Boston Man Sentenced to More Than One Year in Prison for Drug Trafficking in and Around Public Housing Development

BOSTON – A man identified as a member/associate of the Heath Street Gang was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for possession with intent to distribute cocaine in a public housing development.

Michael Van Rader, 24, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Denise J. Casper to 22 months in prison to be followed by six years of supervised release. In April 2024, Van Rader pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute cocaine within 1,000 feet of a public housing facility.  

On or about Sept. 3, 2023, Van Rader was arrested on the grounds of the Mildred C. Hailey Apartments, a public housing complex in Jamaica Plain, in possession of a distribution quantity of cocaine. At the time of his arrest, Van Rader was barred by the Boston Housing Authority from trespassing at the Mildred C. Hailey Apartments and was on probation in connection with a state firearm-related conviction. 

Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; James M. Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Boston Feld Division; and Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox made the announcement. The investigation was supported by the Boston Housing Authority Police Department and the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Hoefle of the Organized Crime & Gang Unit prosecuted the case.