Rochester Woman Pleads Guilty for Role in Drug Trafficking Conspiracy

Rochester Woman Pleads Guilty for Role in Drug Trafficking Conspiracy

CONCORD - Tabitha O'Brien, age 46, of Rochester, New Hampshire, pleaded guilty today in federal court to one count of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, U.S. Attorney Erin Creegan announces.

According to court documents and statements, in early 2024, law enforcement began investigating a drug-trafficking organization (DTO) based in Massachusetts and operating in New Hampshire. This DTO trafficked multiple kilograms of fentanyl and methamphetamine. During the conspiracy, O'Brien bought drugs from the DTO, namely, fentanyl, which she then sold to her own customers around Rochester. O'Brien has been detained since her arrest in October 2024. Sentencing is set for September 22, 2026.

The charge of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance carries a sentence of up to 20 years' incarceration, not less than 3 years of supervised release, and a fine up to $1,000,000. Sentences 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.

The Department of Homeland Security led the investigation with valuable assistance from the Strafford County Sheriff's Office and New Hampshire State Police. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mike Shannon and Yasir Sadat are prosecuting the case.

This prosecution is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF New Hampshire comprises agents and officers from FBI, HSI, IRS, DEA, ATF, USMS, and DSS with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney's Office for the District of New Hampshire.