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Press Release

Whitehall Man Indicted On Firearms Charges

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of New York

ALBANY, NEW YORK – A federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging Shane Smith, age 18, of Whitehall, New York, with two counts of illegal possession of a machinegun and one count of possession of an unregistered firearm (silencer), announced United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian and Andrew W. Vale, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Albany Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. 

Smith was arraigned today before United States Magistrate Judge Christian F. Hummel, and ordered detained pending trial.  On each count, Smith faces a maximum of 10 years in prison and up to 3 years of supervised release. He also faces a maximum $250,000 fine on each machinegun possession charge, and a maximum $10,000 fine on the silencer possession charge.

Smith was arrested on August 6, 2015 and charged by complaint after he acquired, from an undercover agent, a Colt M16 model A2, a military-grade assault rifle capable of firing as a machinegun; a Military Armament Corporation “MAC 10” machinegun; a silencer; a Beretta model 92FS handgun; and 120 rounds of “green-tip” ammunition with armor-piercing capability. 

The charges and allegations announced today are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

This case is being investigated by the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force in Albany, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Sean O’Dowd and Solomon B. Shinerock.

Updated February 4, 2016