William J. Edwards, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, today announced that a federal grand jury indicted Matthew Clingerman, age 22, of Girard, Ohio, in connection with the burglaries of two federally licensed firearms dealers. The indictment charges Clingerman with theft of firearms from Buckeye Firearms in Rogers, Ohio and from Midwest Money Center in Youngstown, Ohio. Both burglaries occurred in May, 2007. The indictment also charges Clingerman with unlawful possession of the firearms stolen from each of the dealers after he had been convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year. Clingerman is also under indictment in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court in connection with the burglary of another firearms licensee on May 14, 2007 and May 20, 2007.

The sentence in this case, upon conviction, may be determined by the Court after consideration of the advisory Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which depend upon a number of factors unique to each case, including the defendant's prior criminal record, if any, the defendant's role in the offense and the unique characteristics of the violation. In all cases the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Nancy L. Kelley, following an investigation the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Boardman Police Department, the Columbiana Sheriff’s Department and the Liberty Police Department.

An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government's burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.