Christian Soares, Felon with Firearms and Drugs, Massachusetts 2024

BOSTON, Massachusetts - December 29, 2023: Christian Soares, a/k/a 'Eazy,' 29, of Brockton, has been charged by a federal grand jury in a superseding indictment on firearm and drug offenses. Soares was previously indicted in August 2019.

According to the indictment, in 2019, Soares possessed a loaded firearm while a convicted felon and did so in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense – namely, possessing cocaine, fentanyl, and buprenorphine (suboxone) intended for distribution. In 2021, while on pretrial release following the August 2019 indictment, it is alleged that Soares possessed multiple firearms and ammunition while a convicted felon and did so in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense. Additionally, it is alleged he did so while also possessing cocaine, methamphetamine, MDA, and 40 grams or more of fentanyl intended for distribution.

Soares was previously convicted of at least one prior felony conviction. The charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000. The charge of possession with intent to distribute cocaine, fentanyl, and buprenorphine provides for a sentence of not more than 20 years, at least three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $1 million. The charge of possessing with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl provides for a sentence of at least five years and up to 40 years in prison, at least four years and up to a lifetime of supervised release, and a fine of up to $5 million.

The charge of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense provides for a sentence of at least five years and up to life in prison, to be served from and after the term of imprisonment imposed for any other count, supervised release of up to five years, and a fine of up to $250,000.

The case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.

United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins, Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigations, Boston Division, Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Boston Field Division, Bryan Kyes, U.S. Marshal for the District of Massachusetts, Colonel Christopher Mason, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police, and Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox made the announcement.

Valuable assistance in 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. Attorney Kaitlin R. O'Donnell of Rollins' Organized Crime & Gang Unit is prosecuting the case.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ma/pr/convicted-felon-indicted-drug-and-firearm-offenses