Matt McDonald apparently won't be available to compete in potential future Big Brother all-stars edition anytime soon.
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Similar to Jasinski, who pleaded guilty to similar charges last fall and is scheduled to be sentenced this week, McDonald could face up to 20 years in prison and a million dollar fine. McDonald, a 26-year-old from Charlestown, MA, will reportedly remain behind bars until he is sentenced in April.
McDonald had been indicted for conspiracy to distribute oxycodone last April but pleaded not guilty to the charge.
Jasinski, a 32-year-old from Delray Beach, FL, pleaded guilty to possession of oxycodone with attempt to distribute and failing to file a tax return for 2008 (the year he won Big Brother) in October. He was arrested in October 2009 after he flew into Boston and attempted to sell 2,000 oxycodone pills to a Drug Enforcement Administration witness.
According to prosecutors, the witness -- who had made a prior buy of 2,000 oxycodone pills from Jasinski in February but been arrested afterwards -- met the Big Brother champ at Logan International Airport and then drove to a North Reading, MA strip mall where DEA agents arrested him after he pulled the pills from a sock stuffed in his pants.
After his arrest, Jasinski allegedly told DEA agents he had used his Big Brother cash prize to bankroll his drug dealing -- which McDonald was allegedly involved with from April 2008 to October 2009 -- and boasted he had been "obtaining thousands of pills of oxycodone" which he'd sold "to customers all along the East Coast."
However, Jasinski subsequently pleaded not guilty and challenged the DEA claims, saying he had no memory of making the statements after his arrest -- which his lawyer alleged involved "entrapment and outrageous government conduct."
After several months in jail, Jasinski was sent to an in-patient substance abuse treatment center in the Boston area, where he spent four months before moving to an out-patient treatment center near his parents' home in New Jersey. He was then taken back into custody after pleading guilty in October.
Despite his guilty plea, McDonald is still facing charges for additional criminal offenses. Last April, he was also arrested for assault and battery after he allegedly attacked his pregnant fiancee. He was then arrested again two days later and charged with witness intimidation after allegedly harassing the unidentified woman and her family.
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
