Boston Man Sentenced for Cocaine Trafficking

BOSTON – A Boston man was sentenced on Thursday, Feb. 3, 2022, in federal court in Boston for his role in a cocaine trafficking conspiracy.

Michael Toussaint, 40, of Hyde Park, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns to 30 months in prison and three years of supervised release. In June 2021, Toussaint pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute cocaine and cocaine base.

In June 2020, Toussaint was charged along with 23 others as part of Operation Snowfall.  According to the charging documents, beginning in November 2018, law enforcement conducted an investigation into drug trafficking activities by Boston-based street gang members and associates in the Commonwealth Development in Brighton, formerly known as Fidelis Way, a multi-apartment public housing development. It is alleged that the defendants, through their drug trafficking activities, assumed control over multiple apartments, where they stored, cooked, packaged and sold drugs. As a result, their activities caused a blight of the development and reduced the quality of life of the other residents. The investigation also targeted large-scale drug suppliers and their associates. It is alleged that the targets continued to distribute cocaine and cocaine base throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and shutdown.

During the investigation, investigators identified Toussaint as a drug trafficker and distributor. From September 2019 through February 2020, during intercepted calls between Toussaint and a co-conspirator, Toussaint ordered distribution quantities of cocaine. The investigation identified that, in February 2020 alone, Toussaint participated in at least 10 drug deals and ordered over 400 grams of cocaine. Toussaint is the 5^th defendant to be sentenced in the case.

First Assistant United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Boston Field Division; Douglas Bartlett, Acting U.S. Marshal for the District of Massachusetts; Colonel Christopher Mason, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police; and Boston Police Acting Commissioner Gregory Long made the announcement. Assistance with the investigation was provided by the Braintree, Cambridge, Canton, Randolph and Weymouth Police Departments; the Suffolk, Norfolk and Bristol County District Attorneys’ Offices; and the Suffolk, Plymouth and Norfolk County Sheriffs’ Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kaitlin R. O’Donnell and Timothy E. Moran of the Organized Crime & Gang Unit prosecuted the case.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) 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. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The remaining defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.