Former NYS trooper pleads guilty to staging his own shooting on Long Island
A former New York State trooper who shot himself and then lied about it pleaded guilty Wednesday on Long Island.
Thomas Mascia pleaded guilty to falsely reporting an incident, tampering with physical evidence and official misconduct. He acknowledged he planned the shooting, planted spent rounds on the parkway and then drove to a park and shot himself in the leg.
Mascia faced up to four years in prison, but will only receive six months in jail, plus five years probation. He will also pay restitution of $289,511. Sentencing is set for August 20.
The 27-year-old from West Hempstead was expected to enter a plea earlier this month, but when the judge asked him if he was in good mental health – a routine question – Mascia answered, "No." He quickly changed his answer to yes, but the judge put the plea on hold after he signed a court document as "Trooper" Mascia even though he had been fired from New York State Police.
Trooper staged his own shooting on Southern State Parkway
Mascia claimed he was shot in the leg while checking on a disabled vehicle on the Southern State Parkway last October.
His report set off a manhunt for the vehicle and the suspect he described, but investigators discovered Mascia actually shot himself.
"The shooter we were all looking for only existed in Mascia's head, in his imagination," Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said when the charges were announced earlier this year.
Prosecutors said he staged the whole thing -- dropped shell casings on the parkway, drove to Hempstead Lake Park where he shot himself, and then returned to report the shooting.
Police have suggested Mascia was looking for attention or sympathy from an ex-girlfriend. CBS News New York learned he also claimed he was injured by a hit-and-run driver in 2022, but that story was unsubstantiated.
Mascia's parents, Dorothy and Thomas Sr. -- a former NYPD officer convicted in a 1990s cocaine ring -- were charged with criminal possession of a firearm after prosecutors said a search of the home they share with their son uncovered an illegal assault-style gun and $80,000 in cash.
