ROGUE EX-TROOPER VOICES REMORSE

Drug Dealer Gets 24 Years In Prison

Disgraced former state trooper Moises Hernandez couldn't hold back
the tears as he addressed the court yesterday before being sentenced
for dealing drugs, laundering money and threatening witnesses.

Wearing a tailored brown suit his wife had dropped off for him
earlier in the week, Hernandez had to pause several times as he read
from a piece of paper.

"I would like to apologize to this court and the New Jersey State
Police," Hernandez said, his right hand still handcuffed to another
prisoner who also faced sentencing yesterday. "I am truly one hundred
percent remorseful. I have dishonored my badge," he said as he wiped
tears from his eyes.

Yesterday morning, he was sentenced to 24 years in state prison by
Superior Court Judge Joseph Donohue in Elizabeth.

An undercover State Police trooper turned drug dealer, Hernandez, 39,
was convicted April 27 of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and
marijuana, witness tampering, official misconduct, money laundering
and racketeering conspiracy.

With good behavior, Hernandez could be eligible for parole in five years.

Described by prosecutors as a traitor to the force, Hernandez was
able to sell kilos of cocaine by using the very informants who were
supposed to help him ferret out drug dealers in Union County.

For more than four years, Hernandez operated with impunity. During
that time, he arranged a favorable deal for one of his drug-dealing
friends; looted 100 kilos of cocaine from a truck in a motel parking
lot and threatened to kill witnesses who cooperated with authorities,
all while on the state payroll.

As one of his rewards, he bought himself a convertible, a Mercedes SL
that cost close to six figures.

The officer's illegal actions were uncovered by chance because of a
wiretap set up to catch drug dealers. Hernandez admitted to his
misconduct in April as part of a plea bargain with prosecutors.

"What your crime shows is the arrogance of power," Donohue said as he
passed sentence. "You thought you were prince of the city, that you
were above the law."

Choking back tears, Hernandez said the stress of 17 years of
undercover work and putting his life on the line to catch drug
dealers pushed him over the edge and to the other side, he said.

"I embarrassed the State Police and my family," Hernandez said to the court.

Hernandez said his bosses expected him to be like "Superman" and if
he showed them signs of weakness, he would quickly be labeled a
"basket case" and reassigned.

"I always tried my best, but the pressure was a constant burden on
me," Hernandez said. "It took a huge toll on me and my family."

His lawyer, Raymond Brown, said Hernandez, who was lauded for
crime-solving abilities, continues to wrestle with himself for
crossing the line.

Greed made Hernandez turn to a life of crime, Union County Assistant
Prosecutor Julie Peterman said.

"He earned nearly $100,000 a year, they gave him a badge, a gun, a
car. The world was his oyster and he chose crime," Peterman said. "He
bought himself a $98,000 Mercedes with his drug proceeds. He chose
crime over a law-abiding life."

Union County Prosecutor Theodore Romankow said Hernandez put police
officers in jeopardy particularly when he helped a cocaine dealer by
identifying a police surveillance car.

"A lot of police officers suffer from working undercover but they
don't start distributing drugs," Romankow said.

His wife, Tina Hernandez, 35, who faces charges of money laundering
and conspiracy to distribute cocaine, said she did nothing wrong.

As for her husband, Tina Hernandez said she believes he "got confused
about which side he was on."

Hernandez must give up $59,000 he has in a bank account and the right
to ever again hold public employment.

"He is a man who made a mistake and he is now trying to find
redemption," said Brown, who had asked for a 20-year sentence.

"For 16 years I was recognized as one of the most dedicated
troopers," Hernandez told the court yesterday. "I was proud of my career."