Police Accuse Franklin Man of Providing False ID, Possession of a Controlled Substance

| February 2, 2023

SUGARCREEK BOROUGH, Pa. (EYT) – Sugarcreek Borough Police have accused a Franklin man of false identification to a law enforcement officer, along with disorderly conduct and possession of a controlled substance.

According to a criminal complaint released on January 31, a Sugarcreek Borough Police (SBPD) officer came across two males walking up Cedar Street as he was driving down the same street.

The SBPD officer recognized one of the men as 28-year-old Michael Shoffstall, who the officer knew had a warrant for his arrest, the complaint notes.

According to the complaint, the officer radioed a patrolman to meet him at the corner of Cedar Street and Venango Street. He then turned his marked police vehicle around toward the men, stopped them, and asked for identification. Both stated they did not have identification on their person.

The assisting SBPD patrolman arrived on the scene as the SBPD officer asked the men for their names.

The complaint states that Shoffstall stated his name was “Tristan.” He then asked Shoffstall if he could provide him with some identification, at which time he stated that “he did not have any on him and that he left it at his cousin’s house.” The officer told both men that they were free to go and they walked away heading up Venango Street.

The officer then told the patrolman that he was certain that “Tristan” was Michael Shoffstall and that he believed he gave him a false name. The patrolman then ran Michael Shoffstall’s information in the NCIC database, while the officer kept an eye on where the men were walking. The patrolman radioed the officer and stated that it was, in fact, Michael Shoffstall and that the photo matched the man he had just seen, the complaint states.

The officer then drove around the block and turned right onto Venango Street from 2nd Avenue when he came back in contact with Michael Shoffstall. He got out of his marked police vehicle and told Michael Shoffstall to come here and that he was under arrest for a warrant he had. Shoffstall took off running through a yard heading toward 2nd Avenue. The officer then proceeded to chase him on foot. They ran down 2nd Avenue about a block when Shoffstall attempted to run up an embankment. He tripped over a curb, surrendered, and was placed in handcuffs, according to the report.

The assisting patrolman had already been in his vehicle and met with the officer right when Shoffstall tripped over the curb. The patrolman searched Michael Shoffstall for any weapons and found a strip of buprenorphine and naloxone sublingual film 8mg/2mg before placing Michael Shoffstall in the back of police car without any further incident, the complaint indicates.

The complaint notes that Shoffstall was transported to the SBPD to wait for the Venango County Sheriff’s Department to come to pick him up.

Shoffstall was arraignment in front of Magisterial District Judge Matthew T. Kirtland on January 31 at 11:30 a.m. on the following charges:

  • False Identification To Law Enforcement Officer, Misdemeanor 3
  • Disorderly Conduct Hazardous/Physi Off, Misdemeanor 3
  • Int Poss Contr Subst By Per Not Reg, Misdemeanor

Bail was set at $5,000.00 unsecured.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for February 8 at 8:30 a.m. in Venango County Central Court with Judge Kirtland presiding.


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Gavin Fish is a reporter for EYT Media Group and YouTuber based in Venango County. In addition to his YouTube Channel, he has contributed to investigations and reports for ABC News, Investigation Discovery, and Fox Nation, and has collaborated on projects developed for Netflix, Oxygen, Discovery Channel, Amazon Prime, and Hulu.
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