Monessen man sentenced to more than 28 years in heroin case
A Monessen man was sentenced to more than 28 years in federal prison following his conviction on a charge of dealing heroin.
Two judges imposed the penalties Wednesday against Maurice K. Frezzell, 34, who was found guilty Dec. 6 after a jury trial in Pittsburgh. He was charged with distributing the drug Nov. 19, 2015.
U.S. District Judge Arthur J. Schwab sentenced Frezzell to 327 months in prison on the drug-dealing conviction, according to the records.
Senior U.S. District Judge David S. Cercone sentenced him to another 18 months because Frezzell had violated the federal probation he was serving for a 2010 guilty plea on a charge of dealing crack cocaine.
Schwab sentenced Frezzell to six years of probation upon his release.
Frezzell’s attorney, Stephen Begler, told Schwab in a presentence filing his client came from a broken home and had suffered abuse.
His client was later diagnosed with lingering post-traumatic stress, “(giving) rise to a lifetime of substance abuse” which Begler called a “significant factor” in Frezzell’s criminal history.
In his own filing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Ross Lenhardt requested a sentence of 30 years to life, citing Frezzell’s criminal history that started with an arrest for alleged sexual assault when he was 12, and, later, a number of convictions on drug and other charges.