A Blair County man was sentenced to a state prison term on Monday in Carbon County court after pleading guilty to a firearms charge.

He was one of eight defendants in pending criminal cases to enter a guilty plea before Judge Joseph J. Matika.

Vehicle stop

Prince Shaborn Manuel

, 34, of Altoona, pleaded to one count of firearms not to be carried without a license.

He was arrested after being stopped by state police at Swiftwater on Feb. 17, 2016, along Interstate 80 in Kidder Township. Found in the vehicle was a Phoenix Arms .25-caliber handgun for which Manuel did not have license.

Manuel is currently serving a five- to 10-year state prison term imposed in Blair County. He is an inmate at the state correctional institution at Camp Hill, Dauphin County.

Matika sentenced him to serve 36 months to seven years in a state prison and ordered him to supply a DNA sample, get a drug and alcohol evaluation, zero tolerance for drug and alcohol use, render 100 hours of community service when released on parole and pay court costs of about $1,000.

He was given credit for 11 days spent in prison on the charge. Matika said the sentence will run concurrent with the Blair County sentence.

Other pleas

Stephen M. Soldridge

, 49, of Nesquehoning, pleaded to one count of default in required appearance.

He was arrested by Nesquehoning police when he failed to appear for a weekend sentence he was serving in the county prison. He had served 11 of 15 consecutive weekends but failed to appear for the 12th. He said he called the prison to say he could not make it because he claimed he was ill. The charges were then filed and he had been in jail for the past 70 days.

Matika placed him on probation for a year, consecutive to the sentence he was originally serving, and ordered him to render 50 hours of community service.

Joseph Dalessio

, 66, of Sugarloaf, Luzerne County, pleaded to one count of unsworn falsification. He was charged by Mahoning Township police for attempting to purchase a firearm at the Walmart store on April 21, 2017, when he was not permitted to make such a purchase.

Matika placed him on probation for a year and ordered he render 50 hours of community service.

Joseph Jay Balado

, 49, of Tamaqua, pleaded to one count of unsworn falsification. He was charged by Mahoning Township police with attempting to purchase a firearm at the Walmart store when he was not permitted to do so.

He was placed on probation for a year and ordered to render 50 hours of community service.

David Charles Sweigert

, 34, of Mary D, pleaded to one count of unsworn falsification. He was charged by Mahoning Township police with attempting to purchase a firearm at the Walmart store when he was not permitted to do so.

Matika placed him on probation for a year and ordered him to render 50 hours of community service.

Arley Steban Canas-Parra

, 22, of Richmond, New York, pleaded to one count of persistent disorderly conduct. The charge was added to the original complaint.

He was arrested on April 14, 2017, along Route 940 by Kidder Township police. He originally charged with drug counts including possession of a controlled substance, possession of marijuana and two counts of possession of drug paraphernalia. Those charges were dropped in a plea bargain with the district attorney’s office.

Matika placed him on probation for a year and ordered him to get a drug and alcohol evaluation and render 50 hours of community service.

Stephanie Lynn Kephart

, 36, of Weatherly, pleaded in two pending cases to three counts of theft and one count of persistent disorderly conduct.

She was arrested on the first theft count on Sept. 20, 2017, for stealing prescription medication from a Weatherly borough resident. The second set of charges is for the same offense involving another borough resident as the victim. In the first case a charge of possession of a controlled substance was dropped. In the second case a charge of burglary and related counts were dropped by the district attorney’s office.

Matika placed her on probation for a year on all counts, running concurrently, and ordered her to get a drug and alcohol evaluation, zero tolerance for drug and alcohol use, make restitution of $22 and render 50 hours of community service.

Brett A. Krotzer

, 41, of Slatington, pleaded to one count each of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and harassment.

He was charged with taking a vehicle belonging to a Lansford resident without permission and then harassing a borough female.

On the first count he was placed on probation for a year and ordered to render 50 hours of community service. On the harassment charge he was fined $100.

Felicia M. Bigg-Carr

, 27, of Lansford, pleaded to one count of persistent disorderly conduct for an incident on March 2 involving her sister as the victim at a residence along West Patterson Street in Lansford. Charges of simple assault and harassment were dropped by the district attorney’s office.

She is currently an inmate in the county prison on a probation violation petition.

Matika placed her on probation for a year and ordered her to render 50 hours of community service.

Each defendant sentenced must also pay court costs of about $1,000 and a $50 per month supervision fee while on probation or parole.