SCRANTON - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania has announced that Christopher Essameddin Birry, 43, from Hanover Township, Pennsylvania, received a 15-year prison sentence. This decision was made by United States District Judge Julia K. Munley on July 9, 2025, due to charges related to drug trafficking and firearms.
Acting United States Attorney John Gurganus stated that between May 31 and July 27, 2023, Birry distributed methamphetamine several times in the Wilkes-Barre area of Luzerne County. On September 11, 2023, during a traffic stop in Olyphant, Lackawanna County, Birry attempted to escape on foot but was captured. He was found with distribution quantities of methamphetamine and fentanyl and had a loaded handgun. Due to previous felony drug trafficking convictions, Birry was prohibited from possessing a firearm. At the time of this incident, he was on probation for another drug trafficking conviction.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America. According to its website (https://www.justice.gov/dag/media/1393746/dl?inline), this initiative uses the Department of Justice's full resources to combat illegal immigration and eliminate cartels and transnational criminal organizations while protecting communities from violent crime perpetrators. It combines efforts from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
The investigation involved the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Luzerne County Drug Task Force, the Pennsylvania State Police, and Olyphant Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jenny P. Roberts and Patrick Bannon prosecuted the case.
