A Bethlehem man is set to serve 57 months behind bars following a conviction for drug distribution and multiple firearms offenses. Federal court documents reveal that 38-year-old Matthew Romig's legal woes stem from dealings in cocaine and the illegal possession of an automatic firearm—a stark blend of crimes that has landed him a substantial prison term, supervised release, and a fine.
Last week, United States District Court Judge Joseph F. Leeson Jr. sentenced Romig after his guilty plea to all charges back in January, a development reported by the U.S. Attorney’s Office. His offenses revolved around the distribution of narcotics and the flagrant breach of firearm laws, which hit a crescendo with the discovery of a machine gun, unregistered and with its serial number obliterated, in his home.
The July 2024 raid on Romig's residence in Bethlehem unveiled not only the drugs but also a MAC-10.45 caliber submachine pistol set to full-automatic mode, complete with an extended magazine and a suppressor. Given his prior felony conviction for robbery in 2005, Romig was prohibited from possessing any firearms. "Matthew Romig endangered his community, selling cocaine and arming himself with a deadly weapon," U.S. Attorney David Metcalf said, per the U.S. Attorney’s Office publication. "It’s critical to get dangerous drugs off the street and illegal guns out of criminals’ hands, to crack down on violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer."
Furthermore, Romig's drug sales were occurring perilously close to a community playground, an aggravating factor that underscored the potential risk to the public. "Matthew Romig was selling drugs near a playground and armed with a fully automatic MAC-10 .45 submachine gun," Special Agent in Charge of the ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division, Eric DeGree, highlighted in an address, per the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The case resulted from collaborative efforts between the ATF, the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, and the Bethlehem Police Department, operating under the banner of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program.
Both Assistant United States Attorneys Rebecca Kulik and Robert Schopf lead the prosecution, ensuring that a clear message is sent to those who might contemplate mingling the sale of illicit drugs with the possession of illegal firearms. As for Romig, the next chapter involves a federal prison and a lengthy period of reflection under six years of supervised release following his incarceration—a bid to recalibrate his presence within the very community he once jeopardized.
