Olean Man Sentenced On Heroin And Gun Charges

CONTACT:      Barbara Burns
PHONE:         (716) 843-5817
FAX:            (716) 551-3051
 
BUFFALO, N.Y. – U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Giovanni Salmonson, 26, of Olean, NY, who was convicted of possession with intent to distribute heroin, and being a felon in possession of a firearm, was sentenced to 188 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Patricia Astorga, who handled the case, stated that on January 1, 2015, Olean Police responded to a trespassing complaint near the 200 block of North 1st Street. Upon arrival, an officer spotted the defendant near 225 North 1st Street and asked Salmonson to step out of the roadway and up onto the curb.  The defendant took off running. While he was running away, the officer noticed that Salmonson was wearing a black Nike backpack/drawstring bag. A foot chase ensued and the defendant entered a backyard at 121 North 2nd Street after throwing the black Nike bag over a fence into another yard. An officer ordered Salmonson to the ground, and he complied. After retrieving the bag, officers recovered a .22 caliber revolver from inside. Subsequently, officers also recovered 14 bags of heroin, six suboxone pills and $851 dollars in United States currency. 

The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation on the part of the Olean Police Department, under the direction of Chief Jeff Rowley; and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Ashan Benedict, New York Field Division.