Leah B. Foley United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts | Department of Justice
A federal inmate at FMC Devens has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for possessing synthetic cannabinoids, commonly referred to as “K2,” within the facility. Raymond Gaines, 46, received the sentence from U.S. District Court Judge Margaret R. Guzman and will also serve one year of supervised release following his imprisonment. Gaines had pleaded guilty to the charge in December 2025.
Gaines was originally charged by complaint in March 2025 alongside Tasha Hammock, a former employee of the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection. According to court records, Hammock visited Gaines at FMC Devens on August 18, 2024, and discreetly passed him papers laced with K2 during her visit.
Previously, Gaines was sentenced in January 2022 to over seven years for drug trafficking offenses and firearms possession after pleading guilty in Boston federal court. At that time, he was already on supervised release following a conviction in 2017 related to distributing cocaine base near a school zone. In both cases, authorities alleged that Gaines was an associate of the Orchard Park Trailblazers gang based in Boston. On January 17, 2025, he received an Executive Grant of Clemency that reduced his federal sentence to five years.
Court documents note that K2 use poses health risks at FMC Devens. Both inmates and staff have reportedly become ill due to exposure—either by direct consumption or through secondary smoke from K2-laced paper.
Tasha Hammock pleaded guilty and was sentenced in January 2025 to three years of probation for her role in supplying contraband to Gaines. The government had recommended she receive a prison term followed by supervised release.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley stated: "United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston made the announcement today." Assistant U.S. Attorney Brendan O’Shea prosecuted the case.
