall pills containing methamphetamine, among other things, to various individuals in the Lynn area. Shepherd is the fourth defendant to be sentenced in the case.

During the investigation, Shepherd’s mothers’ home was identified as his residence as well as his stash location for controlled substances. During a search of Shepherd’s mother’s residence, a backpack containing several hundred grams of fentanyl and cocaine as well as a handgun with an obliterated serial number were recovered.  

The investigation involving all 23 suspects resulted in numerous seizures of controlled substances, including: over 74,000 counterfeit Adderall pills containing methamphetamine, weighing more than 24 kilograms; 591 counterfeit Adderall pills containing methamphetamine; 1,000 counterfeit Oxycodone pills containing fentanyl; and 101 counterfeit Oxycodone pills containing fentanyl.

Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Stephen Belleau, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Division; and John E. Mawn Jr., Interim Colonel of the Massachusetts State Police made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Boston Field Division; the Beverly, Everett, Peabody, Revere, Salem, Saugus and Swampscott Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Evan D. Panich of the Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit prosecuted the case.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach.