SCRANTON — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (USAO - Pennsylvania, Middle), published as received.

SCRANTON - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Michael Marchese, age 30, of Swoyersville, Luzerne County, pleaded guilty on April 28, 2022, before U.S. District Court Judge Robert D. Mariani, to the charge of conspiracy to distribute more than fifty grams of methamphetamine. 

According to United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, Marchese admitted to conspiring with other individuals to distribute methamphetamine in the Luzerne County area in 2020. The charges stem from an investigation in May 2020 in which police obtained a search warrant for a residence where Marchese was residing in Swoyersville and seized crystal methamphetamine, a scale, drug packing materials, and $2245 in U.S. Currency.

The investigation was conducted by the Luzerne County Drug Task Force, the Kingston Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF).  Assistant United States Attorney Robert J. O’Hara is prosecuting the case.

This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, 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.

The charge carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison, up to a maximum sentence of forty years in prison, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine.  A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

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