Pastor and Repeat Drug Trafficker Sentenced to Prison
BOSTON, December 10, 2020— A Dorchester man pleaded guilty yesterday to drug trafficking and other offenses he committed over a period of years, District Attorney Rachael Rollins said.
WILLIE WILKERSON, 62, pleaded guilty to two dockets during an appearance yesterday in Suffolk Superior Court. In a 2017 case, he pleaded guilty to charges including trafficking in cocaine (over 18 grams, under 36 grams) and trafficking in oxycodone (over 18 grams, under 36 grams). In a case that was indicted earlier this year, he pleaded guilty to charges including trafficking in cocaine (over 18 grams, under 36 grams) and unlawful possession of ammunition.
Judge Mary Ames sentenced Pastor Wilkerson to four to five years in state prison, followed by three years of probation.
During the course of a 2017 investigation, Boston Police officers received information that Pastor Wilkerson was selling drugs out of his home and the Quincy Street church where he served as a pastor. Officers coordinated a series of undercover purchases of narcotics from Pastor Wilkerson in the weeks and months leading up to May 2, 2017. On that date, officers executed warrants at Pastor Wilkerson’s home, the church, and a food truck on the church’s property. Those search warrants resulted in the recovery of approximately 30 grams of cocaine, 45 oxycodone pills, 9 grams of fentanyl, 73 grams of Buprenorphine and approximately 32 Clonozapam tablets and paraphernalia used to package drugs for sale.
At his arraignment on this case, a judge in the Dorchester Division of Boston Municipal Court set bail at $50,000. The case was subsequently indicted. When arraigned in Suffolk Superior Court on the indictment in July 2017, the Court set bail at $10,000 although the Commonwealth had requested $50,000. Pastor Wilkerson posted the cash bail within one month.
While the defendant in the ensuing years was arraigned on several new offenses, the courts routinely revoked his bail for periods of sixty days and set additional cash bails. The most recent bail revocation occurred in November 2020.
As Pastor Wilkerson continued to traffic in narcotics, authorities received community complaints about criminal activity in the area of his church. On December 31, 2019, as the result of a multi-jurisdictional investigation, members of the Boston Police Department, Massachusetts State Police and Boston FBI North Shore Gang Task Force executed search warrants at Pastor Wilkerson’s home, church, and on his person. As a result, officers recovered 23 grams of crack cocaine, 45 methadone pills, 259 gabapentin tablets, 62 sildenafil pills, 14 rounds of .32 caliber ammunition and paraphernalia used to package drugs for sale.
“These cases arose because community members used their voices and raised concerns about crime in the area of Pastor Wilkerson’s church. That this coward used his church to mask and hide his criminal behavior is awful. His actions inflicted harm on the community and the church congregation he was supposed to be serving. Now he has four to five years to think long and hard about his sins,” District Attorney Rollins said. “I’m grateful to the Boston Police Department for their attention to the community’s concerns, and to my staff for resolving this case in a manner that held Pastor Wilkerson accountable for the harm his actions inflicted.
“Individuals struggling with substance use disorder often have histories of abuse, trauma and mental illness. Their substance use causes harm, but that harm is primarily focused inward. In those instances, services and resources offer better outcomes than traditional prosecution. But when a person’s harmful actions are directed toward others, and when they continually take part in criminal activity, as Pastor Wilkerson has done here, it becomes necessary for them to be removed from the community and held accountable.”
There is help available to individuals struggling with substance use disorder and to their loved ones. Locating resources can often be difficult for those in crisis, particularly as the COVID-19 crisis has forced many services to move online. The City of Boston Office of Recovery Services and has compiled a list of available online resources that can be found here.
The Commonwealth was represented during yesterday’s plea hearing by Senior Trial Counsel Mark Zanini and Assistant District Attorney Pavan Nagavelli of District Attorney Rollins’ Crime Strategies Bureau. The Crime Strategies Bureau, which is composed of the Narcotics, Gang, Human Trafficking and Juvenile Units, addresses gun and gang-related violence through the prosecution of individuals who drive violent crime, distribute large amounts of illicit drugs, profit off of people’s pain – often times through sexual exploitation – and pose the greatest threat to their communities. Pastor Wilkerson was represented by attorney Moya Gibson.
Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins’ office serves the communities of Boston, Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop, Mass. The office handles over 25,000 cases a year. More than 160 attorneys in the office practice in nine district and municipal courts, Suffolk Superior Court, the Massachusetts Appeals Court, the Supreme Judicial Court, and the Boston Juvenile Courts. The office employs some 300 people and offers a wide range of services and programs to serve anyone who comes in contact with the criminal justice system. This office is committed to educating the public about the services we provide, our commitment to crime prevention, and our dedication to keeping the residents of Suffolk County safe.