WEEHAWKEN — A Weehawken police sergeant pleaded guilty on Wednesday in Hudson County Superior Court to charges brought against him in June for stealing up to $700,000 in township funds by diverting them to faux businesses, according to NJ.com.
Around the time the officer was being investigated, last April, he was also the subject of a police search after someone notified police that he had possibly overdosed on pills and disappeared. A three-hour search commenced in a Bergen County park that included 40 officers, a helicopter, and search dogs. When they found him he was taken to the hospital.
He was suspended without pay after he was charged in June.
In June, Weehawken Mayor Richard Turner told the Reporter that approximately four months earlier, the Finance Department became suspicious of transactions that Patrick Cannon, a 22-year police veteran, was making as part of his duties.
Now, he faces a possible sentence of between five and ten years in prison. Since he struck a plea deal he will most likely serve five years with possibility of parole after two, officials told NJ.com. As part of the plea, he will never be able to work as an officer again.
He will face sentencing on Feb. 9, and a restitution hearing will be held to figure out how much money he will be required to return.