Yonkers detective pleads guilty to perjury after suit by wrongly accused man

A Yonkers police detective pleaded guilty to a perjury charge Friday in a Manhattan courtroom, admitting that he lied about a drug arrest last year.

News 12 Staff

Dec 27, 2019, 7:55 PM

Updated 1,580 days ago

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A Yonkers police detective pleaded guilty to a perjury charge Friday in a Manhattan courtroom, admitting that he lied about a drug arrest last year.
Sean Fogarty was the subject of a federal lawsuit brought by a wrongly accused Bronx man.
Fogarty, who had been assigned as a member of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Task Force, conducted an illegal search of 3410 Barker Avenue in the Bronx, on April 18, 2018.
During the search, 17 kilograms of cocaine were seized from a third floor, although the warrant only permitted search of the first and second floors.
The illegal search sent Calvin Powell of the Bronx to prison for months. During this time, his father passed away and Powell missed the funeral.
Fogarty pleaded guilty to misdemeanor perjury in the third degree.
Mayor Mike Spano released a statement, stating, “Because Detective Fogarty was assigned to the DEA task force and not under direct supervision by the Yonkers Police Department, I cannot comment on the specifics of this case. I will say that the Yonkers Police Department demands 100 percent integrity from all its officers, and that they must accept the consequences if they fail that test."
News 12 is told Westchester County District Attorney Anthony Scarpino will review past convictions involving Detective Fogarty to see whether any cases involving him were the result of illegal actions.
"If we determine that any conviction was the result of an illegal action by Detective Fogarty, we will immediately move to vacate the conviction," says Scarpino.
It is unclear how many cases may be impacted.
News 12’s Ali Warshavsky spoke with Yonkers Police Benevolent Association President Kevin Olson, who believes Fogarty made a mistake.
"At the end of the day Sean made a mistake and he’s paying dearly for it," says Olson. “We are confident that his cases will hold up. We hope the DA's office is smart about this and fair and doesn't jump to any conclusions. If they are fair about it, then I don't think anything else will be in jeopardy.”
Fogarty must retire from the Yonkers Police Department and has already started the process. His retirement is effective today.
News 12 reached out for comment from both parties’ lawyers but did not receive a response.


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