A judge Tuesday gave a former North Braddock police officer two years of probation after he pleaded guilty to drug charges just before his scheduled nonjury trial.

Craig William Gibson, 47, of McKeesport, had been accused of dealing drugs in Allegheny and Westmoreland counties, according to the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office.

A state grand jury had recommended charges against Gibson last year for alleged cocaine trafficking in both counties in 2022.

Gibson pleaded guilty Tuesday in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court to manufacturing and delivering drugs, hindering apprehension and obstruction of law enforcement, court records show. Prosecutors withdrew the five remaining charges.

Gibson also entered the court’s Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition program on Tuesday after pleading guilty to an April 2024 DUI and related charges.

“Justice has taken its course,” North Braddock Borough Manager Jay Bish told TribLive in a phone interview after the plea was announced. “We’re not thrilled that when North Braddock is in the paper, it’s about a former borough employee. … It is what it is.”

Bish said he could not immediately confirm Gibson’s hiring and termination dates with the borough, or other personnel information.

North Braddock no longer has its own police department. The Eastern Regional Mon Valley Police Department now covers North Braddock, East Pittsburgh and Rankin.

That regional police force Tuesday deferred comment to borough officials.

Kyle Donovan, a county public defender who represented Gibson, was not immediately available for comment.

The state attorney general’s office announced charges against Gibson last summer.

“When a law enforcement officer breaks the law they are sworn to uphold, it undermines the entire criminal justice system and scars the reputations of the many officers making daily sacrifices to keep us all safe,” then-Attorney General Michelle Henry said at the time.

The attorney general’s office did not respond Tuesday to phone calls or an email seeking comment.

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