A Brockton man, already on probation for a prior fentanyl conviction, has landed back in custody facing federal drug charges, U.S. Attorney Joshua S. Levy and FBI’s Boston Division Special Agent in Charge Jodi Cohen announced. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, 29-year-old Joshua Tavares is accused of distributing more than 100 grams of a fentanyl analogue to a cooperating witness.
Tavares was arrested earlier today and is held pending a December 6 court hearing. This new charge amplifies Tavares’s legal woes, considering he was already facing charges from a separate drug arrest in March 2024. Captured on a video recording, while facing the ceiling, the sale of 100 grams of a suspect substance to a witness on November 1 was provided as evidence against him.
Searches at Tavares’s home and suspected stash houses yielded approximately four kilograms of what's thought to be fentanyl, alongside cocaine, distribution materials, and over $89,000 in cash. Law enforcement officials also uncovered firearms, including a .40 caliber and a 9mm Glock, both equipped with machinegun conversion kits, commonly known as "switches," which transform the firearms into fully automatic weapons.
Additional stash locations turned up more weaponry, including a 9mm Glock with a machinegun conversion device and a laser sight, along with various rounds of ammunition and loaded magazines. The evidence was resting beside a notable 50 round drum magazine. The charge Tavares is now up against implies a minimum sentence of 10 years, with the possibility of life in prison and up to a $10 million fine. Sentencing, as mentioned by the U.S. Attorney's Office, will be determined by a federal district court judge, guided by applicable laws and sentencing guidelines.
The local police departments collaborated with federal agencies in the operation that led to Tavares's arrest. Assistant U.S. Attorney Philip A. Mallard is handling the prosecution of this case. While the charges paint a grim picture of criminal enterprise, the defendant remains presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court as the U.S. judicial principle asserts.
