Erie County District Attorney John J. Flynn announces that 45-year-old John A. Gugino of Hamburg was sentenced this morning before Hamburg Town Court Justice Gerald P. Gorman to a one-year conditional discharge. As part of his sentence, the defendant was ordered to perform 50 hours of community service and pay a $205 fine.

On October 17, 2020, at approximately 10:30 p.m., the defendant was the subject of a search warrant when he was stopped by Erie County Sheriff’s Office deputy while driving on Milestrip Road in the Town of Hamburg. A small quantity of cocaine was found during a search of the defendant’s vehicle.

Gugino was initially charged with a felony for possession of cocaine, but further testing determined that the weight of the cocaine was a misdemeanor level. He pleaded guilty to one count of Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Seventh Degree (Class “A” misdemeanor) on May 10, 2022. He pleaded guilty to the highest sustainable charge on the morning his non-jury trial was scheduled to begin.

The defendant, who was off-duty at the time of his arrest, was employed as a jail deputy with the Erie County Sheriff’s Office at the time of the crime. He was terminated from his position in June 10, 2022.

DA Flynn commends the Erie County Sheriff’s Office Narcotics Unit for their work in this investigation.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Frank A. Strano of the Major Crimes Unit.