DOJ Seal

Department of Justice

U.S. Attorney's Office
Western District of Pennsylvania

For Immediate Release

Thursday, December 16, 2021
Cindy K. Chung
, United States Attorney

Oil City Man Charged With Robbing Tobacco Store With a Gun

ERIE, Pa. - A former resident of Oil City, Pennsylvania has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Erie on a charges of Hobbs Act robbery and federal firearms laws, United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung announced today.

The two-count Indictment named Mark Daniel Fenstermaker, 38, as the sole defendant.

According to the Indictment presented to the court, on or about October 14, 2021, Fenstermaker committed a robbery of Spanky’s Tobacco World in Venango County, Pennsylvania and used or carried a firearm which was brandished in furtherance of the robbery.

The case is part of Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reductions efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevent and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime. The law provides for a maximum total of life in prison, a fine of $500,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.

Assistant United States Attorney Paul S. Sellers is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Pennsylvania State Police conducted the investigation leading to the Indictment in this case.

An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Philadelphia Field Division