Bean Town Times

A Boston man was sentenced yesterday in federal court for unlawfully possessing a firearm and ammunition and for distributing cocaine.

Herbert Small, 32, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Julia E. Kobick to two years in prison, followed by six years of supervised release. In April 2024, Small pleaded guilty to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition and two counts of distribution and possession with intent to distribute controlled substances.

On Aug. 17, 2023, Small sold 20 grams of cocaine and two firearms – a .22 caliber revolver and a .40 caliber pistol with a magazine containing 11 rounds of ammunition – to a cooperating witness in Dorchester. On Oct. 16, 2023, Small sold approximately 65 grams of cocaine base (commonly known as crack cocaine) to the same cooperating witness.

Small is prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition due to a previous federal drug conviction in 2017.

Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy and James M. Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Field Office made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by the Boston Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Philip C. Cheng and Lucy Sun of the Organized Crime & Gang Unit prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and communities they serve to reduce gun violence and other violent crime, making neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in communities; supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence; setting focused enforcement priorities; and measuring results.

This operation is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Strike Force Initiative which establishes permanent multi-agency task force teams working side-by-side in the same location. This model enables agents from different agencies to collaborate on intelligence-driven operations to disrupt significant drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations using a prosecutor-led approach.