Topsham Man Sentenced for Unlawfully Possessing Firearms

PORTLAND, Maine: A Topsham man was sentenced today in federal court for being a felon in possession of firearms, Acting U.S. Attorney Donald E. Clark announced.

U.S. District Judge D. Brock Hornby sentenced Manesseh Massaline, 51, to 51 months in prison and three years of supervised release. Massaline pleaded guilty on January 5, 2021.

According to court records, Massaline possessed a Glock 9 mm handgun and a KelTec 12-gauge shotgun on January 17, 2019. He was prohibited from possessing firearms under federal law because he had previously been convicted in Maine state court of Assault, Aggravated Assault and Aggravated Criminal Trespass, crimes that were punishable by a term of imprisonment exceeding one year.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency's Mid-Coast Drug Task Force investigated the case.

This case was part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a nationwide initiative that brings together federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement officials, prosecutors, community leaders, and other stakeholders to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in a community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. PSN is coordinated by the U.S. Attorneys' Offices in the 94 federal judicial districts throughout the 50 states and U.S. territories.

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