Two indicted on firearms charges

Two men were indicted on firearms charges, said David A. Sierleja, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.

Anthony V. Mascarella, 29, of Youngstown, was indicted on one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.

Terry Lee Leitch, 33, of Rootstown, was indicted on one count of possession of an unregistered firearm.

The indictment alleges that Mascarella possessed a Smith & Wesson, model SD40VE, .40 caliber pistol, and ammunition on Nov. 15, 2016, after having been convicted of domestic violence in the Mahoning County Court of Common Pleas in 2007.

Leitch on Sept. 12, 2016, possessed a New England Firearms, model Pardner SB-1, 20 gauge shotgun, modified with a barrel length of approximately 13 inches and an overall length of approximately 19.25 inches, which firearm had not been registered to him in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record, according to the indictment.

If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violations. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and, in most cases, it will be less than the maximum.

These cases are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David M. Toepfer. The cases were investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Youngstown Police Department (Mascarella) and the Portage County Sheriff’s Office (Leitch).

An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.