Photo Courtesy of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of NY
The cocaine found in the aircraft had a street value of approximately $285,000 to $320,000.
By Forum Staff
A federal jury in Brooklyn on Tuesday convicted Paul Belloisi, an American Airlines mechanic at John F. Kennedy International Airport, of all three counts of an indictment charging him with conspiring to possess cocaine, conspiring to import cocaine, and importing cocaine. The verdict followed a one-week trial before United States District Judge Dora L. Irizarry.
Photo Courtesy of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of NY
Paul Belloisi
As proven at trial, on Feb. 4, 2020, American Airlines flight 1349 arrived at JFK Airport’s Terminal 8 from Montego Bay, Jamaica. The aircraft was selected for a routine search by CBP officers from the JFK Airport Anti-Terrorism Contraband Enforcement Team. The officers found 10 bricks of cocaine weighing 25.56 pounds—hidden inside an electronics compartment on the underside of the cockpit. The cocaine was replaced with fake bricks and sprayed with a substance that glows when illuminated with a special light. CBP officers and HSI special agents placed the aircraft under surveillance from a distance and shortly before it was scheduled to take off for its next flight, they observed Belloisi drive up and pull himself inside the electronics compartment. Belloisi, 55, was confronted by law enforcement who observed his gloves glowing under the black light indicating he had handled the fake bricks. Belloisi was also carrying an empty tool bag and the lining of his jacket had cutouts sufficiently large enough to hold the bricks. The cocaine found in the aircraft had a street value of approximately $285,000 to $320,000.
“As proven, the defendant was caught red-handed trying to facilitate the smuggling of a large stash of cocaine hidden in an electronics compartment of the aircraft,” said Brooklyn U.S. Attorney Breon Peace. “This corrupt airline mechanic not only abused his position of trust and undermined the security of a vital border crossing in our district, but was also willing to potentially endanger the safety of travelers as well as the community.”
When sentenced, Belloisi faces up to 20 years in prison.
