Inmate At USP Canaan Charged With Voluntary Manslaughter

SCRANTON – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced Bryant Wilson, age 54, an inmate at the United States Penitentiary Canaan, in Waymart, Pennsylvania, was indicted yesterday by a federal grand jury with voluntary manslaughter.

According to United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam, the indictment charges that on or about November 28, 2021, Wilson killed an inmate with a prison-made weapon “upon a sudden quarrel and heat of passion.” The indictment also alleges that Wilson unlawfully possessed a weapon, a seven-inch piece of metal sharpened to a point, commonly known as a “shank.”

The charges stem from a joint investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Prisons. Assistant United States Attorney Kyle Moreno is prosecuting the case.

The maximum penalty under federal law for the crimes charged in the Indictment is twenty years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine.  A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

Indictments are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.

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