Law Enforcement and US Military caught in drug sting

It's all about the Benjamins folks. More proof that the obscene profits of the black market in drugs corrupts even those, or perhaps we should say especially those, charged with "protecting" us.

Pretending to be cocaine traffickers, undercover FBI agents in Arizona snared 16 current and former law enforcement officers and U.S. soldiers who accepted more than $222,000 in bribes to help move the drugs past checkpoints, the government said Thursday.

...All 16 agreed to plead guilty to being part of a bribery and corruption conspiracy, said Noel Hillman, a Justice Department official.

You'll notice a certain disparity in the government's treatment of these defendants.

Those who pleaded guilty were freed on their own recognizance. Justice Department prosecutor John W. Scott said all probably would start out facing sentences of 34 to 36 months for a single conspiracy count, but that the sentences could be less depending on the defendants' cooperation. He said he would ask for an indefinite delay in sentencing.

You can be certain that if the defendants were black or Hispanic civilians the court would not be inclined to be so lenient.

[Hat tip to Ben Harris]