Whitehall Man Charged with Unlawful Possession of Firearms and Ammunition

ALBANY, NEW YORK – Shane Smith, age 24, of Whitehall, New York, was charged this week with unlawfully possessing two short-barrel rifles and hundreds of rounds of ammunition as a felon. 

The announcement was made by Acting United States Attorney Antoinette T. Bacon; Thomas F. Relford, Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); and John B. DeVito, Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF).

The criminal complaint alleges that Smith, a felon, possessed two homemade AR-15-type rifles whose barrels were less than 16 inches in length, and hundreds of rounds of ammunition, on December 15 at his Whitehall home.  The charges in the complaint are merely accusations.  The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. 

Smith appeared yesterday before United States Magistrate Judge Christian F. Hummel, and was ordered detained pending further proceedings. 

Each count carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, and a term of post-imprisonment supervised release of up to 3 years.  A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors.

This case is being investigated by the FBI and the ATF, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rick Belliss.