Bean Town Times

A New Hampshire man has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for his involvement in a nationwide drug trafficking ring. The sentencing took place yesterday in federal court in Boston, where significant quantities of drugs and weapons were seized during the investigation.

Andre Watson, 47, of Nashua, N.H., was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton. In addition to the prison term, Watson will undergo five years of supervised release. He pleaded guilty in April 2024 to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine.

Watson was initially charged in September 2021 alongside ten other defendants for various controlled substance offenses, firearm offenses, and money laundering offenses.

The investigation began around October 2020 when authorities received information about a large-scale methamphetamine supplier operating in the Boston area. Reshat Alkayisi was identified as a major trafficker distributing multi-pound quantities throughout New England. Watson was one of Alkayisi’s distributors and received approximately four pounds (1.8 kilograms) of methamphetamine from him in May 2021. Watson's arrest followed in July 2021, leading to the seizure of multiple weapons from his vehicle and residence.

Watson is the first defendant to be sentenced among those charged; all others have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing.

Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Boston Division; and Stephen Belleau, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration's New England Field Division announced the sentencing. The Massachusetts Department of Correction, Norfolk County Sheriff’s Office, and several local police departments provided valuable assistance during the investigation.

This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation aimed at identifying and dismantling high-level criminal organizations threatening the United States through a multi-agency approach.

Additional information about OCDETF can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.