Former NYC police union head sentenced to 2 years in prison in fraud case

The former head of one of New York City's police unions was sentenced to two years in federal prison on Thursday on a fraud charge in which prosecutors accused him of stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from the association, local media reported.

US District Court Judge John Koeltl handed down the sentence to Ed Mullins, who was president of the Sergeants Benevolent Association (SBA) from 2002 to 2021, during a hearing in a Manhattan courtroom, the New York Daily News reported.

In January, Mullins pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and agreed to forfeit US$600,000 (about RM2.7 million) to the US government and pay US$600,000 back to the union.

"Although I regret everything that has led me to this day, I remain motivated to make this right, to correct my flaws and to restore to all those who've I injured," the Daily News quoted Mullins as saying during Thursday's hearing.

Between 2017 until he resigned as union chief in October 2021, Mullins used a personal credit card to dine at expensive restaurants and shop at luxury stores, prosecutors said. Mullins then submitted to the union false and inflated expense reports for reimbursement, prosecutors.

In all, Mullins stole at least US$600,000 from SBA, according to prosecutors.

Koeltl also sentenced Mullins to three years supervision after his release from prison, the Daily News reported.

The SBA, headquartered in lower Manhattan, is the fifth-largest police union in the US. The union's 13,000 members are active and retired New York Police Department.