Long Island Drug Dealer Sentenced for Violent Crimes

A Long Island drug dealer, who was released from prison by President Trump, has been convicted of sexually assaulting a child’s nanny and attacking an infant.

Jonathan Brown, 41, received a 27-month prison sentence on Monday in a Brooklyn federal court after violating the terms of a presidential pardon from 2021 by committing a new crime.

In an incident back in February, while imprisoned in Nassau County, Brown entered the bedroom of his children’s live-in nanny, put her in a headlock, and groped her while she was engaged in an intimate act. The New York Times reported on this troubling event.

The nanny, who participated in the sentencing hearing via phone, requested that prosecutors present a victim impact statement on her behalf during the proceedings.

In her statement, she expressed that the attack caused her “deep emotional trauma” and significant trust issues. She stated that she felt relief that justice had finally been achieved.

This assault is just one of several violent acts attributed to Brown since his release after serving three years of a ten-year sentence, granted on the last day of President Trump’s term.

Brown’s history dates back to a 2010 arrest for running a major marijuana distribution operation that smuggled substantial quantities of the drug from Canada to New York. Although he received a plea deal and stayed in prison until Trump pardoned him, his troubles were not over.

Records indicate that Brown took a photo with Trump at a Florida golf course in 2022. Later, in August 2024, he was arrested for reportedly assaulting both his wife and his 75-year-old father-in-law.

Brown’s recent violent conduct raises more concerns. Just a month after the assault on the nanny, he physically attacked a man during a Shabbat dinner at his Long Island home and pushed the man’s three-year-old son to the ground, resulting in visible injuries.

Prosecutors revealed that the former drug dealer, with connections to Trump ally Charles Kushner, had also assaulted worshippers at a synagogue and attacked a hospital nurse in separate encounters over the last few months.

In a dramatic confrontation, Brown allegedly told another worshipper, Edward Miller, “Do you know who I am? Do you know what I could have done to you?” after punching Miller in the face during a dispute over noise levels during prayer.

Miller described Brown as “panicking” during the incident, which arose after Miller asked him to keep quiet.

Additionally, Brown operated a questionable financial firm, imposing exorbitant interest rates on small business loans that sometimes reached 1,000 percent, while using intimidation tactics to collect debts, state authorities noted.

Prosecutors had requested a five-year sentence, arguing that Brown’s “brazen acts of violence” instilled fear in his victims and reaffirmed his status as a threat to the community.

“This defendant had multiple chances,” stated Assistant U.S. Attorney Tanya Hajjar in court.

On another note, Brown’s federal public defender mentioned that Brown had recently faced health issues related to his use of hallucinogens. During sentencing, Judge Kiyoshi Matsumoto expressed hope that Brown’s apparent remorse and pledge to lead a law-abiding life would be genuine, urging him not to squander the opportunity for change.