Ex-Swampscott cop sentenced on drug charges

SWAMPSCOTT – A former Swampscott police officer was sentenced Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Boston on federal drug charges.Thomas Wrenn, 38, of 17 Prospect St., Nahant was sentenced to time served, two years supervised release – the first six months of which are to be served in home confinement with electronic monitoring.According to U.S. Attorney’s Office Spokesman Christina D’Orio Sterling, Wrenn could have received up to 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine for each count.Wrenn, a 10-year veteran of the Swampscott Police Department, pleaded guilty to federal felony charges of distributing oxycodone and cocaine over a five-year period in June.During that hearing, the government alleged Wrenn began purchasing and distributing Percocet pills approximately five years ago. Prosecutors also alleged Wrenn distributed Percocet or Vicodin pills on approximately 20 occasions and distributed cocaine on three occasions in 2006. During the same period, he also snorted cocaine and abused Percocet or Vicodin pills on dozens of occasions.Wrenn was arrested March 13 by the Drug Enforcement Agency in front of the Green Tea Chinese restaurant on the Lynnway where he purchased 50 Percocet pills from an associate who was cooperating with law enforcement. After his arrest, Wrenn allegedly told authorities he had used cocaine and Percocet. A criminal complaint against him alleged he bought Percocet pills, which are a form of oxycodone, beginning in the fall of 2006. According to the affidavit, Wrenn allegedly routinely consumed Percocet and cocaine and in some instances did so while in uniform and conducted some drug transactions out of his vehicle. According to the affidavit, Wrenn also distributed a quantity of Percocet pills to a former Nahant police officer and a young woman in connection with a romantic liaison.According to a published legal notice, the DEA seized Wrenn’s bright yellow 2003 Hummer H2 on the same day of his arrest. At that time, attorney Michael J. Sullivan and June W. Stansbury, special agent in Charge of the DEA’s New England Field Division, announced Wrenn agreed to forfeit the car he used in connection with his purchase and distribution of narcotics.On March 16, Wrenn was suspended for five working days without pay and was placed on unpaid administrative leave. The Board of Selectmen voted to hold a disciplinary hearing, which was never actually scheduled because Wrenn resigned voluntarily before a hearing could be held.Police Chief Ronald Madigan declined to comment on the case but he said everyone is relieved this is behind them.”It has been a trying time for everyone on the department,” he said. “The department members were not only investigating one of their own, they were concerned as to how the actions of one individual would reflect badly on the department and take away from the good work officers do here everyday. I know the residents have a high level of confidence and trust in the department.”