Click here to subscribe today or Login.
SCRANTON — A Kingston man who pled guilty to distributing cocaine was sentenced to more than a decade in federal prison on Thursday.
U.S. District Court Judge Robert D. Mariani sentenced Charles Vincent Benincasa, 41, to 11 years and four months in federal prison on charges of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance and possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking. Benincasa pled guilty to the charges on July 3.
According to a news release from U.S. Attorney Gerard M. Karam, Benincasa sold cocaine from his residence in Kingston on July 19, 2023.
Days later, agents with the Luzerne County Drug Task Force expected a search warrant at Benincasa’s residence, finding cocaine, marijuana, fentanyl and nearly $15,000 cash, the news release says.
Agents further found thousands of rounds of ammunition, six firearms and two ghost guns that had no serial numbers. One of the firearms, an AR-15, had a modified barrel, according to the news release.
The case was investigated by the Luzerne County Drug Task Force and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Luisa Honora Berti prosecuted.