Fall River Woman Pleads Guilty to Smuggling Drugs into Prison

BOSTON — The mother of an MCI-Cedar Junction inmate pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston in connection with smuggling drugs into the facility.

Margaret Guillemette, 58, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute Suboxone and Alprazolam. In September 2018, she was charged along with Chad Connors, 42, and William Guillemette, 39, both inmates at Massachusetts Correctional Institute-Cedar Junction (MCI-CJ) in South Walpole, and Lisa Guillemette, 42, also of Fall River. U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani scheduled Margaret Guillemette’s sentencing for May 30, 2019.

According to the charging documents, Chad Connors and William Guillemette were inmates housed at MCI-CJ’s Departmental Disciplinary Unit (DDU). It is alleged that Connors was involved in a romantic relationship with a nurse assigned to the DDU. At Connors’ request, the nurse agreed to smuggle contraband, including controlled substances, into MCI-CJ. In order to do this, the nurse opened two P.O. boxes through a third party. Connors sent letters and money to the nurse at these P.O. boxes and, at William Guillemette’s direction, his wife, Lisa, and mother, Margaret, obtained and sent Suboxone and Alprazolam to the P.O. boxes.

The nurse subsequently smuggled the drugs into the DDU and delivered them to Connors. It is alleged that Connors and William Guillemette distributed the drugs to other inmates, who sent checks to Lisa and Margaret Guillemette as payment for the drugs. Suboxone and Alprazolam are Schedule III and Schedule IV controlled substances, respectively.

The nurse was previously charged and pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute Suboxone and Alprazolam.

The charge of conspiracy to distribute Suboxone and Alprazolam provide for a sentence of no greater than 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, a fine of $500,000 and forfeiture. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.

United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling; Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; Commissioner Carol Mici of the Massachusetts Department of Correction; and Joseph W. Cronin, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Boston Division made the announcement today.

-- U.S. Attorney's Office