Boston Man Charged in Connection with Shooting and Conspiracy to Distribute Controlled Substance

BOSTON – A Boston man was arrested yesterday and charged in connection with operating a drug trafficking organization and with a July 1, 2017 shooting in Boston.

Mujab Jihad Mubarak, a/k/a “Big Homie,” a/k/a “Easy,” a/k/a “E,” was charged in a criminal complaint with one count of conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin and fentanyl and one count of use and possession of a firearm in connection with a drug trafficking crime. Mubarak will make an initial appearance today at 2:30 before Magistrate Judge Judith Dein.

According to charging documents, Mubarak was responsible for a large drug trafficking organization and employed multiple lower-level co-conspirators as part of his distribution network. The court documents detail Mubarak’s operation and recount over 20 recorded purchases made by a cooperating witness. 

Mubarak was allegedly captured on a recording discussing a 2017 shooting incident where a former co-conspirator of Mubarak was targeted because Mubarak believed the co-conspirator had stolen money. Mubarak explained that the co-conspirator was transporting cash through Logan Airport on behalf of Mubarak’s drug trafficking organization and the co-conspirator claimed that the money was seized by police, which was in fact true. When the co-conspirator failed to provide proof of the seizure, Mubarak stated on the recording that he located the co-conspirator and shot him. According to court documents, police and medical records showed that the police responded to a shooting where the co-conspirator was shot and admitted to the hospital with a gunshot wound.

The charge of conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute controlled substances provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $1 million. The charge of using and possessing of a firearm in connection with a drug trafficking crime provides for a sentence of no less than five years and up to life in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling and Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division made the announcement. The Boston Police Department also provided valuable assistance. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Glenn A. MacKinlay and Philip A. Mallard of Lelling’s Organized Crime and Gang Unit are prosecuting the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Former Attorney General Jeff Sessions reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.