A former Westchester County Police Officer was recently sentenced in New Haven Federal Court to 37 months in prison for his reported role in a drug smuggling ring. 36-year-old Michael Brady of Thornwood was accused of taking approximately $20,000 in cash in exchange for allegedly assisting drug smugglers pass through security at the Westchester County Airport on multiple occasions between December 2010 and April 2011. Mr. Brady reportedly allowed large quantities of the painkiller Oxycodone to pass through security while he was stationed at the airport in his capacity as a Westchester County Police Officer. The United States Justice Department stated drug smugglers carried as many as 8,000 pills per trip through the airport. According to the United States Drug Enforcement Agency, the drugs were smuggled from Florida and later distributed in Connecticut.
Mr. Brady and about 20 other people who were allegedly related to the purported drug smuggling ring were arrested in September 2011. Following a November 2011 indictment, Mr. Brady resigned from the Westchester County Department of Public Safety after 11 years on the police force. In February 2012, Mr. Brady pleaded guilty to two federal offenses: receipt of a bribe by a public official (18 U.S.C. § 201) and extortion under the color of right (18 U.S.C. § 1951). In addition to the 37 month prison term, Mr. Brady was also ordered to forfeit the money he reportedly received as a result of his involvement in the drug smuggling ring and sentenced to three years of additional supervision following his release from prison. If the case had gone to trial, Mr. Brady faced up to 35 years in prison.
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More Blogs:
Former Columbia University Student Sentenced to Five Years Probation for On Campus Drug Sales, New York Criminal Defense Attorney Blog, March 16, 2012
Guilty Plea In Westchester County Airport Drug Distribution Case, New York Criminal Defense Attorney Blog, February 27, 2012
Additional Resources:
Cop Sentenced in Westchester Airport Drug Ring, by Robert Michelin, The Daily White Plains
Cop Pleads Guilty in Westchester Airport Drug Smuggling, by Robert Michelin, The Daily Greenwich