Joshua Siereveld, Fentanyl Trafficking, Massachusetts 2018

East Bridgewater Man Pleads Guilty to Fentanyl Trafficking

BOSTON – A brazen fentanyl trafficking operation that brought in over a kilogram and a half of the deadly opioid has landed an East Bridgewater man in hot water.

Joshua Siereveld, 38, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl, and possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl in federal court in Boston.

According to prosecutors, from December 2017 through January 2018, investigators intercepted hundreds of communications between Siereveld and his source of supply in Lawrence. Over the course of two months, Siereveld purchased over a kilogram and a half of fentanyl, assisted by co-defendant Justin Brunick, 29, of Rockland, who served as a courier for several transactions.

After a fentanyl pickup on March 14, 2018, investigators stopped Siereveld, seized approximately 130 grams of fentanyl, and arrested him. Brunick pleaded guilty to his role in the fentanyl conspiracy on April 19, 2019; his sentencing is scheduled for July 17, 2019.

The charge of conspiracy for over 400 grams of fentanyl provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and up to life in prison, a minimum of five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release, and a fine of up to $10 million. The charge of possession with intent to distribute and distribution of 40 grams or more of fentanyl provides for a sentence of no greater than 40 years in prison, a minimum of four years and up to a lifetime of supervised release, and a fine of up to $8 million.

Siereveld has been in custody since his arrest in March 2018, and U.S. Senior District Court Judge George A. O’Toole Jr. scheduled sentencing for September 16, 2019.

The case was announced by United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling; Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division; East Bridgewater Police Chief Scott Allen; and Pembroke Police Chief Richard D. Wall. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren A. Graber of Lelling’s Narcotics and Money Laundering Unit is prosecuting the case.

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