Schuylkill County Man Sentenced To 16 Months’ Imprisonment For Methamphetamine And Fentanyl Trafficking

SCRANTON - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that John Bartel age 64, of Pottsville, Schuylkill County, was sentenced on December 7, 2023, by U.S. District Court Judge Malachy E. Mannion, to 16 months’ imprisonment on the charge of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl.

According to United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam, Bartel previously pleaded guilty and admitted to possessing methamphetamine and fentanyl for further distribution.  The charge stems from an investigation in which the Pennsylvania State Police made a traffic stop of a vehicle Bartel was driving on August 3, 2022, in Pottsville, and seized approximately 55 grams of methamphetamine, 1,371 packets of fentanyl and $1,974 in U.S. currency.  Bartel was the sole occupant of the vehicle.

The charge against the defendant resulted from an investigation conducted by the Pennsylvania State Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Safe Streets Task Force. Assistant United States Attorney Robert J. O’Hara prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

###