Ex-Trooper Who Shot Himself, Triggering Manhunt In West Hempstead, Sentenced To Jail

By Michael Mashburn From Daily Voice

A former New York state trooper who shot himself and triggered a massive multi-state manhunt will now spend time behind bars.

Thomas Mascia, 27, of West Hempstead, was sentenced to six months in jail and five years of probation on Wednesday, Oct. 22, in Nassau County Court. It followed his guilty pleas to falsely reporting an incident, tampering with evidence, and official misconduct.

Mascia told colleagues in December 2024 that he was shot in the leg by a man while checking on a disabled vehicle on the Southern State Parkway in West Hempstead, as Daily Voice reported.

His claim triggered a large police response and a manhunt for the suspect, described by Mascia as a “dark-skinned man.”

Investigators eventually determined Mascia shot himself and staged the scene by dropping shell casings on the roadway.

Records from Mascia’s patrol car showed he drove to his home, Hempstead Lake State Park, and back to the Southern State Parkway over the course of several hours the night of the alleged shooting, prosecutors said.

Police found no evidence to support his account. No projectiles were ever recovered at the scene, and investigators said there were no tire marks, video footage, eyewitnesses, or license plates matching the description Mascia provided.

The .22 caliber rifle Mascia used to wound himself was later recovered during a search of his family’s West Hempstead home.

Mascia underwent emergency surgery and was greeted at the hospital by fellow officers before his story began to unravel.

His parents, Thomas Sr. and Dorothy, were also charged after police said they uncovered an illegal assault-style firearm and $80,000 in cash inside the family’s West Hempstead home. 

Thomas Sr., a former NYPD officer, was previously convicted in a 1990s cocaine ring, CBS New York reports.

In addition to jail, Mascia’s plea deal requires mental health treatment and payment of nearly $290,000 in restitution.

“Thomas Mascia’s actions were as meticulously calculated as they were disgraceful," said Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly. "His lies wasted hundreds of hours of law enforcement manpower, deeply cost taxpayers in Nassau County, and betrayed the public’s trust of those in uniform."