Worcester Restaurant Owner Jailed For Using Drug $ For Businesses

WORCESTER, MA—A Worcester business owner was sentenced on Monday in federal court for distributing fentanyl and using the proceeds of drug sales to purchase and renovate nine properties and two restaurants in Worcester County.

Kevin A. Perry, 44, of Worcester, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Timothy S. Hillman to 14 years in prison and five years of supervised release, said the U.S. district attorney. Perry was also ordered to forfeit nine properties, the business assets of two restaurants, more than $510,000 in cash and precious metals seized to date, an illegal pill press, and two vehicles. The sentence also includes a money judgment of $1,180,943 against Perry should additional assets be located.

Perry pleaded guilty in October of 2017 to nine counts of money laundering, three counts of aggravated cash structuring, one count of making a false statement on a loan application, and one count of distribution of fentanyl. Previously, he was convicted in federal court of conspiracy to manufacture and distribute MDMA, which is commonly referred to as Ecstasy.

Despite filing an affidavit claiming he possessed nothing of monetary value to satisfy the court’s forfeiture order, Perry boasted to an individual that he successfully concealed from the government “millions of dollars” in profits from drug sales, according to the U.S. district attorney. When he got out of jail in 2008, Perry went back to making and distributing controlled substances, including fentanyl.

On Feb. 23, 2017, Perry distributed 2,000 pills containing fentanyl to an individual cooperating with law enforcement, said authorities.

Additionally, from April 2012 to October 2016, Perry used more than $1 million in proceeds from drug sales to purchase and renovate nine properties in Worcester County. Those purchases included two restaurants in the city of Worcester: The Usual Restaurant located at 166 Shrewsbury St. and The Blackstone Tap located at 81 Water St. Perry also used the proceeds from his drug sales to purchase more than 230 money orders totaling more than$150,000 from the United States Postal Service and Western Union to make structured cash payments on real estate loans and to finance his wedding in August 2015.

The only employment that Perry reported during that time was as a fitness trainer. He also collected unemployment benefits from June 2015 through January 2016.

Photo via Shutterstock