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May 30, 2008
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Friday
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Jamadi-ul-Awwal 24, 1429
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US customs officers held on bribery charges
By Our Correspondent
NEW YORK: US federal agents arrested two Customs and Border Protection officers from Long Island and others on Wednesday and charged them with being part of a Kennedy Airport bribery and drug ring.
According to a statement from the US attorney’s office, Supervisory officer Walter Golembiowski, 65, of Bethpage, was charged with bribery conspiracy and narcotics importation conspiracy. Inspector John Ajello, 51, of Hicksville, was charged with bribery conspiracy.
The investigation was conducted by the New York Organised Crime Drug Enforcement Strike Force, which includes local police, FBI, DEA, Homeland Security and other federal units. The force said that from 2004 to this year, Golembiowski and others allowed counterfeit goods, hashish and other drugs to be cleared through customs at Kennedy Airport.
Golembiowski and Ajello earned “tens of thousands of dollars” for their part in the conspiracy, law enforcement sources said. Both have been customs and border protection officers for more than 20 years, the press statement said.
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