By Ivan Pereira
A Bronx postal worker who sold drugs he obtained from John F. Kennedy International Airport while on duty was sentenced last week for his crimes, the Queens district attorney said.
Felix Soto, 49, pleaded guilty last month to criminal possession of a controlled substance in the incident that took place over the summer, Queens DA Richard Brown said. Soto, who was sentenced March 2 to two years in prison, was observed giving a package containing 2-kilogram bricks of cocaine to a person while he was in his postal truck during an investigation, according to Brown.
“The defendant attempted to use his position as a postal employee to put dangerous drugs out on the street. In doing so, he broke the law and betrayed the trust of the Postal Service and the public as well. My office has zero tolerance for such actions,” he said in a statement.
In July, investigators discovered a package that had the contraband was sent to the Bronx via JFK Airport and arrived at a Bronx post office, the DA said. On July 14, around noon, investigators observed Soto in uniform in his truck parked at the intersection of Croes and Westchester avenues in the Bronx when he gave the box to an individual who came to the truck, Brown said
The drugs had a street value of a quarter of a million dollars, according to the DA.
Reach reporter Ivan Pereira by e-mail at ipereira@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4546.
