A former Bronx NYPD officer was sentenced on Monday to seven and a half years behind bars for taking bribes and serving as a drug mule.
SDNY
A disgraced former Bronx NYPD officer was sentenced on Monday to seven and a half years behind bars for taking bribes and serving as a drug mule.
Andrew Nguyen of Harriman, NY, fessed up to charges of bribery and narcotics trafficking conspiracy back in January, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York announced.
According to court documents, while working as a transit cop, Nguyen served as a drug mule for an unnamed drug dealer and transported the substances, including approximately eight kilograms of cocaine, while carrying a firearm for protection. He likewise carried his NYPD identification during these transports in an effort to evade accountability.
Federal prosecutors say that the corrupt cop also used his position to accept tens of thousands of dollars in bribes between 2020 and 2023. He has been sentenced to 90 months behind bars.
“Andrew Nguyen repeatedly abused his position of public trust by soliciting and accepting tens of thousands of dollars in bribe payments,” U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton said. “In exchange, he helped the leader of a drug trafficking organization, including by transporting kilograms of dangerous drugs, providing armed protection, and using an NYPD police car and equipment to conduct and document a fake car stop and seizure. In short, Nguyen endangered the very community that he swore an oath to protect.”
In addition to prison time, Nguyen was also sentenced to three years of supervised release.
Nguyen’s illicit activities were discovered when he was caught in a sting operation in December of 2023, transporting cocaine for the drug dealer. His transgressions date all the way back to 2008, when court documents show Nguyen attempted to remove evidence from the home of his drug lord boss, including heroin and a firearm.
He was fired from the department in 2023.