A Maine man has pleaded guilty in federal court in Boston to charges related to his role in a large-scale nationwide methamphetamine trafficking ring, the Massachusetts U.S. Attorney’s Office announced last week.
Emil Dzabiev, 44, of Scarborough, Maine, pleaded guilty last Tuesday to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
He is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 2, 2024.
Dzabiev was initially arrested and charged along with seven other defendants in July 2021, and subsequently charged under a superseding federal indictment that added three defendants in September 2021.
He is the 10th defendant to plead guilty as part of the government’s investigation into the drug trafficking ring.
The leader of the drug trafficking ring, 62-year-old Turkish national and Rhode Island resident Reshat Alkayisi, pleaded guilty in April to drug trafficking, money laundering and firearm charges, and is slated to be sentenced on July 11, 2024.
According to federal prosecutors, in late 2020, Dzabiev was identified as one of Alkayisi’s regular customers who would purchase methamphetamine from Alkayisi for distribution in Maine.
Dzabiev was stopped in his vehicle by law enforcement in May 2021 after a meeting with Alkayisi, and was found to be in possession of approximately 455 grams of 100 percent pure methamphetamine.
During their investigation into the drug trafficking ring and a search of Alkayisi’s Rhode Island residence, federal law enforcement seized a total of over 160 pounds of pure methamphetamine, an AK-47 rifle, a Glock with no serial number, two loaded Smith & Wesson handguns and over 4,200 rounds of ammunition.
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Additionally, an illegal marijuana grow operation allegedly associated with the drug trafficking ring was dismantled, resulting in the seizure of hundreds of marijuana plants, according to the Justice Department.
On the conspiracy charge, Dzabiev faces up to life in prison, a fine of up to $10 million and three years to life of supervised release.
