Joshua Siereveld, Fentanyl Conspiracy, Massachusetts 2018

Joshua Siereveld, 38, of East Bridgewater, is going down hard for flooding Massachusetts streets with lethal doses of fentanyl. Siereveld pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl, along with a separate count of possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of the synthetic opioid.

The indictment traces Siereveld’s drug operation from December 2017 through January 2018, when federal investigators began intercepting hundreds of incriminating communications between him and his supplier based in Lawrence. Over just two months, Siereveld orchestrated the purchase of more than a kilogram and a half of fentanyl — a death warrant in powder form — with help from co-defendant Justin Brunick, 29, of Rockland, who acted as a courier during multiple high-stakes deliveries.

The operation collapsed on March 14, 2018, when law enforcement pulled over Siereveld following a fentanyl pickup. Inside his vehicle, agents seized approximately 130 grams of the drug — a fraction of his total haul, but enough to lock him up. Siereveld has remained in federal custody since that arrest, awaiting judgment for crimes that fueled the opioid crisis tearing through New England communities.

Brunick, his accomplice, already copped a plea on April 19, 2019, admitting his role in the conspiracy. His sentencing is set for July 17, 2019, while Siereveld’s fate will be decided on September 16, 2019, before U.S. Senior District Court Judge George A. O’Toole Jr., who will weigh the mandatory minimums and maximums that define federal drug sentences.

Conviction on the conspiracy charge carries a mandatory minimum of 10 years and up to life in prison, no less than five years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $10 million. The separate count of possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl allows for up to 40 years behind bars, a minimum of four years supervised release, and a fine of up to $8 million. These are not slap-on-the-wrist penalties — they’re the federal government’s full fury aimed at traffickers like Siereveld.

The takedown was a joint push 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, building a textbook federal drug prosecution that ends with one message: the pipeline stops here.

Related Federal Cases