United States Drug Enforcement Administration

BOSTON – An Abington man has pleaded guilty in federal court in Boston to conspiring to distribute oxycodone pills.

Kenneth Veiga, 32, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute oxycodone pills. U.S. District Court Judge Denise J. Casper scheduled sentencing for July 18, 2024. Veiga was originally indicted by a federal grand jury in August 2023.

Between November 2022 and May 2023, intercepted communications revealed that Veiga and others were involved in an oxycodone drug trafficking organization. Specifically, Veiga allegedly obtained oxycodone pills from co-conspirator Cristan Russell who redistributed to others. During a search of Veiga’s previous residence in July 2023, oxycodone pills along with a polymer-80 9 mm pistol and nine rounds of commercially manufactured ammunition were seized. Additionally, fentanyl pills, oxycodone pills and approximately $58,000 were seized during a separate search of Veiga’s current apartment.

The charge of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute oxycodone pills provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, at least three years and up to lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $1 million. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Stephen Belleau, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division; John E. Mawn, Jr., Interim Colonel of the Massachusetts State Police; Harry Chavis, Jr., Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Boston Field Office; and Ketty Larco-Ward, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Boston Division made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; United States Coast Guard Investigative Service; Barnstable County Sheriff’s Office; and the Barnstable, Dennis, Bourne, Falmouth, Mashpee, Yarmouth and Sandwich Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney John T. Mulcahy of the Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit is prosecuting 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 document are allegations. The remaining defendants are presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in the court of law.