BOSTON – A former Malden firefighter pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston in connection with conspiring to distribute controlled substances including oxycodone, suboxone, Klonopin and Adderall.
Joshua Eisnor, 43, of North Reading, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances. U.S. District Court Judge Leo T. Sorokin scheduled sentencing for Oct. 11, 2022. Eisnor was charged on May 26, 2022.
While working as a firefighter at the Malden Fire Department, Eisnor distributed controlled substances to other members of the Malden Fire Department.
“As a firefighter, Mr. Eisnor was responsible for the safety and wellbeing of Malden’s residents. His conduct violated this duty by potentially compromising the security and operations of the fire department and putting residents at risk,” said United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins. “My office has a zero-tolerance policy for public officials who abuse their positions of trust.”
“Former Malden firefighter Joshua Eisnor admitted today to dealing drugs—while on duty—to his fellow firefighters, putting them, and the community they serve in potential danger,” said Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Boston Division. “His actions are an affront to the overwhelming majority of firefighters who go to work substance-free and alcohol-free every day and risk their lives to protect ours.”
“Prescription drugs offered illegally have no guarantees of safety or efficacy and hold the potential to harm those who use them,” Bradley E. Greenburg, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations, New York Field Office. “We will continue to investigate and bring to justice those who put the health of the public at risk.”
“The VA Office of Inspector General is committed to investigating those who would abuse VA’s programs and services,” said Christopher F. Algieri, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General’s Northeast Field Office. “The VA OIG thanks the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners for their hard work leading to today’s guilty plea.”
The charge of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, five years of supervised release and a fine of up to a $500,000. Sentences in a criminal case are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
U.S. Attorney Rollins, FBI SAC Bonavolonta, FDA-CI Acting SAC Greenburg and VA-OIG SAC Algieri made the announcement today. Special assistance was provided by the Merrimack Valley Transnational Organized Crime Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Eugenia M. Carris, Deputy Chief of Rollins’ Public Corruption & Special Prosecutions Unit and Howard Locker, of Rollins’ Health Care Fraud Unit, are prosecuting the case.