SCRANTON – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Matthew Luce, 36, of Effort, Pennsylvania, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Malachi E to 240 months in prison. Mannion for distributing deadly fentanyl. Judge Mannion also sentenced Luce to 188 months in a separate drug-trafficking conspiracy case. The sentences must run concurrently.
According to United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam, on February 6, 2021, Luce knowingly and intentionally distributed fentanyl in the Middle District of Pennsylvania, resulting in the death of 36-year-old Clinton, New Jersey. Luce was also charged with conspiracy to distribute and possess more than 50 grams of methamphetamine and 100 grams of heroin between November 26, 2020 and the date of his arrest on February 23, 2021. Luce had previously pleaded guilty to both charges.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Monroe County District Attorney’s Office, the Hunterdon County District Attorney’s Office (NJ), the Clinton Police Department (NJ), the Stroud Regional Police Department, and the Pennsylvania State Police. . Assistant U.S. Attorney James M. Buchanan prosecuted the case.
This event is part of Project Safer Neighborhoods (PSN), which brings together law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On 26 May 2021, the Department launched a Violent Crime Reduction Strategy to strengthen PSN based on these key principles: building trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community organizations that help prevent violence in the first place , setting target and strategic goals. implementation priorities and measurement of results.
The case was also filed as part of the county’s initiative to combat the nationwide epidemic of heroin use and distribution. Led by the United States Attorney’s Office, the Heroin Initiative targets heroin traffickers operating in the Middle District of Pennsylvania and works with federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to locate, apprehend, and prosecute heroin-related individuals. is part of a coordinated effort between offenses.
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