NYPD officers charged in bribe kickback scheme Updated May 11, 2021; Facebook Share STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — A retired NYPD officer and two current cops in the department were charged in federal court Tuesday with running a kickback scheme that netted the trio cash payments while also selling personal information of crash victims to injury lawyers and physical therapists. Robert Smith, 44, the retired officer from Long Island, also faces charges stemming from a scheme in which he allegedly trafficked heroin for an unnamed drug organization. In 2016, Smith and Officer Robert Hassett, 36, allegedly directed vehicles damaged in crashes to an unnamed licensed tow trucking and automobile repair business, court records indicate, instead of using the department’s tow truck program that randomizes licensed companies to pick up and remove vehicles from a scene.