Northumberland County Man Charged With Firearms Offense

WILLIAMSPORT- The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that Alex Santiago, age 40, of Mt. Carmel, Pennsylvania, was charged by a federal grand jury for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.

According to U.S. Attorney Gerard M. Karam, the indictment alleges that on June 15, 2022, Santiago was in possession of a loaded Smith & Wesson .40 caliber firearm loaded with 11 rounds of ammunition, in Mount Carmel. As a previously convicted felon, he was prohibited from possessing a firearm.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Northumberland County Drug Task Force, the Pennsylvania State Police, the Bloomsburg Police Department, the Sunbury Police Department, the Shamokin Police Department, and the Coal Township Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney George J. Rocktashel is prosecuting the case.

This case is also being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

The maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is 10 years’ imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

Indictments are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.

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