Man sentenced for smuggling pills on Air Force jet

NEW YORK – A military cargo loader who admitted smuggling thousands of Ecstasy pills aboard a U.S. Air Force jet from New York to Germany was sentenced Friday to 17 ½ years in prison.

Master Sgt. John Fong, 38, was sentenced to the same prison term as the U.S. military pilot who flew the jet.

Fong made at least four trips on a military jet to carry drugs to the U.S. He expected to be paid $85,000 for the final trip, which ended in his arrest along with the arrest of the pilot, Capt. Franklin Rodriguez, the judge said.

Federal agents watched Fong load bags and boxes into a BMW before approaching the men and asking to inspect their possessions, in which 28 bags of pills were found, authorities said.