Manchester man gets five years for pushing massive amounts of meth in NH

CONCORD - A Manchester man was sentenced on Wednesday for drug trafficking pounds of methamphetamine.

Michael Raiche, 49, was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison and 3 years of supervised release.

In July he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance, specifically methamphetamine.

"The defendant conspired with others to distribute dangerous drugs in our state," said U.S. Attorney Erin Creegan. "Today's sentence reflects the serious threat posed by those who deal in drugs like methamphetamine. Our office will continue to pursue individuals and organizations who profit from drug trafficking in our communities."

According to the court documents and statements made in court, in the fall of 2022 the FBI, New Hampshire Major Offender Task Force, and the New Hampshire State Police began investigating a methamphetamine distribution conspiracy in New Hampshire.

On multiple occasions, a confidential source (or "CS") sought to purchase methamphetamine from Thomas Conway who told the CS that "Mike," the defendant, would take care of him.

In December 2022, Conway told the CS about the defendant taking over his drug distribution business. Phone calls and text messages intercepted during the investigation confirmed that the defendant worked as a mid-level methamphetamine distributor for Conway and the two discussed the need to restructure their drug trafficking organization to ensure a sufficient drug supply.

In one call on March 20, 2023, Conway told the defendant he had bought a pound of methamphetamine. Then on March 22, 2023, NHSP pulled over another of the defendant's co-conspirators and found about one pound of methamphetamine in a briefcase in the car, according to the U.S. Attorneys office statement sent on Wednesday. In a call with Conway, they discussed how they anticipated the police search of the vehicle and finding one pound of methamphetamine.

"Michael Raiche pushed massive amounts of meth onto New Hampshire's streets and was caught red-handed selling this poison on six separate occasions," said Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Boston Division. "While he sits behind bars contemplating the consequences of his criminal conduct, the FBI and our partners will continue to target those fueling the Granite State's drug epidemic and callously profiting from people's pain and addiction."