By Steve Neavling
A former DEA agent who accepted bribes from a drug trafficker was sentenced to 135 months in prison on Wednesday.
Nathan Koen, 45, was charged in November 2019 with one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine and one count of bribery of a public official.
The drug-related charges were dismissed in exchange for a guilty plea to bribery.
Koen accepted bribes from a large-scale drug trafficker in exchange for providing sensitive law enforcement information that helped the trafficker run his drug organization and avoid detection by authorities.
“This defendant’s actions are a disgrace to the thousands of dedicated law enforcement officers who work with integrity every day to protect and serve our communities,” U.S. Attorney Jonathan D. Ross said in a statement. “His greed and deception have no place in law enforcement, and we are pleased to see this case come to its rightful conclusion.”
Koen, who had been working for the DEA since 2002, came under investigation by the FBI in 2018. At the time, he was a group supervisor in the Little Rock DEA office.
In interviews with the FBI, the drug trafficker said he had paid Koen cash in exchange for information and protection.
