State police charged a man who was allegedly attempting to purchase a firearm after he was previously sentenced in indecent assault cases.

John Joseph Goettler, 58, of Summit Township, was charged with felony false statements during gun purchase and misdemeanor false statements. Police said Goettler failed to accurately answer questions about his criminal history while attempting to purchase a Savage 83 R17 rifle on June 21, 2023, from Sportsman’s Supply Company in Summit Township.

Goettler was previously sentenced Feb. 8, 2024, to three months in county prison, followed by 8½ months of house arrest and 48 months of probation after pleading guilty to two misdemeanor charges of indecent assault.

In September 2021, police charged Goettler with two felony counts of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse involving a person less than 16 years old, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and one count of rape; in addition to three misdemeanor indecent assault charges for an incident occurring in Penn Township in June 1986.

At the time police also charged Goettler with two misdemeanor counts of indecent assault of a person less than 13, indecent assault of a person less than 16, and indecent assault and corruption of minors for incidents occurring between 1998 and 2005.

According to state police, the statute of limitations is extended in cases involving minors. A person can file charges until they are 55 years old if the incident happened when they were younger than 18.

Goettler’s preliminary hearing on the gun purchase case has not been scheduled.