Maplewood attorney pleads guilty to smuggling contraband

A Maplewood attorney who worked for nearly 20 years as an assistant prosecutor for the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office has admitted he participated in a scheme to smuggle contraband, including marijuana and tobacco, to inmates in the Essex County Jail, U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman announced. Brian Kapalin, 67, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to smuggle contraband into a federal detention facility before U.S. District Judge Mary Cooper on Wednesday, Dec. 3. Kapalin faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000. He will be sentenced March 18.