PITTSBURGH, Pa. – A former resident of Oil City has been sentenced in federal court to two-and-a-half years in prison followed by three years of supervised release for violating federal firearms laws, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced Friday.

On February 27, 2019, Judge Cathy Bissoon sentenced Emmett Freshcorn, 30, on one count of possession of firearms by convicted felon.

In connection with the guilty plea, the court was advised that on December 11, 2017, Freshcorn, who is a convicted felon, went into a gun store with another individual. Freshcorn gave that individual money to purchase a BMG, .50 caliber rifle. Freshcorn then carried the rifle out of the store and took possession of it. Further, on March 7, 2018, Special Agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Explosives recovered the remaining firearms and ammunition from locations connected to Freshcorn in Oil City, PA.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), 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.

Assistant United States Attorney Timothy Lanni and Special Assistant United States Attorney Rachel Wheeler prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Pennsylvania State Police, and the Oil City Police conducted the investigation leading to the plea and sentence in this case.