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Cop’s eyes detect hidden drugs

By Tom Tracy

A cop from the 62nd Precinct was honored recently for pulling over a “transformer” of sorts. During the January meeting of the 62nd Precinct Community Council, Captain John Sprague, the precinct’s commanding officer, honored Police Officer Oliver Muir with a “Cop of the Month” award for corralling a car that a drug dealer converted to hide his product. In the end, there was definitely “more than meets the eye.” Sprague said that the car, a rental which was seen driving erratically near the corner of New Utrecht Avenue and 65th Street, had a special trap door inside leading to a cubby hole where drugs was found packaged for $50 and $20 sale. Muir, an anti crime cop who has been assigned to the precinct for the last eight years, pulled the car over just before midnight on December 27. He immediately noticed that the steering wheel had been tampered with, Sprague said. Since the driver couldn’t come up with any documentation to prove that he was one who had rented the vehicle, Muir took a closer look and found the trap door. Police estimated that 81 bags of cocaine worth nearly $6,000 were found inside. The driver, who had been arrested several times for assault and drug possession, was charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance. The 62nd Precinct protects communities in Bensonhurst and Bath Beach.