Philly Man Whose Sentence Biden Commuted Charged In Federal Meth, Fentanyl, And Guns Ring

SCRANTON / PHILADELPHIA — Two Philadelphia men, including one whose earlier federal drug sentence was commuted by former President Joe Biden, are among eight people indicted on federal drug-trafficking and firearms charges tied to an alleged methamphetamine and fentanyl ring operating in Philadelphia and Luzerne County, according to FOX56 and The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Michael Rinaldi, 49, and Jason Lozada, 51, both of Philadelphia, were indicted by a federal grand jury, the ATF Philadelphia Field Division said in a news release Thursday, the Inquirer reported. The case was announced by the ATF and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.

Also charged are Ryan Kehoe, 49, Michelle Hall, 46, and Melissa Butler, 49, all of Wilkes-Barre; William Miller, 43, of Forty Fort; Dylan Mohr, 29, of Benton; and Keith Sassaman, 48, of Shavertown, FOX56 reported.

The indictment alleges the group conspired to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine from about August 2025 through September 2026. Federal prosecutors said the 21-count indictment also includes allegations of methamphetamine and fentanyl distribution on multiple occasions, as well as several firearms offenses, according to FOX56.

Rinaldi was sentenced in 2021 to more than 19 years in federal prison after a drug-trafficking conviction, FOX56 reported. Citing public records, the ATF and the U.S. Attorney’s Office said Biden granted Rinaldi executive clemency on Jan. 17, 2025, commuting the remainder of that sentence, according to the Inquirer.

In his final days in office, Biden granted clemency to nearly 2,500 people for what were described as non-violent drug offenses, and Rinaldi was one of them, the Inquirer reported.

The ATF led the investigation with help from the Luzerne County Drug Task Force and police departments in Hazleton, Wilkes-Barre, Philadelphia, Kingston and Pittston, according to FOX56.

An indictment is only an allegation. Rinaldi, Lozada and the other six defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

Sources: FOX56 / U.S. Attorney’s Office, Middle District of Pennsylvania; The Philadelphia Inquirer / ATF Philadelphia Field Division.

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