Andre Clarke, Oxycodone Conspiracy, Vermont 2014

A shocking case of corruption and deceit has come to light in the Green Mountain State as NYPD Officer Andre Clarke, 36, of the Bronx, New York, was arrested today in Queens for conspiring to distribute Oxycodone in Vermont from 2011 through June 2014.

According to prosecutors, Clarke supplied Oxycodone to Michael Foreste, of Valley Stream, New York, who in turn supplied the pills to Dannis Hackney, of Burlington, Vermont, who sold them to Burlington area addicts. Foreste personally brought Hackney pills, and sometimes sent them via U.S. Mail.

Clarke, Foreste, and Hackney transferred drug proceeds using various bank accounts. Foreste and Hackney are also each charged with two counts of money laundering based on this banking activity.

The Indictment charging Clarke with drug trafficking is an accusation only; he is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted on the Oxycodone conspiracy charge, each defendant faces up to 20 years in prison. The money laundering counts carry also carry a maximum penalty of 20 years imprisonment.

The investigation spanned more than a year and was a collaborative effort of Homeland Security Investigations; the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Drug Enforcement Administration; and the New York City Police Internal Affairs Bureau.

Assistant United States Attorney Christina E. Nolan is handling the prosecution.

Clarke will have his initial appearance tomorrow in federal court in Brooklyn, where he is expected to be given a date to report to Vermont federal court for arraignment.

At this hearing, Clarke will enter a plea to the charge. On July 7, 2015, a federal grand jury sitting in Burlington handed down a multi-count Indictment, which charges Clarke, Michael Foreste, and Dannis Hackney with the Vermont Oxycodone conspiracy.

Foreste and Hackney are charged with additional drug trafficking and money laundering offenses. They have been in custody since their arrests in June 2014 and are awaiting trial.

Clarke, who has been employed as a New York City police officer since 2002, lived in the Bronx and Long Island during the events in question.

Mandatory Facts: Defendant: Andre Clarke, Age: 36, Exact Criminal Charges: Conspiracy to Distribute Oxycodone, City and State: Bronx, New York, Exact Date: 2011 - June 2014, Sentence or Outcome: Up to 20 years in prison if convicted, Dollar Amounts: Not applicable

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-vt/pr/nypd-officer-andre-clarke-arrested-conspiracy-distribute-oxycodone-vermont