Harrisburg Woman Sentenced To 5 Years’ Imprisonment For A Firearms Offense

HARRISBURG- The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Taisha Ruiz, age 39, of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, was sentenced on December 20, 2023, by U.S. District Court Judge Christopher C. Conner to serve five years’ imprisonment to be followed by three years of supervised released based upon her previously entered guilty plea to possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking.

According to United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam, Harrisburg Police Officers executed a search warrant at Ruiz’s residence and observed her throw a bag from her bedroom window that contained approximately 600 bags of fentanyl, $900 in cash, and her Pennsylvania driver’s license. A search of her bedroom uncovered a .9mm pistol with an obliterated serial number, ammunition, and digital scales.  

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

The case was investigated by the Harrisburg Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).  Assistant U.S. Attorney Johnny Baer and Assistant U.S. Attorney Bruce D. Brandler prosecuted the case.

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