NEW YORK — Justin Volpe, the NYPD officer convicted of sodomizing Abner Louima with a broomstick in 1997 has been released early from federal prison, according to authorities.
The disgraced cop, who pleaded guilty in 1999 while on trial, finishes his 25-year sentence on Jan. 10, 2024, but was allowed to go home early.
The federal Bureau of Prisons website lists Volpe as being part of a Residential Reentry Management program, which places inmates in halfway houses or allows them to return home to finish out their sentences.
Volpe was released by the BOP under the agency’s “First Step” re-entry program, which accesses inmates over 13 criteria, according to a source.
He was transferred on June 13 from federal lockup in Sandstone, Minn., according to prison spokesman Donald Murphy.
“For privacy, safety, and security reasons we do not discuss any individual inmate’s conditions of confinement, reasons for transfer, or specific release plans,” he said.
In 2021, while serving time in federal lockup in Beaumont, Tex., Volpe requested “compassionate release” due to COVID-19.
The ex-cop told the judge that he had contracted the virus behind bars but received no medical treatment. He also complained about mold in the prison and close quarters there.
He asked that he be allowed to return home to Staten Island to look after his “dear 76-year-old mom who is a widow and needs physical and emotional health.”
Brooklyn U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Geddes strenuously opposed the move.
“The crimes committed by the defendant are among the most horrific crimes prosecuted in this district and left a lasting harm on Mr. Louima,” she wrote in her response.
Volpe admitted in court that he shoved a wooden stick up Louima’s rectum, then held it to the Haitian immigrant’s face. He then threatened to kill Louima if he told anyone.
Louima ended up in the hospital for months and when word got out about what happened, protests spread throughout the city.
A message left with Volpe’s home was not immediately returned.
