May 30, 2017 By Jason Cohen
An off-duty police officer and his girlfriend were arrested Thursday after they allegedly sold drugs to an undercover detective in Astoria on two separate occasions and were later found to have large quantities of cocaine in their possession.
Jose Sierra, an NYPD officer, and Lina Maria Bedoya Muriel allegedly sold cocaine from Sierra’s car to an undercover officer on 38th Ave. twice this month, according to the City’s Special Narcotics Prosecutor.
The pair sold 10 packets of cocaine for $160 on May 16 and 12 packets of cocaine for $200 on May 23 out of Sierra’s 2017 Honda Accord, according to the narcotics prosecutor.
On Thursday, in the vicinity of 24-18 89 Street in Flushing, Sierra and Bedoya Muriel were in the same car, when investigators executed a search warrant and recovered 18 packages of cocaine from Muriel and 36 additional packages from a black bag in the trunk of the car.
A second search warrant, executed at the basement apartment of 24-18 89 St., resulted in the recovery of a shrink-wrapped package of cocaine weighing about 125 grams, a pistol registered to Sierra, three digital scales and passports in the names of Sierra and Bedoya Muriel. In total, more than four ounces of cocaine was found in their car and home.
The pair have both been charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance in the second and third degrees, two counts of a criminal sale of a controlled substance in the third degree and criminally using drug paraphernalia in the second degree.
They are being held on $50,000 bail and are due back in court tomorrow.
