South Yarmouth Man Sentenced for Fentanyl Possession

BOSTON – A South Yarmouth man was sentenced today for possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and crack cocaine.

Roosevelt Wilkins, 34, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns to five years in prison and four years of supervised release. Wilkins pleaded guilty in June 2020 to one count of possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl and one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and cocaine.  

On April 1, 2019, Wilkins fled a traffic stop in Brockton on foot, and was seen tossing a plastic bag under a parked car.  Police recovered the bag, which contained 16 smaller bags of various sizes, containing over 70 grams of fentanyl.  A search of the defendant’s cell phones resulted in the discovery of text messages related to drug distribution, including messages indicating that he was on his way to a meeting to sell drugs to another individual when police stopped his car.

On Oct. 18, 2019, when law enforcement arrested Wilkins on a federal warrant relating to the April 1 incident, Wilkins was concealing over 30 grams of fentanyl and an additional quantity of cocaine in plastic packaging inside his shoe.

United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling; Kelly D. Brady, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Field Division; and Colonel Christopher Mason, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police made the announcement today.  The Stoughton Police Department also provided valuable assistance.

This case 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.