What to Know
- NYPD officer Joseph Recca was arrested on Tuesday, accused of selling hundreds of oxycodone pills per day on Long Island
- He was arrested as part of a drug ring investigation launched after the death of a 20-year-old Copiague man
- Recca has been suspended from the department without pay
An NYPD officer has been accused of slinging hundreds of oxycodone pills a day - including to a man that prosecutors say later died of a drug overdose.
Officer Joseph Recca of West Islip was one of three men rounded up Tuesday on Suffolk County. The 28-year-old has pleaded not guilty to conspiracy, official misconduct and drug count and released without bail on Wednesday.
Authorities say that Recca, a three-year veteran of the force, sold the opioids for $15 per pill dating back at least until Sept. 2019. That's when one of his customers, a Copiague man, died of an overdose.
It was that overdose that sparked the investigation, leading to video and audio surveillance. But investigators are still trying to determine whether Recca gave the 20-year-old the drugs that killed him.
When Recca was arrested, authorities said they found more drugs in a secret compartment of his vehicle.
The NYPD's internal affairs bureau was involved in the investigation; the department said Wednesday that it had suspended Recca without pay. On Thursday, the department noted that Recca had resigned.
News
In a statement Thursday, NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said, "Policing is a privilege. Corruption, in all forms, is intolerable within the NYPD. In tarnishing his shield and oath, this officer will be held to the highest account the law provides."
The other two men arrested have been identified as Michael Sosa and Michael Corbett.
Prosecutors say that Sosa was the chief supplier, and that they found a loaded ghost gun, $70,000 cash, oxycodone and packing materials at his Brentwood home.
Corbett, of West Islip, is accused of buying drugs from Recca.
Attorney information for the three men wasn't immediately available.
