Belmont Man Sentenced to 41 Months in Prison for Firearms and Drug Offenses

            CONCORD, N.H. – Acting United States Attorney John J. Farley announced today that  Paul Channel, 27, of Belmont, was sentenced to  41 months in federal prison for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number and possession of a controlled substance – fentanyl.

            According to court documents and statements made in court, on March 25, 2017, after a telephone call from a concerned citizen, an officer with the Manchester Police Department stopped Channel while he was driving a vehicle on Elm Street.  The officer conducted a pat- frisk of Channel and located three syringes and a clear plastic baggie containing a controlled substance that subsequently tested positive for fentanyl.  Channel did not have a prescription for the fentanyl.  The police also located a firearm with an obliterated serial number in Channel’s vehicle.  Channel is prohibited from possessing a firearm because he is a convicted felon.

            Channel previously pleaded guilty on October 2, 2017.  In addition to the 41 month prison sentence, the Court ordered Channel to serve 3 years of supervised release.

            “Stopping violent crime is one of the highest priorities of the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Farley.  “Through the Project Safe Neighborhoods program, we work with our law enforcement partners to keep guns out of the hands of criminals.  By prosecuting those who possess guns illegally, we will reduce the risk of violent crime and make our communities safer.”

               This case was investigated by the Manchester Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).  Assistant U.S. Attorney Debra M. Walsh prosecuted the case.

            The case is part of ATF’s Project Safe Neighborhoods initiative, which is a federally-funded program intended to reduce gun violence through law enforcement training, public education, and aggressive law enforcement efforts to investigate and prosecute gun-related crimes.              

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